Main Sequence tries to topple Euros in BC Turf
RACE REPLAY IS NOT AVAILABLE
ARCADIA, Calif. – Main Sequence was at the end of an unsuccessful 2013 campaign in England when he was sent to trainer Graham Motion in Maryland. The transfer, suggested by former trainer David Lanigan, has resulted in a transformation for the gelding.
Main Sequence is America’s leading hope for Saturday’s $3 million Breeders’ Cup Turf at Santa Anita.
Since joining Motion, the 5-year-old Main Sequence is unbeaten in three starts, all Grade 1 races – the United Nations Stakes at Monmouth Park in July, the Sword Dancer Stakes at Saratoga in August, and the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont Park on Sept. 27.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 12 Main Sequence. Trainer Graham Motion is 24-8-3-1 with a $7.27 ROI over the past five years in turf route graded stakes of 12 furlongs and longer. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
:: Learn more about Formulator | Follow the @DRFFormulator Twitter feed and get free Formulator facts
Main Sequence will need to run even better to win the BC Turf at 1 1/2 miles against a field of 11 rivals that includes four well-regarded European shippers – Brown Panther, Chicquita, Flintshire, and Telescope.
:: BREEDERS’ CUP 2014: Post positions, comments, and odds
Flintshire, second in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in Paris on Oct. 5, is the expected favorite. Main Sequence is 6-1 on the morning-line, but his current form, and second-place finish in the 2012 English Derby, has left Motion confident.
:: DRF Live: Real-time updates from the Breeders’ Cup, including live video coverage
“If he comes close to his form of his 3-year-old season, I don’t see any reason why he can’t be competitive with those guys,” Motion said of the Europeans.
The race lost some appeal on Wednesday when Magician, the winner of the 2013 BC Turf, was withdrawn because of lameness, trainer Aidan O’Brien said.
O’Brien, who has won the race a record-equaling four times, starts the 4-year-old filly Chicquita, the only female in the field.
The race drew a diverse group, including the stakes-winning former claimer Big John B; Twilight Eclipse, who has been second or third behind Main Sequence three times; and the longshots Finnegans Wake, Hangover Kid, and Starspangled Heat.
KEY CONTENDERS
Main Sequence (Last 3 Beyers: 104-102-100)
◗ Main Sequence does not win by much, a head or a neck in his three victories this year.
“I’ll take it,” Motion said.
Main Sequence is a closer, who will be well behind the four-time stakes winner Imagining, the expected pacesetter.
“He’s a slow horse away from the gate,” Motion said. “I think he’s improved every time he’s run in this country. Every race I’ve seen a progression. I notice it physically in his appearance and the way he trains.”
Flintshire (No American starts)
◗ Trained in France by Andre Fabre, Flintshire is winless in six starts since the Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris in July 2013. In the Arc, he finished two lengths behind the brilliant racemare Treve.
Flintshire, a 4-year-old by Dansili, has a patient style. He could give Fabre a third career win in the BC Turf.
Telescope (No American starts )
◗ Telescope is trained in England by Michael Stoute, who has won this race four times. Telescope has been pointed to the BC Turf since a third behind two 3-year-olds in the Juddmonte International Stakes in England in August – Australia, the winner of the English Derby, and The Grey Gatsby, winner of the French Derby.
A firm turf course should work in Telescope’s favor, according to Harry Herbert of Highclere Thoroughbred Racing, which owns the 4-year-old colt.
“He handles fast ground well and he’s got the tactical speed to handle Santa Anita,” Herbert said.
Hardest Core (Last 3 Beyers: 103-97-95)
◗ Hardest Core ran the best race of his career to win the Arlington Million on Aug. 16, his most recent start, and only appearance in a Grade 1 race. He has won four consecutive races in the last year, but has never faced this tough of a field.
Chicquita (No American starts)
◗ She has had a busy autumn, with three starts since Sept. 14. Chicquita was 15th in the Arc, and third in the British Champions Filly and Mare Stakes at Ascot over heavy turf on Oct. 18, drifting out badly when leading in the final furlong.
O’Brien said Chicquita’s best chance is for jockey Frankie Dettori to try and reach the front in the final strides.
“She’s in good form over a mile and a half,” he said. “She has to be ridden patiently. At Ascot, she got to the front a furlong out and she veered.”
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 11 Chicquita. Trainer Aidan O'Brien is 39-11-5-3 with a $3.52 ROI over the past five years in North American Grade 1 turf routes. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
:: Learn more about Formulator | Follow the @DRFFormulator Twitter feed and get free Formulator facts
Brown Panther (No American starts)
◗ The 6-year-old Brown Panther was scratched from the Grade 1 Canadian International at Woodbine on Oct. 19 after unseating jockey Richard Kingscote in the warmups.
“That was a bit of a disaster,” trainer Tom Dascombe said. “He’s never been like that before in his life.”
Brown Panther won the Group 1 Irish St. Leger at 1 3/4 miles on turf at The Curragh in his last start on Sept. 14.
“He’s going to need a career-best and he had a career-best last time he ran,” Dascombe said. “I don’t see why he can’t keep going forward.”
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 10 Starspangled Heat. Is 3 for 3 when racing within seven days of his previous start; is 2 for 35 in all other starts. Mike Hogan
:: Learn more about Formulator | Follow the @DRFFormulator Twitter feed and get free Formulator facts
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 13 Big John B. Trainer Phil D'Amato is 47-13-3-6 with a $4.57 ROI over the past year in all turf routes. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
:: Learn more about Formulator | Follow the @DRFFormulator Twitter feed and get free Formulator facts