The 2021 Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar is fast approaching. With that in mind, it’s interesting to examine the history of the Beyer Speed Figures for the richest of the 14 Breeders’ Cup races, the $6 million Classic. Sunday Silence and Ghostzapper share the distinction of having achieved the top Beyer Speed Figure in […]
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Each year, at about this time, I’m accosted by a band of hooligans. Originally, it used to happen once a year, perpetrated by a mob of seven. Over time, perhaps embolden by impunity and encouraged by plunder, they now attack on back-to-back days—always Friday and Saturday around the first weekend in November. Also, their legion […]
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Talk about a Breeders’ Cup record that has stood the test of time. Thirty-five years ago, Precisionist won the second running of the six-furlong Breeders’ Cup Sprint by three-quarters of length at Aqueduct. He was credited with a 125 Beyer Speed Figure. It remains the highest Beyer ever posted by the winner of a Breeders’ […]
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The distance from the last turn to the finish on the main track at Santa Anita measures 990 feet. It’s the standard length of the stretch run in terms of a typical one-mile oval. It turned out that Omaha Beach and Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith needed every bit of that 990 feet of […]
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With the Breeders’ Cup returning to Santa Anita Park this year on Nov. 1-2, it’s perfectly understandable if some folks might think back to a Breeders’ Cup performance at that Southern California track in 2009. It’s hard to believe that 10 years have passed since Zenyatta’s thriller of a victory in the BC Classic at […]
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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 […]
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