Breeders’ Cup 2024: Pletcher says break is key for Fierceness

Del Mar, Calif.

Training up to the Breeders’ Cup has become a thing lately. The idea of squeezing in one prep race after the Saratoga or Del Mar summer feels like it is going the way of the telephone books, cable TV and racing at age 4.

Fierceness is one such example of the 10-week break. If he wins Saturday in the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic, he could be the perfect example.

Fair odds identify wise bet in Breeders’ Cup Classic.

It was only minutes after a narrow victory over Thorpedo Anna in the Grade 1 Travers at Saratoga on Aug. 24 when Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher declared “we’ll most likely train up to the Classic.” The decision came after Fierceness put together back-to-back wins for the first time in his eight-race career, the Travers coming as the encore to a one-length triumph July 27 in the Jim Dandy (G2).

So far, Pletcher said this week, so good.

“Everything that the schedule that we laid out for him went according to plan,” he told Horse Racing Nation’s Ron Flatter Racing Pod. “We sort of left it a little open where we would do his final preparations. The weather really cooperated in Saratoga. He was thriving there and doing really well, so we decided to stay put and do all of his breezing there before shipping to California. Hopefully all that falls into place.”

Last year the plan was different for Mike Repole’s homebred colt by City of Light out of Stay Thirsty mare Nonna Bella. After making his debut with an 11-length runaway at Saratoga, Fierceness finished next to last in the slop of the Champagne (G1). Then came a 16-1 triumph in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita that clinched the 2-year-old dirt-male championship.

That was the start of an alternating win-lose pattern that persisted for Fierceness through a narrow loss in the Holy Bull (G2), a 13 1/2-length tour de force in the Florida Derby (G1) and a 15th-place flame-out in the Kentucky Derby. The favorite in all three races, Fierceness developed a penchant for poor starts in his defeats.

Pletcher hopes Hall of Fame jockey John Velázquez will not have any trouble breaking from post 9 in Saturday’s field of 14 that includes five 3-year-olds and nine older horses.

“I was kind of hoping for a draw towards the outside,” Pletcher said. “Nine is a good starting point. There’s a little bit of speed (with Arthur’s Ride) outside of him, but the key is hopefully he breaks cleanly, puts himself in a good spot, and John Velázquez can sort it out from there.”

Just as important as the start and the trip may be that 10-week break that Fierceness enjoyed, one that has become a strategic fad with varying results for a growing number of Breeders’ Cup aspirants.

“We’ve done all the heavy lifting already,” said Pletcher, who won the Classic five years ago with Vino Rosso for Repole and co-owner Vinnie Viola. “His breezes have all gone according to plan. He’s been training exceptionally well. I think the real key now is covering every base.”

That included gate schooling and paddock schooling this week at what will be the sixth racecourse in Fierceness’s past performances.

“The focus at this point is just to get him to the gate in a calm fashion and ready to perform his best,” Pletcher said. “The shipping went well. That was phase 1. He settled in well and seems to be getting over the track nicely. It’s just hurry up and wait.”

Pletcher also has 4-year-old long shot Tapit Trice entered in the Classic for Whisper Hill Farm and Gainesway Stable. Breaking right next to Fierceness with Irad Ortiz Jr. riding from post 10, the Tapit colt comes in off a win against only three rivals in the Woodward (G2) on Sept. 28 at muddy Aqueduct.

Victorious in last year’s Blue Grass (G1), Tapit Trice came off an 11-month break to win the Monmouth Cup (G3). He then finished a distant fourth to Classic entrant Highland Falls in the Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) before his wet score in the Woodward.

“I think he’s sitting on his best race,” Pletcher said. “I think after having only one start in the Monmouth Cup, ... he needed (the Jockey Club Gold Cup) to move him forward. I thought we saw an improved performance in the Woodward. He’s training very sharply now.”

As for what is out of his control, Pletcher has cast at least a curious eye toward the likes of four-time Group 1 winner City Of Troy from Ireland, especially since he has not seen the 3-year-old colt race in the flesh. Obviously, then, neither have Fierceness and Tapit Trice, a pair of pace chasers who usually go forward early.

“As a fan I’m interested to see how a horse like that is going to do,” Pletcher said. “From a tactical standpoint, I think our horses are going to run their type of races regardless of what he does.”

Pletcher already has seen 3-year-old Forever Young, who finished an agonizingly close third in the Kentucky Derby. Other than videos and maybe a glance or two in training this week, that has not been the case with Ushba Tesoro, a 7-year-old horse whose pre-Classic résumé includes second-place finishes this year in both the Saudi Cup (G1) and Dubai World Cup (G1).

“I have a lot of respect for the Japanese horses as well,” he said. “But really you can kind of come up with a strategy that you think is the right one for your horse, and you’ve got to have the confidence in your jockey to make the right decisions and call an audible if needed. Really, I’ll look at it from the standpoint of how those horses are going to affect the tactics of the race, but as far as worrying about how good they may or may not be, that’ll all be settled on the track.”