A 3-year-old colt and a 6-year-old mare might be the only American horses standing in the way of a European win in this year’s $2 million Breeders’ Cup Mile.
Three-year-old Annapolis faced older horses for the first time and beat all of them in the best top-to-bottom North American grass mile of 2022, the Coolmore Turf Mile, run over the Keeneland course on Oct. 8.
A mare who comfortably beat males earlier this month, a two-time Group 1 winner in Germany, a veteran with more than $15 million in earnings, and the 2021 runner-up are among 15 horses pre-entered for the Breeders’ Cup Turf on Nov. 5 at Keeneland.
The $4 million race at 1 1/2 miles is the richest grass race in the United States.
The pre-entries are led by Rebel’s Romance, who has won his last four starts for Godolphin and trainer Charlie Appleby. Godolphin and Appleby won the 2021 BC Turf at Del Mar with Yibir, who is not part of this year’s field.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – There were no major surprises when pre-entries were revealed for the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf, which promises to have a full gate of 14 with its 24th running at Keeneland.
In all, 15 are pre-entered, with Dreamloper expected to run against males in the Breeders’ Cup Mile. Her defection would allow the only also-eligible, Mise En Scene, into the 1 3/16-mile race. Mise En Scene, one of six 3-year-old fillies pre-entered, will indeed be on the overseas flight in anticipation of being allowed to run, according to the International Racing Bureau.
Slow Down Andy is getting faster – just in time for the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile.
He was one of 13 horses pre-entered for the Nov. 5 race at Keeneland – and one of six who also were pre-entered in other races. The field for the Dirt Mile, which ends at the first finish line, will be limited to 12.
Laurel River, Jack Christopher, Cyberknife, Cody’s Wish, Gunite, and Senor Buscador are among the top horses who were pre-entered Monday for the Dirt Mile. Final entries are next Monday, Oct. 31.
The biggest surprise regarding the pre-entries for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf on Nov. 4 at Keeneland is a name absent from the list of 23 candidates.
The French filly Blue Rose Cen was not pre-entered after suffering a bruised foot earlier this week, trainer Christopher Head wrote on Twitter. A five-length winner of the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac on Oct. 2 at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, Blue Rose Cen would have been favored in the $1 million BC Juvenile Fillies Turf at a mile.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Everything went pretty much as expected when pre-entries were taken for the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, with the winners of all the major divisional preps among those set to clash in a showdown that surely will produce a champion.
The only thing certain about the Grade 1, $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, which looks like a mad 5 1/2-furlong scramble with questions to answer for several youngsters, is that it will have a full starting gate to add to the chaos.
The Juvenile Turf Sprint has been a popular addition to the Breeders’ Cup program since it was first run in 2018. The race has had a full field, with also-eligibles on the program, for each of its first four runnings.
A study co-conducted by an epidemiologist who analyzes Thoroughbred fatality data has found a significant statistical correlation between the use of raceday furosemide and sudden death, a finding that is sure to influence the ongoing debate over the raceday use of the diuretic to mitigate bleeding in the lungs.
The National Horseplayers Championship will be held in the month of March through 2026 under in extension of an agreement between the National Thoroughbred Racing Association and Caesars Entertainment, the parent company of the host site in Las Vegas.
