Cox pumps brakes on Classic after Leading Change's win

Brad Cox stopped short Sunday of committing Travers winner Leading Change to the Breeders' Cup Classic, raising the prospect that the unbeaten colt instead points toward the Dubai World Cup (G1) in the spring or waits a year for the Keeneland showpiece.

"I don't know that we have to go to the Breeders' Cup – who says we have to? We'll talk that over with the Wathnan team," Cox said. "I am a very realistic person and I do look at numbers, and he ran a great race yesterday, but he had to fight to win and he showed he can handle a mile and a quarter. We think that's something he's going to be really good at the rest of his career, and the Dubai World Cup means a lot to the Wathnan team, so we'll watch him come out of it, ship him back to Churchill, and I don't want to say too much on future plans yet. I'm all about trying to develop him, and yeah, we're looking at the Breeders' Cup Classic, but it very well could be the 2027 Classic."

The Classic offers a $7 million purse Oct. 31 at Keeneland and will draw a deep group of sophomores and older horses. Leading Change may not join them.

He earned his way into that conversation Saturday, holding off Napoleon Solo by a half-length at 10-1 in the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers, the 10-furlong test for 3-year-olds at Saratoga. The win moved him to a perfect three-for-three.

Guided by Manny Franco, the son of Gun Runner broke sharply from post 2 and settled patiently along the inside in a shared second as Napoleon Solo marked splits of 23.66, 47.95 and 1:12.62 over a fast main track. Sea Strike advanced to challenge exiting the turn and Leading Change angled out around the top two to make his bid, putting away Sea Strike and grinding to the outside of Napoleon Solo to will himself in front in a final time of 2:02.98. Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner Golden Tempo ran on late for third. Leading Change earned a 103 Beyer Speed Figure from Daily Racing Form.

"He looks good and was just out walking, looked good last night, came out of it in good order," Cox said. "He's always been one that seems to take his workload real well and recover quickly."

The result registered with a trainer who has won two Eclipse Awards and a previous Travers, taking the 2021 running with Essential Quality.

"I tell you, yesterday watching that horse run, that was about as excited as I've ever been in however many horses I've run," Cox said. "It was unbelievable. Someone asked me what the difference was between this and when 'E.Q.' won – well, 'E.Q.' was a Champion 2-Year-Old and had won the Belmont and was heavily favored. When you win a race and you're heavily favored, sometimes it's just like, the pressure is off and you want to get it over with, but that was something yesterday. I really enjoyed it, and it was nice to see that horse step up and perform the way we thought he could. I'm happy for our team and the Wathnan group. It meant a lot."

The victory extended a productive run for Cox and Franco, who combined on three Grade 1 wins with 2024 champion 2-year-old filly Immersive and have added graded scores with Comparative and Hit Show. Franco often rides first call for the barn through the winter in New York.

"He's a top rider, bottom line, and he's proved that this summer," Cox said. "We've had confidence in him for years. Immersive a few years ago, he won all three Grade 1s on her. He's riding with confidence seeing it all play out, and he's on top of his game right now."

Leading Change reached the Travers on a compressed schedule. He debuted 12 weeks ago with a 6 1/2-length score going seven furlongs in June at Churchill Downs, then faced winners and a two-turn test for the first time when taking the Indiana Derby (G3) by a neck July 11. He conceded seasoning to a deep field at Saratoga that included Napoleon Solo, Golden Tempo and Grade 1 winners Baby Vino (seventh) and Renegade (eighth).

The delay traced to last fall, when he was entered to debut in October at Keeneland but scratched the morning of the race with what proved to be bone bruising.

"I was confident he would run well (in the Travers). He's always been good. We knew he was very good last fall, and we thought he was the horse that would take us where we wanted to go," Cox said. "After he had his setback, we started looking at the calendar and said, 'oh wow, we're not going to make the Kentucky Derby because we're not going to be able to run in any preps.' When he came back off the layoff, he was very rusty. He gained weight with his layoff, which is expected, but he had lost a lot of fitness. It did take him a while to get back into shape – when he came back and started training, there was maybe a little bit of a concern that he wasn't the horse he was. But maybe six weeks prior to his debut at Churchill, he was showing signs of the talent we saw as a 2-year-old."

Leading Change races for Wathnan Racing and now anchors a Cox sophomore division that also features Grade 1 winners Commandment and Further Ado.

"I've always felt this was the most talented horse in the group," Cox said. "Further Ado has always been an incredibly good work horse, and Commandment is super honest and tries hard all the time. They're different, but it's a solid group of horses. I think these three colts are as good as any colts in the country."

Bred by WinStar Farm, Leading Change is out of the Congrats mare Starship Warpspeed, making him a half-brother to the Cox-trained Kentucky Oaks (G1) winner Shedaresthedevil.

"Great minds," Cox said of the similarity between the siblings. "He might be even more laid back."