Breeders' Cup 2019: Friday race results and replays

Breeders' Cup weekend kicked off with "Future Stars Friday" when five championship events, all for juveniles, ran at Santa Anita Park.

It all led up to a high-profile matchup in the $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile between morning line favorite Dennis' Moment and the Bob Baffert-trained Eight Rings. And, spoiler alert, a longshot stole the show.

Below, look back at flash recaps, race replays and payouts.

Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint

A son of the 2015 Triple Crown winner and Breeders’ Cup Classic hero American Pharoah, Four Wheel Drive delivered for his sire at the first opportunity at the championship level.

Off fastest in a full field of 12, the colt improved to 3-for-3 in winning Friday’s $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint at Santa Anita Park.

Fractions went in 21.55 and 44.03 seconds on Four Wheel Drive’s way to completing five furlongs in a final time of 55.66 seconds over firm going.

Four Wheel Drive is trained by Wesley Ward, for whom this race is tailor-made. Get out of the gate on top, as his trainees often do, and it’s on to victory.

Chimney Rock overcame a rail draw to run second throughout, while Anthony Miracle — also a son of American Pharoah — just held off the charging filly Kimari for the third spot.

Breeze Easy LLC campaigns Four Wheel Drive, who entered off two stakes wins in Colonial Downs’ Rosie’s Stakes and Belmont Park’s Futurity.

#9 Four Wheel Drive (3-2): $5, $3.40, $3
#1 Chimney Rock (12-1): $8.20, $5.40
#3 Another Miracle (19-1): $7.80

$1 exacta: $23.10
$0.50 trifecta: $103.85

Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf
 
Structor split horses in the stretch and finished with a strong kick to win Friday’s $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf in what was trainer Chad Brown’s 13th victory in the championship — but first in this division.

Structor, a son of Palace Malice, remained unbeaten in three starts with a determined ride under Jose Ortiz. The colt came from mid-pack, rallying behind opening fractions of 23.14 and 47.55 seconds.

Ortiz inherited the mount from his brother, Irad, and made the most of it on a horse he said “is very easy to ride.”

“Chad didn’t give me instructions,” Jose Ortiz said. “He just said wave at me when you pass the wire.”

Structor was away at 5-1 in a field where the favorite, Aidan O’Brien-trained Arizona, could only muster fifth. The 50-1 shot Billy Batts held on for second, 60-1 Gear Jockey was third and 3-1 Decorated Invader fourth.

Both the top two choices, Arizona and Decorated Invader, were left to do with just one horse beaten up the back stretch. A more forward position turned out the right spot for Structor, who drove down the middle of the track late.

There was a scare to the inside when pace setter Graceful Kitten appeared to hit the rail and nearly stumbled, but no rivals were collected.

Structor, who broke his maiden Aug. 31 at Saratoga, entered off a Sept. 28 win in Belmont Park's Pilgrim Stakes (G3).

#2 Structor (5-1): $12.60, $7.20, $5.20

#8 Billy Batts (50-1): $33.40, $18.20

#9 Gear Jockey (60-1): $20.20

$1 exacta: $259.10

$0.50 trifecta: $2,991.75

Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies

British Idiom’s experience outweighed Donna Veloce’s natural talent Friday in the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, as a former $40,000 purchase earned a division title with her win at Santa Anita Park.

Mired near the back of the pack, British Idiom began a serious charge at the 3/8 pole, then proceeded to mow down the flashy debut winner — and 2-1 race favorite — Donna Veloce.

With the final time 1:47.07 following swift opening fractions of 22.71 and 46.02 seconds, the Brad Cox-trained British Idiom just eked out a victory outside of her rival.

Javier Castellano rode the daughter of Flashback, who entered off a dominant score in Keeneland’s Alcibiades (G1).

Behind the top two, Bast filled out the board having pressured the leader Two Sixty into submission, then ending up leg-weary in the stretch.

In addition to a Breeders' Cup victory and likely Eclipse Award, British Idiom put herself at the forefront of the bigger picture heading into the 2020 Kentucky Oaks trail.

#4 British Idiom (5-2): $7.40, $3.80, $2.80

#1 Donna Veloce (2-1): $4, $3

#6 Bast (9-2): $3.40

$1 exacta: $13

$0.50 trifecta: $27.30

Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf

Sharing, a daughter of Breeders’ Cup-winning sire Speightstown and dam Shared Account, continued family tradition Friday when upsetting in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Off at 13-1, Sharing ran like a favorite, coming from just off the pace to collar Sweet Melania in the stretch at Santa Anita Park.

The Graham Motion trainee, who was defeated on debut at Saratoga, has now won three straight races as a $350,000 purchased campaigned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gainesway Stable.

Grade 1 winner Abscond spurted ahead up the back stretch through opening splits of 22.74 and 47.02 seconds but tired a bit through the turn, when Sweet Melania assumed the lead to her outside.

Even farther out in the track under Manny Franco, Maryland-bred Sharing was flying to a final time of 1:34.59 for the mile.

Daahyeh, a European runner who went as the 7-2 favorite, got up for second over Sweet Melania. Albigna ran fourth in the full field of 14.

#11 Sharing (13-1): $29.60, $10.60, $8.40

#5 Daahyeh (7-2): $5.60, $3.80

#12 Sweet Melania (9-2): $4.60

$1 exacta: $80.10

$0.50 trifecta: $325.05

 
And that's why they run the races...

Storm the Court, away at 45-1 in a field headed by buzz 2-year-olds Dennis' Moment and Eight Rings, took them all the way with blinkers on under jockey Flavient Prat to win Friday's featured $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

The trip happened after Dennis' Moment, from the inside post, stumbled as an odds-on favorite and never got involved in the race. Eight Rings, meanwhile, pressed the pace before fading badly in the stretch.

"On the lead, he just seems to never give up," trainer Peter Eurton said of Storm the Court.

It was bombs filling out the rest of the board, too, as Anneau D'or -- excluded from the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf, and making his dirt debut -- was a close second at 25-1. Wrecking Crew finished third at 35-1.

A son of Court Vision, Storm the Court broke his maiden on Aug. 10 at Del Mar, then got involved in Eight Rings' mishap leaving the gate in the Del Mar Futurity (G1). He was third behind Eight Rings when all riders were on in the American Pharoah Stakes (G1) as a final prep.

Storm the Court runs for Exline-Border Racing and partners, who fetched him for a bargain $60,000 at auction.

#4 Storm the Court (45-1): $93.80, $24.80, $12

#7 Anneau D'or (25-1): $17.60, $10.40

#2 Wrecking Crew (35-1): $12.20

$1 exacta: $488.20

$0.50 trifecta: $1,965.25