Ryan opts to bypass Breeders’ Cup Sprint with Book’em Danno
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Trainer Derek Ryan has confirmed that he will bypass the Breeders’ Cup Sprint with division leader Book’em Danno and plans instead to send his star to the farm and point toward a 2026 campaign.
Book’em Danno steadily ascended the ranks of the sprint division during an 11-week stretch at Saratoga between June 7 and Aug. 23, during which he won the Grade 3 True North, Grade 2 Alfred G. Vanderbilt, and Grade 1 Forego. The Forego was a Win and You’re In qualifier for the BC Sprint.
Ryan had repeatedly claimed throughout the summer to have little interest in running Book’em Danno in this year’s Breeders’ Cup, despite the horse’s status in the division. Ryan made that decision final on Saturday.
“I was never keen on going to the Breeders’ Cup anyway and with the disgraceful thing they are doing to Paco Lopez, we’re going to call it a year and send him to Florida to freshen up for next season,” a clearly agitated Ryan said. “Paco is the hardest-working jockey around and has definitely been a major reason for the success this horse has had this season.”
Ryan was referring to the six-month suspension recently handed down by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority to Lopez, who has been Book’em Danno’s regular jockey all year and was aboard for each of his three graded stakes victories at Saratoga.
“If you had asked me when the year began to bet whether we’d have won one stakes at Saratoga I’d have probably said no, let alone win three,” Ryan said. “And he had three really hard races in a row up there this summer yet still ran what I thought was his best one the last time.
"I’m also not a big fan of Del Mar either. Had the Breeders’ Cup been at Keeneland this year, things might have been different. But he’s a big, heavy horse who would be at a disadvantage running over a speed-favoring course like Del Mar. And we have to do what we feel is in the best interests of the horse, which will be looking at coming up with a game plan to get him to the Breeders’ Cup next year at Keeneland.”
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