Flashback: The 5 fastest Breeders’ Cup Classic winners

The $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic has produced many memorable outcomes since its inaugural running in 1984. Some of the most exciting have come when fast horses have thrown down fast times, entering the history books with jaw-dropping performances.

Here, I recall the five fastest winners of the Breeders’ Cup Classic, starting with the legendary two-time Horse of the Year …

5. Cigar (1:59.58, 1995)

Described as “unconquerable, invincible, unbeatable” by race caller Tom Durkin, Cigar was the first horse to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic in less than two minutes. And truthfully, Cigar obliterated the mark. The sensational 5-year-old capped off a perfect 10-for-10 campaign with a powerful 2 1/2-length victory in the Classic at Belmont Park, which marked his eighth Grade 1 win for the season. Just as impressively, Cigar’s final time of 1:59.58 seconds over a muddy track beat the previous Classic standard of 2:00.2 seconds by more than half a second.

4. Cat Thief (1:59.52, 1999)

Four years after Cigar made history, Cat Thief lowered the mark by 0.06 seconds, clocking 1:59.52 seconds to spring an upset victory in the 1999 Classic at Gulfstream Park. The durable 3-year-old arrived in Florida with a 1-for-11 resume for the season, but he had won or placed in half a dozen Grade 1 events (including the Kentucky Derby) and picked a lucrative opportunity to deliver his career-defining performance. After pressing fast fractions of 23.11, 45.76 and 1:09.99 seconds, Cat Thief edged away to score by 1 1/4 lengths at odds of 19-1.

3. Raven’s Pass (1:59.27, 2008)

Over a fast-playing synthetic surface at Santa Anita, talented European miler Raven’s Pass carried his speed over 1 1/4 miles to post an impressive victory in the 2008 Classic. Reserved in 10th place during the early going, Raven’s Pass unleashed a huge rally around the final turn before outkicking fellow European miler Henrythenavigator and reigning Classic winner Curlin to win by 1 3/4 lengths in the track-record time of 1:59.27 seconds.

2. Skip Away (1:59.16, 1997)

Four-time Eclipse Award winner Skip Away earned 10 Grade 1 wins and more than $9.6 million during his stellar career, with a spectacular triumph in the 1997 Classic at Hollywood Park ranking as his greatest performance. Taking the lead halfway through the race, Skip Away could have tired after blazing six furlongs in 1:09.6 seconds and one mile in 1:33.96 seconds. Instead, the great gray widened his advantaged steadily to dominate by six lengths in 1:59.16 seconds, which stood as the Classic record for seven years.

1. Ghostzapper (1:59.02, 2004)

No horse has reigned as the Classic’s fastest winner longer than Ghostzapper, whose time of 1:59.02 seconds at Lone Star Park in 2004 has not been touched. The speedy Horse of the Year achieved his record clocking not with sudden bursts of acceleration, but with a relentless display of speed and stamina. His quarter-mile splits of 23.42, 23.58, 24.32, 24.06 and 23.64 translated to increasingly remarkable fractions of 23.42, 47.00, 1:11.32, 1:35.38, and 1:59.02 seconds, placing Ghostzapper firmly in the record books.

J. Keeler Johnson is a writer, videographer, handicapper, and all-around horse racing enthusiast. A great fan of racing history, he considers Dr. Fager to be the greatest racehorse ever produced in America, but counts Zenyatta as his all-time favorite. You can follow him on Twitter at @J_Keelerman.