Breeders Cup
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Of the seven Breeders' Cup races, the one most eagerly watched with an eye towards the future is the Juvenile (G1). Amazingly enough, however, the results of the Juvenile are as good an indicator of who not to bet in the next year's classics rather than who to bet. In an era where having the Kentucky Derby (G1) favorite is a certain way not to win the Run for the Roses, the Breeders' Cup Juvenile has become infamous for the failure of its winners to go on to greater things at three.
Ironically, the first running of the Juvenile in 1984 was as good a form guide as any race for the `85 classics. While winner Chief's Crown failed as the favorite in all three Triple Crown races (second in the Preakness Stakes [G1], third in the Kentucky Derby [G1] and Belmont Stakes [G1]), runner-up Tank's Prospect won the Preakness and third-place finisher Spend a Buck went on to win the Kentucky Derby and Horse of the Year honors in 1985. The first Juvenile, the first race run in Breeders' Cup history, seemed to establish the race as a precursor for classic success the following year.
That status did not last long. The 1985 winner, Tasso, did not compete in the Triple Crown the next year, nor did any of the backmarkers that year have a significant impact on the classics. The 1986 Juvenile proved to be the most star-studded of Breeders' Cup history, with Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Alysheba finishing third, Belmont winner Bet Twice fourth, and major stakes winners Gulch, Demons Begons and Polish Navy filling the spots immediately behind that duo. In a foreboding sign for Juvenile winners, however, 1986 winner Capote failed to train on and was 0-for-6 as a three-year-old.
A pattern had been set in the Juvenile, as one winner after another failed to make an impression on the classics the next year. Success Express, like Capote trained by D. Wayne Lukas, won the `87 Juvenile. And, like Capote, he never won another race, going 0-for-9 at three.
D. Wayne Lukas was back again in 1988, playing the spoiler's role this time as Is It True upset 3-to-10 favorite Easy Goer over a muddy track at Churchill Downs. Easy Goer would show his distaste for the Churchill goo the next year in losing the Kentucky Derby to Sunday Silence, while Is It True would miss the classics in `89.
Rhythm continued the pattern in 1989, winning the Juvenile, then skipping the `90 classics, though he did win the Travers Stakes (G1) later that year. Fly So Free, the `90 winner, was still around for the Derby the next year, but finished off-the-board.
In 1991, Arazi put on one of the most dazzling shows in Breeders' Cup history, flying in from France with a lofty reputation and living up to it, romping home a five-length winner over Bertrando. Seven months later, however, Arazi would finish eighth as the odds-on choice in the Derby as the Juvenile curse struck down another Juvenile-winning champion.
Consistency has been the hallmark of the Juvenile curse, as Gilded Time (1992) missed the Triple Crown with injury and Brocco (`93) won just once more after the Juvenile. The Juvenile finally produced a winner capable of classic success in 1994, when Timber Country took the Juvenile, then went on to win the Preakness. But as an ugly reminder of how potent the curse is, illness and injury struck down the son of Woodman, who never ran again after the Preakness.
Unbridled's Song appeared a superhorse in the making when he won the 1995 renewal. But a quarter crack ruined his Kentucky Derby chances and he finished fifth. The curse appeared stronger than ever following the 1996 running. Boston Harbor led all the way to win that year's Juvenile, but only raced once more as a non-displaced condylar fracture ended his career. The 1997 renewal featured Horse of the Year-to be favorite Trick, who capped an 8-for-8 two-year-old season with a 5 1/2-length triumph over Dawson's Legacy.
The next two years, unfortunately, did little to shake the perception of the Juvenile-Derby jinx. Answer Lively fought off longshot Aly’s Alley in 1998, while Anees rallied from out of the clouds to win at 30.30-to-1 in 1999 at Gulfstream Park. Sadly, both were also-rans months later in the Derby.
The Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships will head back to the Big Apple this year to Belmont Park -- Saturday, October 29. In 2001 the country yearned for some escape in the wake of the tragic events of September 11th and the Breeders' Cup did not disappoint. It was the American Tiznow's famous battle against European sensation Sakhee in the $4 million Breeders' Cup Classic, powered by Dodge, that provided one of the most thrilling finishes in the history of the event.
From the time Wild Again, Slew O' Gold, and Gate Dancer dueled down the lane together in the first Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) in 1984, the race has lived up to its billing as the showcase race on a showcase day of racing. Strategically placed as the last of the seven Cup races, a certain amount of dramatic tension is built up each year on Cup day as the day winds its way to the Classic. Rarely does the race let racing fans down.
The first Classic produced the first of many Classic surprises, with 31.30-to-1 long shot Wild Again outlasting his more fancied foes to claim the $1.35-million first place check. The race solidified Pat Day's prominence among the nation's leading riders and sent a clear signal the race would be unpredictable and exciting.
The next two years saw outsiders triumph through Proud Truth (7.40-to-1) in 1985 and Skywalker (10.10-to-1) the next year. But 1987 saw the most formful and dramatic Classic to date. Kentucky Derby (G1) winners Ferdinand and Alysheba worked their way past Judge Angelucci and Candi's Gold inside the eight pole, then staged a pulsating duel the final 100 yards, with Ferdinand getting up by the slimmest of margins to clinch Horse of the Year honors. Undaunted, trainer Jack Van Berg brought Alysheba back to the Classic in 1988, and this time the bay son of Alydar would not be denied, defeating Seeking the Gold by a half-length to sew up 1988 Horse of the Year honors and wind up his career with record earnings of $6,679,242. The Classic was blessed with another classic duel in 1989, as that year's leading three-year-olds, Sunday Silence and Easy Goer, filled the top two positions, Sunday Silence prevailing by a rapidly diminishing neck on his way to Horse of the Year honors.
The 1990`s kicked off with another Pat Day triumph, this time aboard Unbridled. But the Classic would soon be known for the exploits of another leading East Coast-based jockey, Jerry Bailey. Bailey won his first Classic in 1991 with a crafty, front-running ride aboard Black Tie Affair (Ire). After Eddie Delahoussaye guided A. P. Indy to victory in 1992, Bailey's lock on the Classic took hold. Riding Arcangues, a French-based son of Sagace who had never run on dirt before and was dismissed at 133.60-to-1, Bailey produced the biggest shock in Cup history in the `93 Classic, drawing away from favored Bertrando to win by two lengths. Bailey would win the next two Classics aboard Concern and the incomparable Cigar, giving him four victories in five years in the world's richest race. His bid for a fifth victory was thwarted in 1996, when Cigar--making his career finale--could only finish third, beaten a nose and a head.
In 1997, Skip Away turned in the most dominating performance in Classic history. The four-year-old, ridden superbly by substitute jockey Mike Smith, moved to the lead with five furlongs remaining, then drew off with disdain to triumph by six lengths, setting a Breeders' Cup Classic record with a time of 1:59.16.
A similar effort was not in the cards the next year at Churchill Downs, however. Racing over a track he was not comfortable on, Skip Away finished sixth as the 1.90-to-1 favorite. Awesome Again, undefeated in 1998, won a stirring, unusual stretch drive with Silver Charm and Swain (Ire), who went almost to the outside rail under Lanfranco Dettori. The race's purse, inflated by supplemental fees, was $5.12-million, making it the richest race ever run.
Day made it back-to-back Classics in 1999, expertly guiding 19.60-to-1 long shot Cat Thief to a 1 _-length victory over 26.50-to-1 long shot Budroyale. Surprisingly, the victory was Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukass first in the $4-million race.