With a handful of European contenders for the Breeders' Cup Turf dropping from consideration this week it appears Kitten's Joy will be an even heavier favorite for the race than he was following his overwhelming victory in the Oct. 2 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic.
Azeri is not the only female whose connections are mulling a start against males in the Breeders' Cup. Lady Tak, who is one of the nation's top sprinters, is being considered for the $1 million Breeders' Cup Sprint.
Lady Tak is trained by Steve Asmussen, who also trains Sprint hopefuls Cuvee and Bwana Charlie.
"If pre-entries were today, I'd enter all three of them," said Asmussen. "But obviously we're going to let things sort out."
The connections of Sharp Lisa got more than just a quick return on their investment when she finished second in last Friday's $400,000 Alcibiades Stakes at Keeneland. They got themselves a bonafide contender for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies.
European-based runners always add a little intrigue to the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, primarily because the horses are usually making their first start on dirt and their first start in a route race.
Three years ago, Johannesburg conquered both obstacles to win the Juvenile and finish the year unbeaten, and was named champion on two continents.
The Breeders' Cup Classic lost some of its star quality on Tuesday when the Niarchos family decided not to send Bago, winner of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, to Lone Star Park.
"We have decided to bypass the Breeders' Cup Classic as Bago will be staying in training as a 4-year-old in 2005," said Alan Cooper, the Niarchos family's racing manager.
Saint Liam, who was narrowly beaten by Ghostzapper in last month's Woodward Stakes at Belmont Park, had a recent training setback that might prevent him from running in the $4 million Breeders' Cup Classic at Lone Star Park on Oct. 30, his trainer, Richard Dutrow Jr., said Tuesday morning.
According to Dutrow, Saint Liam "was not himself for three or four days" last week. Although nothing serious turned up, and Saint Liam has resumed training, Dutrow is being circumspect regarding the Classic.
LEXINGTON, Ky. - Trainer Dale Romans said Saturday at Keeneland that owner Ken Ramsey has decided John Velazquez will be the jockey on Kitten's Joy in the Breeders' Cup Turf, the $2 million race for which the standout 3-year-old colt is the likely favorite.
Velazquez got the call over Jerry Bailey, the Hall of Fame jockey who had ridden Kitten's Joy in five of six races before Velazquez got his first ride on the colt in an impressive romp in the Oct. 2 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont Park. Velazquez picked up the mount after Bailey was sidelined with a fractured wrist.
The way Dynever won the San Bernardino Handicap to start his 2004 campaign was indicative of a horse who was going to be among the leaders of his division this year. He had won the Lone Star Derby in 2003, finished that year with a third-place effort in the Breeders' Cup Classic, then romped to an easy victory in the San Bernardino, while earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 113.
He has not won since.
Three of the leading candidates for champion older filly or mare and a candidate for the 3-year-old filly title will be in action this weekend in two significant preps for the Oct. 30 Breeders' Cup Distaff.
First up is Saturday's Grade 1, $750,000 Beldame Stakes at Belmont Park, which is expected to feature older runners Sightseek and Storm Flag Flying and the 3-year-old Society Selection. And then Sunday at Keeneland, the division's two-time defending champion, Azeri, should be a heavy favorite in the Grade 1, $500,000 Overbrook Spinster Stakes.
The field for the 21st Breeders' Cup Mile will undergo some major sculpting within a span of just a few hours Saturday, when three major turf races - all of them contested at the same one-mile distance as the main event three weeks later - will be run from coast to coast.