Mongolian Groom to be nominated to Breeders' Cup for $200,000

Mongolian Groom, upset winner of the Awesome Again Stakes on Sept. 28 at Santa Anita, will be nominated to the Breeders’ Cup for $200,000 in order to make him eligible to run in the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 2 at Santa Anita, trainer Enebish Ganbat said Tuesday.

“I think we will go to the Classic,” said Ganbat, who trains Mongolian Groom for the Mongolian Stable of owner Ganbaatar Dagvadorj. “He has to pay. There’s no other way.”

The Awesome Again was a Win and You’re In for the Classic, but because neither Mongolian Groom nor his sire, Hightail, were nominated to the series a one-time fee of $200,000 must be paid by pre-entry day, Oct. 21, to make Mongolian Groom, a 4-year-old gelding, eligible to Breeders’ Cup for the rest of his racing career. The Win and You’re In does mean that his $150,000 final entry fee for the Classic is waived.

There were suitors who came forward willing to help toward the $200,000 nomination fee, Ganbat said.

“Many people were happy to pay $200,000, but they wanted to go 50-50, and the owner doesn’t want that,” Ganbat said.

:: BREEDERS’ CUP 2019: See DRF’s top contenders

Ganbat said having won a prep for the Classic at the track where Mongolian Groom trains, and where the Classic will be run this year, was a major factor in the decision.

“We have the advantage. The horse is at the track, no transportation,” he said. “He likes the track. Why not go?”

Mongolian Groom has won three times in 16 starts. Earlier this year, he was third in the Santa Anita Handicap, fourth in the Gold Cup at Santa Anita, and third in the Pacific Classic at Del Mar.

The Classic is expected to be headed by McKinzie, the beaten favorite in the Awesome Again, and Code of Honor, winner of the Travers and Jockey Club Gold Cup in his last two starts.