The three top-ranked Thoroughbreds in the land are headed for a dramatic showdown in this year’s $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar on Nov. 4. No wonder racing enthusiasts are eagerly looking forward to that particular Grade I event, which will be decided at 1 1/4 miles on the dirt.
Gun Runner, Arrogate and Collected occupy the top three positions in this week’s NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll.
Here is this week’s ranking of America’s leading Thoroughbreds on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis:
Rank Points Horse (First-Place Votes)
- 385 Gun Runner (34)
- 336 Arrogate (4)
- 241 Collected
- 239 Lady Eli
- 234 Stellar Wind
- 111 Drefong
- 107 Mor Spirit
- 96 West Coast (1)
- 84 Forever Unbridled
- 65 Abel Tasman
Also receiving votes: Songbird (62 points), Lady Aurelia (41), Shaman Ghost (25), Keen Ice (16), Oscar Performance (15), Vale Dori (14) World Approval (13), Practical Joke (9), Elate (8), Whitmore (8), Cupid (8), Mind Your Biscuits (7), Unique Bella (4), Sadler’s Joy (4), Tapwrit (3), Neolithic (3), Sharp Azteca (2), Girvin (1), Voodoo Song (1), Rally Cry (1), Beach Patrol (1), Accelerate (1).
Remarkably, Hall of Famer Bob Baffert trains six of the Top 10 horses: Arrogate, Collected, Drefong, Mor Spirit, West Coast and Abel Tasman.
Gun Runner won the Grade III Razorback Handicap in February before finishing second to Arrogate in the Group I Dubai World Cup in March. Since his loss in Dubai, Gun Runner has won the Grade I Stephen Foster Handicap by seven lengths, Grade I Whitney Stakes by 5 1/4 lengths and Grade I Woodward Stakes by 10 1/4 lengths for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen.
Arrogate won the Grade I Pegasus World Cup in January and Group I Dubai World Cup in March, then lost his next two races. He finished a well-beaten fourth in the Grade II San Diego Handicap and second in the Grade I Pacific Classic.
Collected is four for four this year. He won both the Santana Mile and Grade II Californian in April, the Grade III Precisionist Stakes in June and Grade I Pacific Classic in August.
LATEST WYNN RACE BOOK ODDS
On July 14, Arrogate was the even-money favorite to win the BC Classic in the future book at the Wynn Race Book in Las Vegas. Gun Runner was 7-1.
Two months later, Gun Runner has become the 13-10 favorite (slightly higher odds than 6-5), with Arrogate next at 11-5 (slightly higher than 2-1).
Here are the Wynn’s odds to win the BC Classic as of Sept. 13:
13-10 Gun Runner
11-5 Arrogate
3-1 Collected
9-1 West Coast
10-1 Keen Ice
15-1 Gunnevera
16-1 Shaman Ghost
20-1 Irap
25-1 Accelerate
25-1 Battle of Midway
25-1 Classic Empire
25-1 Hoppertunity
30-1 Cupid
30-1 Good Samaritan
35-1 Cloud Computing
35-1 Irish War Cry
35-1 Rally Cry
40-1 Churchill
40-1 Curlin Road
40-1 Destin
40-1 Giuseppe the Great
40-1 Mubtaahij
50-1 Girvin
50-1 Midnight Storm
50-1 Epicharis
60-1 Breaking Lucky
60-1 Highland Reel
60-1 Pavel
60-1 Thunder Snow
65-1 War Story
75-1 American Freedom
75-1 Donworth
75-1 Madefromlucky
75-1 War Decree
85-1 Imperative
85-1 Lancaster Bomber
85-1 McCraken
85-1 Neolithic
85-1 Tu Brutus
85-1 Lookin At Lee
85-1 Timeline
100-1 Colonelsdarktemper
100-1 Battalion Runner
100-1 Gormley
100-1 Long River
100-1 Special Fighter
100-1 Uncontested
125-1 Patch
125-1 Senior Investment
150-1 Guest Suite
These are the horses whose odds have dropped from July 15:
Gun Runner (13-10 from 7-1)
Collected (3-1 from 20-1)
West Coast (9-1 from 40-1)
Keen Ice (10-1 from 20-1)
Gunnevera (15-1 from 85-1)
Irap (20-1 from 75-1)
Accelerate (25-1 from 60-1)
Battle of Midway (25-1 from 75-1)
Cupid (30-1 from 40-1)
Irish War Cry (35-1 from 45-1)
Churchill (40-1 from 60-1)
War Story (65-1 from 75-1)
These are the horses whose odds have risen from July 15:
Arrogate (11-5 from 1-1)
Shaman Ghost (16-1 from 8-1)
Classic Empire (25-1 from 20-1)
Cloud Computing (35-1 from 18-1)
Donworth (75-1 from 65-1)
McCraken (85-1 from 30-1)
Neolithic (85-1 from 50-1)
Tu Brutus (85-1 from 45-1)
Lookin At Lee (85-1 from 75-1)
Timeline (85-1 from 75-1)
Gormley (100-1 from 85-1)
Patch (125-1 from 100-1)
Senior Investment (125-1 from 50-1)
These are the horses whose odds are the same as on July 15:
Hoppertunity (25-1)
Mubtaahij (40-1)
Girvin (50-1)
Midnight Storm (50-1)
Epicharis (50-1)
Highland Reel (60-1)
Thunder Snow (60-1)
American Freedom (75-1)
Madefromlucky (75-1)
War Decree (75-1)
Imperative (85-1)
Lancaster Bomber (85-1)
Battalion Runner (100-1)
Long River (100-1)
Special Fighter (100-1)
Uncontested (100-1)
Guest Suite (150-1)
These are the horses not listed on July 14 (with their Sept. 13 odds in parenthesis):
Good Samaritan (30-1)
Rally Cry (35-1)
Curlin Road (40-1)
Destin (50-1)
Giuseppe the Great (40-1)
Breaking Lucky (60-1)
Pavel (60-1)
Colonelsdarktemper (100-1)
