Saturday's Breeders' Cup Races

Coverage of the Breeders' Cup races will be on ABC from 1:30 through 3:30 EDT, with the rest of the coverage being carried on ESPN from 3:30 until 7 p.m. EDT. (And I'm going to turn my clocks back an hour, after the races are over, so I won't forget to do so.) Two European horses that I like might be scratched from tomorrow's races - Delegator, in the Mile Turf, has developed a quarter crack in one of his hooves; and Michael Stoute, trainer of Workforce, will decide whether he will run the Epsom Derby and Arc winner tomorrow, after he walks the turf course. So two of my probable picks possibly will not run. All of the 8 races seem to be wide open to me, and I really haven't studied up on any of the runners, except the Great Lady, Zenyatta....
So here are my picks for tomorrow's Breeders' Cup races: In the Juvenile Turf, 13 2-year-olds will carry 122 pounds each over a one mile course. In this race, I like Master of Hounds, Banned, and Rough Sailing. The Sprint has 12 entrants, who carry between 124 and 126 pounds each for three-quarters of a mile on the dirt. My choices are Riley Tucker, Wise Dan and Warrior's Reward. The Turf Sprint covers five-eighths of a mile; there are 15 horses running, each carrying 121 to 126 pounds. In this race, I like Quick Enough, Stradivinsky, and Due Date. In the Juvenile Colts, the entries dwindle to 10; all 2-year-olds carrying 122 pounds over one and one-sixteenth miles on the dirt. Here, I would bet on J B's Thunder, Murjan, and Jaycito. I am conflicted in my feelings about the Turf Mile - I would like for Goldikova, the mare who has won this race the last two years, to win again. I also would choose Gio Ponti as a sentimental favorite. There are 11 horses entered in this race, carrying between 123 and 126 pounds each. I also think that Court Vision, Proviso (another filly), and Delegator (if he can run with that quarter crack) will perform well. There are 13 entries in the Mile, carrying between 123 and 126 pounds each. I would like for Mine That Bird to return to his winning ways in this race - he has been winless since the 2009 Kentucky Derby, and if he doesn't finish in the top 3, he will be retired to stud after this race. I also have a sentimental favorite in Cool Coal Man. Otherwise, my choices for this race would be Mad Flatter, Vineyard Haven and Hurricane Ike. In the Turf, we drop to a low of 8 horses running, possibly 7. The horses will run one and one-half miles, and each will carry between 122 and 126 pounds. If the turf feels good to trainer Michael Stoute, and Workforce agrees, I think he'd be unbeatable. But my choices without him running are Winchester, Telling and Al Khali. The final race will be the Classic, in which 12 contenders race one and one-quarter miles on the dirt, carrying between 122 and 126 pounds each. Zenyatta, the undefeated 6-year-old mare, is seeking her 20th win before her retirement to the breeding shed. I really want her to win and retire as the best, undefeated thoroughbred mare since Kincsem, the chestnut mare born in 1874 who retired undefeated after 54 races. If Zenyatta can't, or doesn't win for any reason whatsoever, my other betting choices would be Fly Down, Etched, and Espoir City (the Japanese-bred grandson of Sunday Silence). Zenyatta will carry 123 pounds, Fly Down will carry 122, and both Etched and Espoir City will carry 126 pounds.
The Breeders' Cup races are weight for age and sex races. Females carry less weight than the boys do; and younger horses, such as 3-year-old Fly Down, carry less weight than their elders.
As with yesterday, I can't say that any of these horses will win - this is just a list of my betting choices based on the horses pedigree, the jockey and the trainer. Hope you have good luck! - And enjoy the races!