The $1 million Filly and Mare Sprint could have one of the shortest fields for the two-day Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita, as only nine pre-entered horses have the seven-furlong race listed as their first preference.
In all, 12 were pre-entered in the Filly and Mare Sprint, but three have the Distaff as first preference – Mo See Cal, Secret Spice, and Serengeti Empress.
Several horses with designs on Horse of the Year – including Bricks and Mortar, Code of Honor, Midnight Bisou, and Mitole – were among the 188 individual horses announced Wednesday as pre-entries in the 14 races that will comprise the 36th Breeders’ Cup, to be held at Santa Anita for the 10th time on Nov. 1 and 2.
Santa Anita Tuesday, October 22
Weather: Clear
Temperature: 68
Track: Fast
ARCADIA, Calif. - The conventional notion that the Santa Anita main track has been on the slow side during the current meeting may have been tempered just a bit Tuesday morning when Mitole worked five furlongs from the gate under jockey Mike Smith in 58.29 while preparing for the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Mitole will have been off for more than two months when he goes in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint on Nov. 2, so his connections desired getting a sharp work into him in preparation for a race that is shaping up as the strongest of the two-day festival.
On Tuesday morning at Santa Anita, they got all that, and more.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Eurico Da Silva said he’s looking forward to riding El Tormenta in the Nov. 2 Breeders’ Cup Mile at Santa Anita. Trained by Gail Cox, El Tormenta earned a fees-paid berth for the Grade 1 turf event when taking the Grade 1 Woodbine Mile here in September.
“He’s trained very well,” Da Silva said. “Gail’s doing everything right for the horse. I think he’s going to run big. If I didn’t think he had a shot, I would not go.”
ARCADIA, Calif. – Flavien Prat, the leading rider in Southern California this year, will ride Kentucky Oaks winner Serengeti Empress in the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Distaff on Nov. 2 at Santa Anita, according to his agent, Derek Lawson.
The Breeders’ Cup Distaff is run at 1 1/8 miles for fillies and mares.
:: BREEDERS’ CUP 2019: See DRF’s special section with top contenders, odds, comments, and more
ELMONT, N.Y. – Trainer Chad Brown pre-entered 10 horses Monday for the two-day Breeders Cup World Championships at Santa Anita on Nov. 1-2 and said that while he pre-entered Bricks and Mortar in two races, he is leaning toward starting him in the $4 million Turf rather than the $2 million Mile.
Bricks and Mortar, 5 for 5 this year and a candidate for Horse of the Year, has never run 1 1/2 miles, the distance of the Turf, but the more Brown has watched the horse train, the more he thinks he’ll handle it despite having not run since Aug. 10.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Although it has been a year and a half since Midnight Bisou raced in California, she still has an affinity for the Santa Anita racetrack.
The 4-year-old filly posted an important five-furlong workout early Monday morning under jockey Mike Smith as she prepares for her role as favorite in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff.
Midnight Bisou worked at 6:40 a.m., breaking off at the five-furlong pole with the colt Comedian. She inched ahead of her workmate in deep stretch, and clockers gave her a work time of 1:00.40. Everyone else gave her thumbs-up.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – After a slow and easy work a week ago coming out of her victory in the Grade 1 Cotillion at Parx on Sept. 21, it was time for Street Band to get a little more serious Monday morning at Churchill Downs.
