Breeders Cup Winning Photos

The first Breeders Cup race was the Juvenile Turf, and Hit It a Bomb defeated Airoforce and Birchwood  for the win.

Hit It a Bomb and Airoforce

The second Breeders Cup race was the Las Vegas Dirt Mile.  The betting favorite was Liam's Map, who was late getting out of the gate, got squeezed back, and had to put on the brakes several times in close quarters.  The race looked lost.  However, the grey colt was able to make an amazing recovery and won over Lea and Red Vine in convincing fashion.

Liam's Map

The Juvenile Fillies Turf was the third race on Friday, and had a full field of 14 fillies.  Catch a Glimpse, a Kentucky-bred, defeated Alice Springs (Irish bred) and Nemoralia for the championship win.

Catch a Glimpse and Alice Springs

The Distaff ended the Breeders Cup card on Friday, and Sheer Drama was the betting favorite.  The win went to Stopchargingmaria, followed by Stellar Wind and Curalina.

Stopchargingmaria (center) gets the job done in the Distaff.

Saturday's Breeders Cup races began with the Juvenile Fillies race.  Songbird was the morning line favorite, and she and jockey Mike Smith showed why.  They defeated Rachel Valentina, Dothraki Queen and Nickname with ease.

Songbird under Mike Smith

The Turf Sprint was next on the card, with another full starting gate of fourteen.  There were three luke-warm betting favorites - Lady Shipman, Undrafted, and Pure Sensation.  The winner came out of the 14 gate, and Mongolian Saturday held off Lady Shipman and Green Mask in exciting style.

Right to left: Mongolian Saturday, Lady Shipman, Green Mask

The Filly & Mare Sprint also had a full starting gate.  The early betting favorite was Cavorting, a three-year-old.  The winner was Wavell Avenue, followed by La Verdad and Taris.  Cavorting finished in fourth place.

Wavell Avenue holds off La Verdad and Taris

I had misinformation regarding the Filly & Mare Turf.  Queen's Jewel, the six horse, was not scratched, but Hard Not to Like, Bawina, Elecktrum and Talmada were.  The betting favorite was Legatissimo, a three-year-old Irish bred filly.  Stephanie's Kitten, having won the Juvenile Filly race in 2012, was back in her fourth Breeders Cup race.  Stephanie's Kitten won the race for the Ramsay family, with Legatissimo second and Queen's Jewel third.

Stephanie's Kitten defeated favorite Legatissimo

The following race was the Sprint, on the dirt course.  I had great luck betting long shots in many of the early Sprint races.  This year, I bet the favorite, Runhappy - please feel free to read his story, along with his trainer's and owner's, in almost any newspaper.  Runhappy was the sentimental betting favorite, with Private Zone the second betting choice.  Runhappy won.  Private Zone came in second, and Favorite Tale was third.  Runhappy broke Keeneland's track record in winning the race, in 1 minute 8 seconds and 58/100ths.  And, today, Maria Borell, the trainer was informed the colt is being moved out of her stable....

Runhappy and Private Zone

The Turf Mile drew a field of twelve - four bred in Ireland, two bred in Great Britain, one bred in Japan, and five from North America.  The betting favorite was Esoterique, a three-year-old Irish bred filly.  Tepin was the winner under jockey Julian Leparoux; Mondialiste, an Irish bred, was second, and Grand Arch was third.

Tepin winning the Turf Mile

The $2 million Juvenile came next, with Nyquist the betting favorite.  There was a full field of fourteen, with Brody's Cause the second choice and Greenpoint Crusader the third.  Nyquist won, defeating Swipe, Brody's Cause and Exaggerator.

Nyquist held off Swipe for the win in the Juvenile

In the Turf, a grass race covering one and one-half miles, there were 12 entries.  One colt from Argentina, two colts from Great Britain, one filly from Ireland, and eight colts from North America.  Golden Horn had won the Epsom Derby and the Prix de l'Arch de Triomphe, and he (a three year old) had defeated older horses. Golden Horn was the betting favorite.  He finished second, behind three-year-old filly Found, who carried 3 pounds less than he did.  Big Blue Kitten was third, and Slumber (GB) was fourth.

Found defeats Golden Horn in the Turf

I wrote about the Breeders Cup Classic race earlier - but here's a photo just to make you smile....   Justin Zayat says that American Pharoah is his "favorite brother," weighing in at 1100 pounds.

American Pharoah and Justin Zayat