Speed figures: Forever Young leads fastest stakes winners
Forever Young earned a sparkling 140 Horse Racing Nation speed figure for his victory in Saturday's Breeders' Cup Classic. It was the highest stakes-winning HRN speed figure of the week and the highest stakes-winning speed figure in a dirt route this year.
The son of Real Steel, trained by Yoshito Yahagi and ridden by Ryusei Sakai, attended close to a quick pace and had enough in the tank to turn the tables on 2024 Breeders' Cup Classic champion Sierra Leone, who closed well but crossed the wire a diminishing half-length in arrears.
Just one point behind, with a 139 HRN speed figure, was Breeders' Cup Turf winner Ethical Diamond. In a deep field featuring two-time Breeders' Cup Turf winner Rebel's Romance and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1) runner-up Minnie Hauk, it was the Willie Mullins-trained former jumper who finished with a flourish to beat Rebel's Romance by 1 1/2 lengths.
For more on speed figures, see Horse Racing Nation’s database of the top speed figures of the year, where you can sort runners by age, sex, surface and distance.
Here are the figures for last week's highest-rated stakes winners through Breeders' Cup Saturday, ranked by HRN speed figures,with Brisnet Speed Ratings and Beyer Speed Figures from Daily Racing Form.
| Horse | Race | Jockey | HRN | Brisnet | Beyer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forever Young | Breeders' Cup Classic | Ryusei Sakai | 140 | 115 | 111 |
| Ethical Diamond | Breeders' Cup Turf | Dylan McMonagle | 139 | 105 | 107 |
| Bentornato | Breeders' Cup Sprint | Irad Ortiz Jr. | 136 | 107 | 110 |
| Gezora | Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf | Mickaël Barzalona | 136 | 107 | 105 |
| Nysos | Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile | Flavien Prat | 134 | 101 | 105 |
| Scylla | Breeders' Cup Distaff | Júnior Alvarado | 131 | 110 | 103 |
| Notable Speech | Breeders' Cup Mile | William Buick | 130 | 96 | 103 |
| Splendora | Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint | Flavien Prat | 130 | 100 | 97 |
| Special Wan | Goldikova | Joel Rosario | 123 | 93 | 95 |
| Roll On Big Joe | Bet on Sunshine | Julien Leparoux | 122 | 102 | 102 |
| Souper Forces | Showing Up | Cipriano Gil | 117 | 92 | 86 |
| Ted Noffey | Breeders' Cup Juvenile | John Velazquez | 117 | 104 | 97 |
| Kingsbury Road | Strong Tide Overnight Handicap | Luis Contreras | 116 | 88 | 84 |
| Gstaad | Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf | Christophe Soumillon | 113 | 93 | 88 |
| Corningstone | Fireball Baby Overnight Handicap | Joseph Bealmear | 112 | 86 | 80 |
| Balantina | Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf | Oisín Murphy | 111 | 93 | 86 |
| Crafty Collector | Cellars Shiraz | Edwin Gonzalez | 111 | 87 | 83 |
| My World | Nashua | Jaime Rodriguez | 107 | 83 | 79 |
| Tempus Volat | Let It Ride | Mirco Demuro | 107 | 90 | 86 |
| Ocean Bear | Golden State Juvenile | Umberto Rispoli | 105 | 89 | 78 |
| Shisospicy | Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint | Irad Ortiz Jr. | 103 | 106 | 105 |
| Super Corredora | Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies | Hector Berrios | 103 | 96 | 84 |
| Dancing Buck | Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship | Luis Rivera Jr. | 102 | 91 | 89 |
| Mohaven | Golden State Juvenile Fillies | Hector Berrios | 99 | 85 | 75 |
| Maskedandmummed | James and Eleanor Casey Memorial | Antonio Lopez | 98 | 73 | 54 |
| Conducted | Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance | Hector Berrios | 96 | 84 | 80 |
| Liteupthenite | Louisiana Jewel | Elvin Gonzalez | 95 | 76 | 63 |
| Randemonium | Louisiana Legacy | Edward Santiago | 92 | 74 | 60 |
| Behold the King | Armed Forces | Edwin Gonzalez | 86 | 75 | 64 |
| Cy Fair | Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint | Irad Ortiz Jr. | 86 | 101 | 88 |
| Queen Maxima | Senator Ken Maddy | Juan Hernandez | 75 | 96 | 97 |