The Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile
1 1/16 miles, dirt, 2-year-olds
Santa Anita, Race 9
Friday, Nov. 1, 4:03 p.m. PT
This Breeders’ Cup Juvenile shapes up as a classic duel between two standout colts, Dennis’ Moment and Eight Rings. The third major contender, Maxfield, would have added further intrigue, but he has been withdrawn due to a soundness issue.
ARCADIA, California – Fourteen young horses with a short run to the first of two turns, plus the generally complicating factor of 2-year-olds growing, changing, progressing literally every day.
Seems like the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf, to be run for the 13th time on Friday at Santa Anita, ought to be a caldron of chaos.
Maybe the best idea is to keep it simple.
ARCADIA, Calif. – It was not Dennis Albaugh’s time in 2016. Perhaps it will be his moment in Friday’s $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita.
In 2016, the Albaugh-owned Not This Time fell a neck short to Classic Empire in the Juvenile at Santa Anita. Friday, Albaugh and his son-in-law Jason Loutsch, who race under the banner Albaugh Family Stable, are back at Santa Anita with Dennis’ Moment, who was made the 8-5 morning-line favorite for the Juvenile.
ARCADIA, Calif. – For the better part of the last two decades, in the biggest events in horse racing, John Velazquez could typically be found on the back of a horse trained by Todd Pletcher.
The John Lennon-Paul McCartney of Thoroughbred racing, Velazquez and Pletcher have teamed to win 1,795 races. Among the 282 graded stakes they’ve won together are a Kentucky Derby, a Belmont Stakes, and four Breeders’ Cups. In the history of racing, no jockey has earned more purse money than Velazquez ($413 million); no trainer has earned more purse money than Pletcher ($382 million).
SANTA ANITA
Weather: Clear
Track: Fast
Temp.: 45
ARCADIA, Calif. - The main track at Santa Anita was full to overflowing with Breeders’ Cup contenders on Tuesday morning, with nearly everybody now in town for the big event here Friday and Saturday.
ARCADIA, Calif. – It is highly doubtful Sweet Melania will win Friday’s Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Santa Anita in the stylish manner she won the Grade 2 Jessamine Stakes at Keeneland on Oct. 9.
Sweet Melania was always near the front and stormed clear under jockey Jose Ortiz to win the Jessamine by 5 1/2 lengths.
“That was an authoritative win on the grass,” trainer Todd Pletcher said. “She really gave him that turn of foot.”
ARCADIA, Calif. – In the same way that Bill Belichick is annually expected to have his New England Patriots in contention for an NFL championship, trainer Bob Baffert is expected to have a contender for Thoroughbred racing’s most important events.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Never in the history of the Breeders’ Cup has a horse won a two-turn dirt race with just one prior start, but that’s exactly what Donna Veloce will try to do on Friday at Santa Anita in the $2 million Juvenile Fillies, and she will garner plenty of support to pull it off.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Less than 24 hours after he was entered in Friday’s $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, Maxfield was forced out of the race due to an unspecified issue with his right front leg, trainer Brendan Walsh said Tuesday.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Landeskog will be scratched from the Breeders' Cup Sprint on Saturday, trainer Doug O'Neill said Tuesday morning.
"He's 95 percent. Not 100. We have to wait for another day," O'Neill said. "He's a cool horse with a bright future."
O'Neill said that Landeskog "cooled out a little funny" after his last work on Saturday. "He tied up, not bad," he said.
