2014 Breeders' Cup Classic: Bayern makes own luck, wires field
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With the nation’s best older males out of contention, the
2014 Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Classic
became all about the 3-year olds. When the dust settled, the sophomores had not
disappointed, sweeping the top 6 finishing positions. And though the Classic
had been billed as a match-up between Derby and Preakness winner California
Chrome and undefeated Shared Belief, it was Bayern who proved the best of the best, wiring the field en route
to his biggest career win.
The entire complexion of the race changed as soon as the
gates clanged open. Even though he broke quickly, Bayern also broke inwardly,
mugging Shared Belief and setting off a chain reaction that ultimately took both
Shared Belief and Moreno, who would
have challenged Bayern for the lead, out of contention. Without Moreno on the front end pushing the
pace, Bayern and pilot Martin Garcia were able to dictate the pace and set
comfortable splits of :23.12, :46.44 and 1:10.22.
While Bayern was getting an ideal trip on the lead, the
situation did not improve for Shared Belief as the field passed the grandstand
for the first time. Caught in traffic, jockey Mike Smith was forced to check
Shared Belief, losing more momentum, as Toast of New York crowded them from the
outside and Moreno shifted over in front of them seeking racing room.
After the race, Smith explained just how badly the start
affected his mount. “I was never able to get comfortable after getting hit at
the break. I kept getting bounced around all the way around the turn and Moreno
kept getting out and bumped through the backside. Even so, he ran a dynamite
race,” he said. When asked if the start cost him the race, Smith replied
affirmatively, “I think it cost me the race.”
Moreno’s luck was no better. Part of the chain reaction
coming out of the gate, the Eric Guillot trainee was then bumped by Toast of
New York in the opening furlong. Jockey Javier Castellano then steadied him
while in traffic but could not get the rank Moreno to settle. Things only went
from bad to worse from there as Moreno faded badly and was eased in the final
furlong.
Jockey Javier Castellano’s post-race statement was along the
same vein as Smith’s. “We lost our race at the break when the seven (Bayern)
shot out of there and ran into everyone. That pretty much took us out of the
game,” he stated.
With Bayern loping along on the lead and Toast of New York
and California Chrome giving chase from 2nd and 3rd
respectively, the top 3 running positions did not change at all throughout the
race. Behind those three, the running positions altered a bit from call to
call, but when the real running began in the stretch, none of the other 11
contenders could make any headway on the top 3 despite some improving their
position down the lane.
Stopping the clock for the 1 ¼ mile race in 1:59.88, Bayern
crossed the wire a mere nose in front. Closely mirroring last year’s finish, Toast of New York finished 2nd,
holding third place finisher California Chrome at bay by a short neck. Race favorite Shared Belief ran 4th
in what was his first career defeat. Belmont Stakes winner Tonalist got up for 5th after trailing the field through
the early stages of the race. The order of finish was completed by Candy Boy,
Cigar Street, Zivo, Imperative, Footbridge, V. E. Day, Prayer for Relief,
Majestic Harbor and Moreno.
Winning jockey Martin Garcia was understandably thrilled with Bayern’s performance, stating, “It’s
an amazing feeling, a dream come true. To compete in these races, especially
this day, is a big thing for everyone. In this situation, you don’t take away
when a horse likes to run on the lead. We let him run, and if anything happens,
you make adjustments. In this race, he broke really good and I took advantage.”
Like Smith, Garcia was questioned about the inquiry, to which he replied, “I
was pretty sure that I didn’t do anything. In racing, these things happen.”
It was not straight off to the winner’s circle for Bayern,
however. Shortly after the field crossed the wire, the Inquiry sign was posted
as the stewards reviewed the start of the race. After hearing from all involved
parties and examining the tape for what seemed to be an agonizingly long time,
the stewards eventually decided to let the results stand and make the original
order of finish official. After all the drama, trainer Bob Baffert and jockey
Martin Garcia had their first Breeders’ Cup Classic wins.
After sweating out the inquiry, Baffert talked about how great it felt to win his first Classic,
saying, “This has been so long in the making. When he hit the wire, I was just
like…it’s been so many years in the making and to finally get it done (win the
Classic) it was just so greaqt, and with my wife, Jill, here, and my son
(Bode). We go through a lot to get here, and then there was the inquiry and all
of that.”
Off 6-1 odds, Bayern paid $14.20/$8.00/$5.20 for the win.
Toast of New York returned $18.00/$10.80 off 18-1 odds, and a $2 show bet on
California Chrome, sent off at 4-1, was worth $5.40. The $1 exacta paid
$124.90, the $1 trifecta returned $1,043.60 and the $1 superfecta was worth
$3,817.40.
By Offlee Wild and out of the Thunder Gulch mare
Alittlebitearly, Bayern is owned by Kaleeh Shaw, Inc. As a two-year old, the
colt was picked up out of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2013 Two-Year Olds in
Training Sale by Ed Savant, the nom de plume for Kaleeh Shaw, for $320,000. The
son of Offlee Wild has since more than earned back his purchase price, raking
in $4,389,680 in purse money while compiling a 10: 6-1-1 record. By virtue of
his Classic win on top of his performance throughout the rest of the year,
Bayern has made an interesting case to be included in Three-Year Old Male and
perhaps even Horse of the Year discussions.
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