New Breeder's Cup Races

Insight and commentary on the world of thoroughbred horse racing.

Thoughts and opinions about the fascinating sport of thoroughbred horse racing from a racing insider.

A Bigger, Better Breeders' Cup

There typically aren’t too many good days for thoroughbred racing fans in January, but let’s count January 8 as one of them. That day brought news of three new Breeders’ Cup races and an additional day of Breeders’ Cup racing.

While the Breeders’ Cup will never match the Kentucky Derby in terms of sheer energy and atmosphere, it’s great that they have essentially added an ‘Oaks Day’ to the proceedings. It’s a wonderful thing to walk out of Churchill on the first Friday in May (or last in April sometimes), having had a fantastic time, and knowing that that was just the appetizer. Hopefully, some of that will transfer to an expanded Breeders’ Cup weekend. It should also make the Cup, as an event, more attractive to local communities, with the promise of traveling fans staying longer and spending more money around those towns.

One quick aside before I get into the potential impact of the new races on the racing game itself. The addition of an extra day would not have been possible if the Breeders’ Cup had stayed with longtime broadcast partner NBC. There is no way that the network could have convinced enough local affiliates to preempt soap operas, Oprah, and/or lucrative local afternoon new broadcasts to televise a bunch of silly horse races on a Friday afternoon. So this is another plus for the relationship with ESPN that can’t be measured with Neilson ratings.

This is the first addition to the Breeders’ Cup program (other than fattening the purses) since the Filly and Mare Turf race was added in 1999. Talk of a Mile Dirt race has surfaced from time to time over the years and I have to say that I’ve always been a little leery of such a contest. It could well be a lose-lose proposition. If it takes an intriguing contender or two from the Classic and/or the Sprint (and maybe even the Mile), which could easily happen despite the comparatively lower purse, then those races lose some luster. And if it doesn’t, well then what’s the point? You’d basically have a $1 million grade two race in grade one Breeders’ Cup clothing. Sure a Dirt Mile race would have given Discreet Cat a spot to strut his stuff last year. But what would that have proven? He still would not have faced Bernardini or Invasor or the country’s best sprinters and we’d still be left wondering how good he really is. It’s already easy for horses to duck each other throughout the year, with lighter racing regimens and with an abundance of rich races to choose from. I fear that this new event will prevent some exciting showdowns from materializing.

The addition of a filly and mare sprint is long overdue, though. It’s true that it may steal a contender or two from the original Sprint, but fillies like Xtra Heat, Very Subtle, Meafara and Safely Kept don’t come along very often. With the purse for the new Filly and Mare Sprint half that of the original, the connections of the next super fast filly should have ample incentive to shoot for greater glory. With new grade one events for female sprinters having emerged over the past few years (namely Calders’ Princess Rooney and Churchill’s Humana Distaff), it’s fitting that that division is now being recognized. The only thing left to do now to truly validate the division is to introduce a new Eclipse Award for the nation’s fastest filly or mare.

The addition a turf race for juveniles is interesting and one that I hadn’t seriously pondered before. I think the reason for that is the fact there are hardly any rich stakes events for juvenile turfers in the U. S. and absolutely none currently run before the Breeders’ Cup that are graded. (Canada, which has its own grading protocol, does have some graded turf events for juveniles). But with this new $1 million grade one, tracks will likely (hopefully) scramble to add suitable prep races to their schedules, races that will eventually obtain graded status and consequently add luster to the late summer and fall meetings where those races are run. Again there is the danger of the new race stealing a contender or two from the Juvenile or even the Juvenile Fillies. The connections of Dreaming of Anna insist she is a better turf runner and may well have run her against the boys on the grass instead of against her own sex on the dirt last year. (Wouldn’t that have been an interesting (or maddening?) Eclipse debate: an unbeaten Dreaming of Anna, with a BC win over males, versus Juvenile Fillies winner Octave). The new race will likely be dominated by European shippers anyway, but stars like Arazi and Johannesburg will still likely continue to find their way onto the dirt as a way to impress American breeders.

If anyone had bothered to ask me, I would have suggested a Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. Turf sprints have been carded with increasing frequency at tracks around the country in recent years. They almost always draw large and competitive fields and a coherent national stakes schedule for turf sprinters, of both sexes, has been gradually crystallizing as well. Like with the filly sprinters, a BC Turf Sprint would have essentially validated a whole new division in American racing, one which is represented in most other major racing countries around the world.

But again, kudos to the Breeders’ Cup for adding value and innovation to the program. I hope we can look forward to more expansion announcements in the future. It’s a great way to brighten up a cold January day.

Matt O'Neil has been a racing enthusiast since the mid 1980's. He currently works for Taylor Made Stallions, Inc. in Central Kentucuky and is published regularly in Owner-Breeder International and The Florida-Horse. Contact Matt O'Neil