PURE SENSATION, by Zensational

Last 3 Beyers (104-103-102)

*Has never been better, coming off three straight stakes and triple-digit Beyer Speed Figure wins.

*Drew the rail for the 2015 Turf Sprint at Keeneland, got shuffled back early and never threatened. He must break from the rail again while also making his first run down the tricky downhill course at Santa Anita on Saturday.

:: BREEDERS’ CUP 2016: Odds, comments, video previews, and more

The key to the "Hit It or Split It" challenge is to identify winners. Prices be darned!

On the face of it, the goal should be to smoke out the logical "horses to beat" in each race and bet the $10 minimum to win on those horses. A runner like Dortmund seems like the perfect example.

MASOCHISTIC, by Sought After
Last 3 Beyers: 110-107-50

• The defection of Lord Nelson makes him the favorite and the horse to beat, although he may have to deal early with severe pace pressure from both Drefong and Delta Bluesman.

• He’s a different horse than the one who finished last in the 2015 Sprint at Keeneland, having learned to rate and relax while also maturing physically after being given an extended vacation by trainer Ron Ellis.

Santa Anita
Main track: Fast
Turf: Firm
Weather: Clear
Temp. 66

ARCADIA, Calif. – The first local appearance of trainer Aidan O’Brien’s large and imposing Breeders’ Cup contingent, led by Turf favorites Found and Highland Reel, highlighted Thursday morning’s training session at Santa Anita, which was tempered some after Suedois sustained a stress fracture in his foot. The injury occurred during a routine gallop over the turf course and will keep him out of the Turf Sprint.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Just as the sun started to peek over the eastern horizon on Thursday morning at Santa Anita, California Chrome came onto the track for a gallop, the San Gabriel Mountains providing a perfect backdrop. It would be hard to imagine a more symbolic moment for this Breeders’ Cup, which is taking place in the Golden State, with the favorite son of the California racing and breeding industry at center stage Saturday.

Managers of major stud farms know that the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile is a fertile hunting ground for stallion prospects, so they will closely watch Saturday’s race at Santa Anita.

“Top-class 2-year-old form is always a positive when it comes to a stallion’s CV [curriculum vitae],” said Dermot Ryan, manager of Coolmore America in Versailles, Ky. “For a horse to win a major 2-year-old race, he obviously needs natural ability but also the right temperament and physical makeup to deal with the pressures of racing from Day 1.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Lord Nelson, the 5-2 morning-line second choice, had to be scratched from Saturday’s $1.5 million Breeders’ Cup Sprint after having to be treated for an infection in his right foreleg, his connections announced Thursday.

Trainer Bob Baffert said Lord Nelson nicked himself in either a recent workout or in his stall. Baffert said a little irritation developed into an infection.

The Breeders’ Cup always has been intended to take the breath away.

In the beginning, it was the money, more purse money than American racing ever had seen before. As it evolved, it was the competition, international in scope, dizzy with intensity. At one point, it became the action and how astounding it was to see just how much people wanted to bet, upward of $150 million over a two-day show.

Suedois sustained a stress fracture of a foreleg during a turf gallop Thursday and has been withdrawn from the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint.

The injury is not thought to be serious, and Joe Foley, racing manager for Suedois’s owners, said he expected Suedois to return to action in 2017.

Based in England with trainer David O’Meara, Suedois finished second in the Group 1 July Cup, his best performance of the season.

IRONICUS, by Distorted Humor
Last 3 Beyers: 105-106-100
◗ Finished like a freight train in the Shadwell Turf Mile, getting his last quarter-mile in 22.55 seconds, .60 faster than the next-quickest closing fraction, and a full second faster than victorious Miss Temple City, who beat him by a nose.
◗ Has had a nick and a scrape here and there this year, limiting his starts, but in the end that means he comes into the Mile a fresh horse.