One name is on everyone’s lips ahead of tomorrow’s running of one of the world’s greatest races, the Breeders’ Cup Classic, and that’s Flightline.
While some of the other top races at the prestigious meeting at Keeneland are headlined by European visitors, the unbeaten 4-year-old is expected to keep the bulk of the US$6 million prize on American soil ahead of the dirt track showdown; he’s 1.40 with William Hill.
He will be ridden by Flavien Prat as he has been for all five of his previous runs and all of which were victories when odds-on favourite.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: October 26th, 12.00 P.M. (GMT)
This year he won the Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont and then cruised to victory by a whopping 19 ½ lengths in the Pacific Classic at Del Mar.
But trainer John W. Sadler has a poor record at the Breeders’ Cup with just one winner from 54 runners, though that did come in the Classic in 2018.
The distant second favourite is Epicenter at 7.50. The 3-year-old has five wins and three seconds to his name and is yet to come up against Flightline. Most recently he won the Travers Stakes at Saratoga with Joel Rosario on board with the same combination planned for tomorrow.
Life recently has been good for third favourite Life Is Good (9.50) as the horse has won six of his last seven races, including the Grade 1 Woodward Stakes in early October. That one failure from those seven was the only one over the Classic’s distance of 1 mile 2 furlongs, so jockey Irad Ortiz may have his work cut out.
Mike E. Smith rides 13.00 chance Taiba, who will run in Grade 1 company for the fifth time in his six-race career with the most recent of which a victory in the Pennsylvania Derby. However, the 3-year-old – trained by four-time winner of this race Bob Baffert – was not competitive in his only previous outing over 1 mile 2.
Four very capable horses make up the rest of the eight-strong field but Flightline’s expected dominance has seen their odds lengthen. Winner of the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Saratoga, Olympiad has five graded wins this year, so at 34.00 could be a great each way chance while Hot Rod Charlie (41.00) has also warmed up for this with a win in the Grade 2 Lukas Classic at Churchill Downs.
Shock Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike (51.00) will have to do the seemingly impossible again while Happy Saver (67.00) has been beaten by four of tomorrow’s opponents in his last four.
