Four fillies and mares from the United States and abroad – Dacita, Ashiana, Hydrangea, and Birdie Gold – have earned expense-paid berths for the Nov. 4 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Del Mar with triumphs in designated Breeders’ Cup Challenge races. Another pair will join those qualifiers after this weekend following Saturday’s Grade 1 Rodeo Drive at Santa Anita and Sunday’s Group 1 Prix de l’Opera at Chantilly in France.
One trainer, when recently asked if his Breeders’ Cup hopeful would be pointed to the Sprint or the Dirt Mile, said he’d chosen the Dirt Mile, adding that one reason was because he didn’t think he could beat “that freak” in the Sprint.
When asked if he was referring to the defending Sprint champion Drefong, he politely replied, “No, I’m talking about Imperial Hint.”
On the surface, it looks like Time Test has failed every test to prove himself a true top-class horse. In races other than Grade 1’s or Group 1’s, he has six wins from nine tries, but in starts at the highest level he is 0 for 5.
Maybe it’s still not time to give up on Time Test winning a major race. Chad Brown, who trains the 5-year-old for Khalid Abdullah’s Juddmonte Farms, isn’t ready.
“He trains like a horse that you just feel has that Grade 1 in him,” Brown said. “I think he can win a big one. Hopefully, the conditions are right this fall that he can accomplish that.”
ARCADIA, Calif. – As with laundry, produce, and princes of Bel Air, the two trainers of this year’s top three contenders for the Breeders’ Cup Classic have decided that fresh is best.
Arrogate, Collected, and Gun Runner all will come into the $6 million Classic on Nov. 4 at Del Mar off layoffs of at least two months. If any of those three win, it will mark the third straight year the Classic will have been won by a horse trained in that fashion.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Ayacara is proven on dirt, with a maiden race win at a mile at Del Mar in his second start on Aug. 25. Whether he has a future in stakes on dirt or will be switched to turf will be better known after Saturday’s Grade 1 FrontRunner Stakes for 2-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles on dirt at Santa Anita.
The winner of the FrontRunner receives a fees-paid berth to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Del Mar on Nov. 4. Ayacara is owned by Charles Marquis and trained by Keith Desormeaux, who may consider sending him to the BC Juvenile Turf on Nov. 3, pending Saturday’s outcome.
Trainer Mark Casse could be the “Mile Man” of this year’s Breeders’ Cup. He has candidates for all four championship races being run at the distance, including Awesome Slew for the $1 million Dirt Mile on Nov. 3 at Del Mar.
Casse also has World Approval on deck for the $2 million Mile on Nov. 4, while Flameaway could develop into a $1 million Juvenile Turf starter Nov. 3, and Wonder Gadot and/or Miss Mo Mentum could land in the $1 million Juvenile Fillies Turf the same day.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Unique Bella, unbeaten in three starts this year but unraced since March, continues to work quickly in advance of a comeback in the Grade 3 L.A. Woman Stakes for female sprinters at Santa Anita on Oct. 8.
Wednesday, Unique Bella worked six furlongs in 1:11.60, the fastest of 10 works at the distance. Unique Bella has had fast works all through September.
“She’s doing it pretty easy, too,” trainer Jerry Hollendorfer said. “We’ll have another work and we’ll be set.”
Among world-class races in France and New York and to a lesser extent California, the field for the $4 million Breeders’ Cup Turf on Nov. 4 at Del Mar will be better known by Sunday evening.
Judging from very recent history, the results of the Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont Park on Saturday deserve as much respect as Sunday’s Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Chantilly, France, Europe’s top flat race with a purse of approximately $5.89 million.
Both Nero and St Patrick’s Day came into the summer at Del Mar with hopes of making the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile for trainer Bob Baffert, but the highly regarded pair both will miss the race, as neither has worked since his most recent start.
St Patrick’s Day, a full brother to 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, ran twice at Del Mar, with a victory on Sept. 2 following a second-place finish on Aug. 20.
“I’m going to hold off on him,” Baffert said. “He’s a bit immature.”
