Tourist tops Tepin in the Breeders' Cup Mile

Third time’s a charm for Tourist as jockey Joel Rosario guided the five-year-old to a mild upset over defending champion Tepin in the grade one Breeders’ Cup Mile at Santa Anita. This was the third straight year Tourist has run in the Breeders’ Cup Mile for trainer Bill Mott, he had previously finished 8th and 13th.

Two starts ago Tourist finally added a grade one race to his resume after seven attempts, today he won on the biggest stage this sport has to offer for owners WinStar Farm LLC, Wachtel Stable and Gary Barber. The key to his win was the ride, as Joel Rosario was able to navigate his way to the rail from post #5 and secure the ground saving rail trip around the grass course.

Fourteen went to post today and the bettors finally settled on the European shipper, Limato (IRE), as the 7-2 top choice. When the gates sprung it was What a View from post position #1 who immediately went for the lead as jockey Tyler Baze gave a few right handed reminders to ensure they secure their position. Midnight Storm, the other expected speed who was in post #13, broke well and settled into second as What a View crossed the finish line the first time with a two length lead.

Meanwhile, the four horses who all vied for favoritisim; Tepin, Ironicus, Limato, and Alice Springs, all broke well and took up position behind the front runners in the middle of the pack. After carving out a first quarter in 21.81, What a View led Midnight Storm by 2 ½ lengths. The favorite Limato was sitting in fourth some six lengths back. Tepin, under regular pilot Julien Leparoux, was sitting comfortably in the two path in sixth, some 7 ½ lengths off the lead. Ironicus sat in eighth, a length ahead of Alice Springs who was 10 lengths back.

Down the backstretch What a View extended his lead to 4 ½ lengths as Midnight Storm chased, but nearing the far turn that lead started to dwindle as Midnight Storm started to bear down on the race leader. Miss Temple City, who had been prominent throughout, also put pressure on as she sat to the outside of Midnight Storm. Together they passed What a View entering the stretch, but it was Tourist, and jockey Joel Rosario, moving fastest to their inside.

After passing the tiring What a View, it was Tourist who struck the front after battling briefly with Midnight Storm. Tepin was four wide entering the stretch and was full of run in the center of the turf course as she started to pick off horses one by one. It was too late, Tourist had put too much space between himself and Tepin as he held off the defending champion by a half-length at the wire. Midnight Storm battled on bravely to finish a very good third, a neck in front of the fast closing Ironicus.

The last two years Tourist has tried this race only to have bad luck on different levels. Trainer Bill Mott reflected on his last two attempts saying “The first trip out here was a horrible trip, as you know. Sometimes you can go into that first turn and you can get knocked around a little bit, and he actually got knocked to the middle of the racetrack that day. Lost all chance, I think, and it was over before they headed out down the back side. Last year we were at Keeneland, and the ground came up very, very soft, and something that he doesn't really care for. We'd had a little bit of a foot issue going into the race, so there were some things that didn't fall in place perfectly.”

This year Tourist had a great trip as Jockey Joel Rosario explained after the race, “It was a good trip, a perfect trip. It looked like they were going fast up front and I just wanted to save ground the whole way around and not have to stop him at any point in the race. I had to take a little hold turning for home to keep my position, but after that he got a clear run.”

As for Tepin, she lost nothing in defeat. It’s been a remarkable run for this mare and Julien Leparoux reflected on the race and her season saying, “We had a good race. I was right behind the favorite and was in a good spot. She made a run but the winner got a dream trip on the inside. What else can you say about her? She had an incredible year. We were hoping she would end the year with a win but it’s been a pleasure to ride her. “I’m not sure if they are going to retire her but it has been a pleasure being on her. It’s been a thrilling year. It’s great.”

As for the favorite at 7-2, Limato, she ran an even race and finished sixth, less than four lengths behind the winner. Alice Springs came up empty in the stretch and finished 10th, a length and a half behind Limato. The pacesetter What a View finished last.

For Tourist his record now stands at 18-6-3-4 and his earnings sky rocketed to $2,170,340 after the $1,100,000 payday from this race. The son of Tiznow was bred in Kentucky by WinStar. Tourist paid $26.80, $9.40, $6.20. Tepin yielded $4.60 and $3.80 to her backers, and Midnight Storm $6.60. The final time of 1:31.71 was two hundredths of a second off of the course record. 72,811 attended the races today, a Santa Anita record.