Am I the Only One Going to the Breeders Cup?
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Reading article after article and watching the latest news on the Breeder’s Cup makes me feel like I the only one attending. This showcase of champions seems to be dwindling in attendance, not by the fans but by the horses. Seems like every horse that would be a sure favorite in their division is now leaving their stall vacant. So who will take their place?
Leading up to the Jockey Gold Cup it was announced that Tizway would not be running. He was sitting it out due to a fever but preparing for the Breeder’s Cup Classic. It was only a few days ago that we lost him to retirement. He showed a lot of promise in this field and should have been one of the favorites with the betting public. This year he won the Whitney and the Metropolitan. He had the second fastest time in the Met and with the Whitney win he was in contention for Horse of the Year honors. He will be sent to Spendthrift Farm where he will start his next career. Looking forward to seeing what he can do as a proud papa.
My pick for Breeders Cup Classic is, of course, Havre De Grace.
Prior to this we heard the news that Zazu was out for the season due to injury. This up and comer was being trained for the Ladies Classic this year. She took the winning purse in the Lady’s Secret at Santa Anita securing her spot in the Ladies Classic. She probably would not be THE favorite, but she was sure to be a sentimental fan favorite by sporting the colors of the 2010 Horse of the Year. Lucky for us, she will return next year but we will not be seeing this brilliant filly at the Breeders Cup this year.
The Lady’s Secret also saw the downfall of one half of our favorite rivalry, Blind Luck. She battled all year with Havre De Grace for older horse dominance. Finally, after shipping everywhere in the country, Hollendorfer decided to take her home to California to race her in the Pacific Coast Classic. Shortly after, it was decided he would run her instead in the Lady’s Secret. When the gates flew open that day, Blind Luck who is always in the back of the pack, was just a little off. The rest of the field ran their race and Blind Luck just galloped around the track. It was not like our super-filly, and nobody could really explain what happened. Her rider, Garrett Gomez, simply said that he just could not keep up. A bit after the race we learned that she would be sent to the November Keeneland breeding sales. Best of luck to this fighter; may she enjoy her well deserved retirement.
My pick for Breeders Cup Lady Classic is…It’s Tricky.
Luck has not been kind to John Sadler in these weeks leading up to the big weekend; as we talked about before he lost Zazu and it also appears he lost his big gun Twirling Candy to retirement. This speedster was being prepped to run in the Breeder’s Cup Mile but will retire with a record of 7 wins from 11 starts. This will be a great loss to this barn and to west coast racing. This horse was the real deal; he started the year off being what most considered the best older horse out there. He also broke Spectacular Bids record in the Malibu Stakes late last year. He was the winner of the Californian and the Strub, was second in the Pacific Classic and should have won the Santa Anita Handicap. Twirling Candy will be sent to Lane’s End to start his stud career.
My pick for the Breeders Cup Mile is…Turallure or Goldikova…no Turallure.
These are just a few of the horses that will not be at Churchill Downs the first weekend in November. But great things will come out of the first weekend in November. We will see Goldikova try to make history again; we will watch the great So You Think make his American debut; we will see Uncle Mo go the distance. We asked for it and they are delivering. I hope to see you all there.
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