Breeders’ Cup berth Online in Kentucky Cup Turf

Owner/breeder Carl Pollard, who won the 2000 Breeders ‘Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) with Champion Careing, has a chance on September 6 to secure a Breeders’ Cup bench location with Trader Her last foal. Clensing died in 2021 at the age of 23.

TraderA winner with double graded stakes for Pollard and trainer Brian Knippenberg, is one of the favorites Kentucky Downs In the Kentucky Turf Cup Invitational Stakes (G2T)-one 1/2-MIJL grass competition that is part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series: Win and You’re in. The victor earns a paid, automatic berth in the $ 5 million Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1T) over the same distance Sea.

The Kentucky Turf Cup is the only domestic Breeders’ Cup Challenge Race this weekend, accompanied by two others from Asia 7 September: the Korea Cup (G3) and the Korea Sprint (G3), both races on Seoul Racecourse in Zuidkorea. The 1/8-MIJL Korea Cup is a qualifying match for Fokkers Cup (G1), while the Six-Furlong Korea Sprint, as the name would suggest, a “victory and you are in” for the Breeders’ Cup sprint is at the same distance.

To date, other last grass preparation has overshadowed the Kentucky Turf Cup in importance, leading to the Breeders’ Cup Turf, won a race by European -trained runners in five of the past six years and in nine of the last 10 loops. Kentucky Turf Cup winner last yearSonate That is back for the renewal of this year-werd 11th in the Breeders’ Cup Turf last fall in del Mar. He offers to become only the third back-to-back winner of the Kentucky Turf Cup.

But money talks and because of the profitability of gambling-like historical horse racing gaming, Kentucky Downs is the same. Every year the track distributes money to other tracks in Kentucky, in addition to strengthening the local product by raising purses.

Six bets in Kentucky Downs on Saturday are worth at least $ 2 million and count in Kentucky-bred stimuli. Those who have been bred elsewhere racing for $ 1 million less per Stakes racing, although that is only good for the French bred Divine Under the 11 Kentucky Turf Cup participants.

The Kentucky Turf Cup and the Mint Millions Invitational (G3T) are the richest of Saturday Stakes Six Pack, worth a maximum of $ 2.5 million each. Both races had a potential wallet of $ 2 million last year.

Now Pollard’s Mercante takes his burst on a huge payment day and competes in the longest race of his career. All five of his victories of 14 starts have come between a mile and 1 1/8 miles. Specifically in Graded Stakes Action, he has won the 1/8-MIJL Kentucky Cup Classic Stakes (G3) on Synthetic AT Turfway Park and the 1/16-Mile Arlington Stakes (G3T) on the Churchill Downs grass.

Recently, the 5-year-old Gunloper Ruin finished fourth in the preview of Kentucky Downs Ellis Park August 2 on return of more than a two -month dismissal.

Knippenberg said it was a difficult decision to race Mercante in the Turf Cup or the mint millions on a mile.

“The distance in both races is a limiting factor for him. I no longer want to go a mile in 1:31 as we did at Ellis,” he said about the course record time of 1: 31.76 in the Kentucky Dows Preview Turf Mile. “We have worked with him to relax the pace, as in the Arlington, when he slowly relaxed a kind of pace. We gave him long, slow gallops to get him a little bit off the bridge. I just chose the place that I thought it gave us the best chance.

For the sixth consecutive race, Joseph Ramos will be on board to Mercante, half a brother of 2017 Travers Stakes (G1) winner West coast .

Few seem faster than Mercante early, except perhaps Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners’ and Harry Colburn’s Corruption That speed in all three of his grass races at 1 3/8 miles or more has shown to race 1-2. As the winner of five of the nine starts, he strives for his victory in the Kentucky Turf Cup after being second earlier in the Pan American Stakes (G3T) of March 29 and celebrated in the Manhattan Stakes (G1T) of 8 June when they were tried in the stakes.

The interns of Mark Casse was a three-length winner of an optional claim race of 30 July permission Saratoga Race Course Before you were given the month of August after an attack by Heat exhaustion shortly after the race. Chased with water and treated with ice in a group effort of nearby riders and veterinarians, he ran back to his barn in Saratoga and was on his way to recovery.

Jose Ortiz, who has driven corruption to two victories of so many journeys, has the return contract on the Gold medal 4-year-old gelding.

Mild temperatures in the Low 1970s are predicted for Saturday in southern Kentucky, after potentially heavy at night rain that could hang with light showers in the morning. A peat course that was lightning speed after a drought could give more in the ground in August than in the Kentucky Downs meeting.

In addition to Mercante and Grand Sonata, other Graded Stakes include winners in the Kentucky Cup Tawny Haven ” Utah Beach And Fort Washington -Wie defeated Grand Sonata with half a length for the last time when recording the 1/4-Mile Arlington Million Stakes (G1T) August 9 Colonial downs.

“It’s such a difficult race to win,” said Todd Quast, general manager and racing manager for Whisper Hill Farm of Mandy Pope, owner and breeder of Grand Sonata. “With the one and a half miles everything can happen, and usually it does. But he is such a cool horse. He tries it every time. He and (Jockey) Tyler (Gaffalione) have a great chemistry, especially at Kentucky Dows. Very enthusiastic about it. It was a great race last year, and he is probably in better form.”