$3 million awaits the winner of the showpiece event of the 2023 Breeders’ Cup; the 1 mile 2 furlong Breeders’ Cup Classic on Saturday.
Santa Anita hosts the event for the first time since 2019 and 12 horses are set for the test on the dirt after Arcangelo was withdrawn.
Heading the betting with William Hill is Arabian Knight at 3.75, trained by four-time Classic winner Bob Baffert and ridden by Flavien Prat, who won this race at Keeneland last year on Flightline.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: November 3rd, 6:00 P.M. (GMT)
Three-year-old Arabian Knight was last seen two months ago, winning the Pacific Classic at Del Mar, his first partnership with Prat and his first Grade 1 success at the second attempt, having finished third in July’s Haskell Stakes.
One of two closest challengers hails from Japan – Noburu Takagi’s Ushba Tesoro, a 5.00 shot ridden by Yuga Kawada.
The oldest horse in the field, at six, Ushba Tesoro has won all of his last five races and six of his last seven. Only one of those has come at graded level, but it was the G1 Dubai World Cup at Meydan, his only race outside Japan before this weekend.
The other 5.00 chance is looking to give Richard Dutrow Jr. his first Classic winner since 2005. White Abarrio moved to Dutrow’s yard in the summer and has since finished third in the G1 Metropolitan Handicap and won the G1 Whitney Stakes.
The Whitney, at Saratoga, was the colt’s second run under Irad Ortiz Jr, who retains the ride.
The best chance for Todd Pletcher to repeat last year’s winning trainer success comes in the form of Bright Future, currently at 9.00.
The colt became part of the conversation after winning his first career G1 – the Jockey Club Gold Cup – at Saratoga two months ago. 2020 winning jockey John R. Velazquez is on board.
Brad Cox’s Saudi Crown, also 9.00, has found form recently under Florent Geroux, taking the Pennsylvania Derby in September. Derma Sotogake (13.00) is the other Japanese challenger but has not been seen since sixth in May’s Kentucky Derby.
Frankie Dettori will be on board Zandon for the first time (17.00). Chad C. Brown’s runner has come close to an open-age G1 win plenty of times, so maybe Frankie will provide that final push.
Proxy, Dreamlike and Senor Buscador are all 20+ in the market but are capable of running a big race. Clapton (41.00) and Missed The Cut (67.00) may well be cut out of this one.
