Led by a number of grade 1 winners Knicks Go and Essential Quality in the $6 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), a total of 196 horses—including a record 56 from overseas—have been pre-entered for the 2021 Breeders’ Cup World Championships Nov. 5-6 at Del Mar.
The thirty eighth Breeders’ Cup will provide 14 races with purses and awards totaling greater than $31 million. On “Future Stars Friday,” there can be 5 World Championships races solely for 2-year-olds. There can be 9 Breeders’ Cup races on the Saturday program (Nov. 6).
The 56 worldwide horses span seven international locations: Nice Britain (26), Eire (17), Japan (8), France (2), Argentina (1), Peru (1), and South Africa (1).
Breeders’ Cup noticed eight returning winners pre-entered this yr in Knicks Go, Important High quality, Tarnawa , Audarya , Order of Australia , Gamine , Glass Slippers , and Golden Pal . Shortly after pre-entries were announced, trainer Aidan O’Brien said a setback would prevent last year’s FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Mile Presented by PDJF (G1T) winner Order of Australia from making the trip.
The number of horses pre-entered this year, 196, is comparable with the 201 pre-entered in last year’s event at Keeneland. The quantity is up from 187 pre-entered for the 2017 occasion, which additionally was contested at Del Mar. That marked the primary yr Del Mar hosted Breeders’ Cup and this yr would be the second time the Southern California monitor hosts the occasion.
VIEW: All Horses Pre-Entered in the 2021 Breeders’ Cup World Championships
From this yr’s group, 46 pre-entered horses earned computerized beginning positions into the World Championships races via the Breeders’ Cup Problem Collection.
“We’re very pleased with the magnificent array of expertise of group and graded stakes winners from world wide who’ve been pre-entered for this yr’s World Championships,” stated Breeders’ Cup president and CEO Drew Fleming. “Worldwide competitors at its highest degree is the hallmark of the Breeders’ Cup, and we thank the horsemen and ladies who put together these excellent equine athletes for the most important races of their careers for his or her participation.
“We additionally thank our breeders and nominators, whose assist of our $31 million in purses and awards is a real testomony to their dedication to the Championships.”
Breeders’ Cup CEO and president Drew Fleming
The World Championships can be televised dwell on NBC, NBCSN, and TVG. Protection is scheduled from 5-9 p.m. ET Nov. 5 on NBCSN and TVG and continues Nov. 6 on NBCSN and TVG from 2:30- 8 p.m. The World Championships conclude dwell and in prime time on NBC from 8-9 p.m.
Korea Racing Authority’s Knicks Go received final yr’s Large Ass Followers Breeders’ Cup Dust Mile (G1) in report time at Keeneland. He’ll now attempt to add the occasion’s greatest prize, the Traditional.
“It could be a tremendous achievement,” Cox stated, if Knicks Go might observe with a win within the Traditional after his dominating Dust Mile win in 2020. “It could positively go down as one of many higher accomplishments because the inception of the Breeders’ Cup.”
Within the Traditional Cox additionally will ship out Godolphin homebred Important High quality, who received final yr’s TVG Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Introduced by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (G1) and this yr added a traditional rating within the Belmont Stakes Introduced by NYRA Bets (G1).
The Aga Khan’s Tarnawa will attempt to defend her 2020 victory within the 1 1/2-mile Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1T) as coach Dermot Weld has made that race first desire for the 5-year-old daughter of Shamardal . Tarnawa, who finished second against males in the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe Oct. 3 at ParisLongchamp, also is pre-entered in the 1 3/8-mile Maker’s Mark Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1T).
Weld said Oct. 27 that Tarnawa has put together another top season and will be retired at year’s end. He said since he had the option to pre-enter both races he took advantage of the opportunity but thought the Turf would be the better fit.
Tarnawa wins the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Turf at Keeneland
Also entered in both the Turf and Filly & Mare Turf but opting to make the Turf the first preference are Qatar Prix Vermeille (G1) winner Teona and dual English classic winner Love . Japan-based grade 1 winner Loves Only You also is entered in both races but her connections have made the Filly & Mare Turf first preference.
The most popular race on the card is the Mile, which saw 24 horses entered. The field is limited to 14 starters.
The field with the fewest pre-entries is the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1), where just seven horses are entered topped by Gamine , who will try to defend her 2020 victory in this race. The champion daughter of Into Mischief has won her four starts this year, all graded stakes, including the Ketel One Ballerina Handicap (G1) Aug. 28 at Saratoga Race Course.
The opposite returning winners embrace Audarya, who will attempt to defend her 2020 win within the Filly & Mare Turf; Glass Slippers, seeking to repeat within the Turf Dash (G1T); and Golden Pal, who will do this yr’s Turf Dash after successful final yr’s Juvenile Turf Dash (G2T).
O’Brien famous that the large purses proceed to be a draw for worldwide horsemen but in addition famous that the efforts by Breeders’ Cup employees, like vice chairman of racing and nominations Josh Christian, are vital in recruiting horses.
“Josh could be very well-known and really properly related,” O’Brien stated. “Everyone’s sorted very properly. The racing could be very aggressive. And I feel, that point of yr, it is the place all people desires to be, is to have horse and a horse ok to compete in these championship races.”
Breeders’ Cup famous {that a} most of 14 starters are allowed in every of its World Championships races except the Turf Dash and Juvenile Turf Dash, that are every restricted to 12 starters.
Breeders’ Cup has adopted a area choice system to pick out runners within the occasion fields which oversubscribed. This method ranks horses so as of desire based mostly on first, Breeders’ Cup Problem race winners; second, a factors system; and, lastly, the judgment of a world panel of racing specialists. The racing secretaries and administrators panel ranked all of the horses pre-entered within the oversubscribed races as described above. After pre-entry, any vacancies within the fields can be crammed by horses so as of panel desire.
There can be as much as 4 also-eligible horses for every Championship race, apart from the Breeders’ Cup Turf Dash and the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Dash, which every can have as much as six. The also-eligible horses can be designated in accordance with the panel’s order of desire for every Championship race that’s oversubscribed on the time of pre-entry.
Entry for the 14 Breeders’ Cup World Championships races will shut at 10 a.m. PT Monday, Nov. 1, and submit positions for the races can be drawn at 2:30 p.m. Scratch time for Friday Championship races can be 8 a.m. Nov. 5. Scratch time for Saturday’s Championship races can be at 8 a.m. PT Nov. 6.
