Breeders' Cup Classic Top 5

Accelerate dominated his foes in the Pacific Classic. It wasn't even close. It was such a beat down that I thought it necessary to come out with my first Breeders' Cup Classic Top 5. Yes, like Mike Watchmaker at DRF, Accelerate has jumped to number 1 on my Top 5 list. Mike's list and my list take divergent paths after Accelerate.

Breeders' Cup Classic Top 5

1. Accelerate

Aptly named, Accelerate can turn on the jets and keep going. It's like he's got a third gear. Most horses have two gears. Think Arrogate. Once Arrogate got into second gear, he'd keep going in the second gear until he passed the horse in front of him. Arrogate used that second gear to get past California Chrome in the 2016 Breeders' Cup Classic.

Accelerate has a third gear. He uses his second gear to go past the horse he stalks. He uses his third gear to put distance between the horse he stalked and himself. No horse should beat Accelerate in the Breeders' Cup Classic if he's on top of his game.

2. Thunder Snow

Thunder Snow is entered into the Juddmonte International at Newmarket on Wednesday. Trainer Saeed bin Suroor might use the Juddmonte International as a prep for the Breeders' Cup Classic. Thunder Snow won the Dubai World Cup in March. It wasn't even close. He dominated West Coast. After Gun Runner had retired, West Coast became the best horse in the world.

Sure, Thunder Snow got away with soft fractions. But, he mustn't run on the lead. He could track Diversify, if that one shows up in the Breeders' Cup Classic, make a move and hope Acclerate doesn't catch him.

3. West Coast

Bob Baffert plans on giving West Coast a single prep before the Breeders' Cup Classic. That might work out to West Coast's advantage. After Baffert won the Dubai World Cup with Arrogate in 2017, he ran Arrogate in the San Diego Handicap and Pacific Classic. Arrogate was a tired horse by the time he ran in the Breeers' Cup Classic.

West Coast should be ready on Breeders' Cup Classic Day.

4. Diversify

I hope he shows up for the Breeders' Cup Classic. He trounced his competition in the Suburban and the Whitney. Sure, handicap horses on the East Coast aren't as good as West Coast and Accelerate. Diverify won the 1 1/4 mile Suburban in 1:59.4 after running three-quarters in 1:09.3. That's fast. The way it's shaping up, no horse will stick with Diversify early. If he gets a big enough lead, could he hold off Accelerate?

5. Pavel

In the Pacific Classic, Pavel had no shot of catching Accelerate. He still held on for second. Plus, the Breeders' Cup is at Churchill Downs this year. Pavel's already proven that he can win over Churchill's dirt. If the race falls apart, Pavel could sneak up there for the win.