This coming Friday and Saturday is the 2019 Breeders’ Cup World Championships, which besides the Triple Crown, is the most prestigious set of races in horse racing. The Cup travels on an annual basis and will be landing at Santa Anita Park in California this year. This marks an expensive exclamation point to both the racing season and calendar year. And when I say expensive, I mean it; throughout the two days, a total purse of over $28 million can be claimed.
The two most important races, however, are the Longines Turf and the Longines Classic. The turf provides a winning purse of $4 million to the winning filly. The Longines Classic, the grand finale of the event, gives the winning filly a purse of $6 million. Both races look to draw in over a million dollars in gambling, so here is some unsolicited advice on which horses to look at for each race:
Breeders’ Cup Longines Turf
Anthony Van Dyck (IRE) [3-1]: This horse, named after the famed Baroque artist, proves to be one of the stronger entries in this race. Irish horses are always an appealing bet, and this one proves the stereotype. Anthony Van Dyck has cleaned up in Europe, winning just about every major race in Irish horse racing.
Bricks and Mortar [9/5]: The clear favorite to win is one of the most lethal horses in racing. This filly has yet to lose in 2019 and is both jockeyed and trained by the best in the business. Riding for this race will be Irad Ortiz Jr., who had an exceptional season at Saratoga this past summer. Along with that, she was trained by Chad Brown, who is arguably the hottest trainer around right now.
Longines Classic
Vino Rosso [4/1]: After a moderate start to the season, this horse recently won the Gold Cup at Belmont. Once again ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr., this horse has won over $1.5 million this year alone. Placing in the top 5 of some of the biggest races of the year, including that of the Jim Dandy and Belmont Stakes, there is a good history with this horse.
Code of Honor [4/1]: The name Code of Honor jumps out to most horse racing fans, as this filly won the biggest title beside each individual Triple Crown race this season. Winning the 2019 Travers Stakes in Saratoga, Code of Honor immediately launched herself into the forefront of the minds of many betters. Along with that, this horse also had a fantastic race in the Kentucky Derby, finishing third.
War of Will [20/1]: The only real long-shot I have to look out for is War of Will, a horse known for his Preakness Stakes win this past season. Outside of that humongous victory, she had a few slow finishes in Grade 2 races. I would not pick this horse as a winner, but if you are looking for an exacta or trifecta, this is a good horse for either.
All in all, Santa Anita is approaching faster than we realize. With the Breeders’ Cup taking place out west, the tracks will be faster so favorites will be advantaged. Enjoy the races, enjoy the sun if you are fortunate enough to be there, and gamble responsibly.
