Breeders' Cup Roundup: Oct. 10, 2022

The biggest single week of Breeders’ Cup qualifiers took place over three days from Oct. 7-9. No fewer than 14 “Win and You’re In” qualifiers took place at three tracks across the United States.

There’s a lot to recap, so let’s dive in and check out the results:

Malathaat, Forte among qualifiers on Keeneland’s opening week

A grand total of nine Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series races took place during opening week of the Keeneland fall meet. Here’s how the action unfolded:

• Last year’s champion three-year-old filly Malathaat continued her winning ways with a decisive score in the 1 1/8-mile Spinster S. (G1). The daughter of Curlin rallied sharply from off the pace to trounce a quality field (including reigning champion older dirt female Letruska) by 5 1/4 lengths, picking up the fifth Grade 1 win of her decorated career. The Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1) is next.

• Hopeful S. (G1) winner Forte stamped his ticket to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) with a hard-fought triumph in the 1 1/16-mile Breeders’ Futurity (G1). A sweeping rally around the far turn carried Forte into contention, and from there he dug deep to beat Loggins by a neck with the rest of the field far behind.

• Wonder Wheel was a tenacious winner of the Alcibiades S. (G1), a 1 1/16-mile steppingstone to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1). Wonder Wheel led at every call and was on top by three lengths passing the eighth pole before fending off a challenge from deep-closing Chop Chop to win by a nose.

• The one-mile Coolmore Turf Mile (G1) went the way of Annapolis, a rapidly improving three-year-old with four stakes wins under his belt. Annapolis tracked a solid early pace before holding off a bevy of deep closers (including 2020 Breeders’ Cup Mile winner Order of Australia) to score by 1 1/2 lengths, earning a ticket to the Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1).

• Slammed stamped her status as a serious Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) threat with a runaway victory in the six-furlong Thoroughbred Club of American S. (G2). The New Mexico-bred four-year-old filly led all the way to overwhelm her pursuers by 6 1/2 lengths.

• Manny Wah led home a parade of longshots in the Phoenix S. (G2), a six-furlong steppingstone to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1). Placed at the Grade 1 level, but never previously victorious in a graded stakes, the six-year-old 17-1 longshot rallied just in time to beat Long Range Toddy (19-1) and Top Gunner (14-1) by a neck.

• In the Jessamine S. (G2), a 1 1/16-mile qualifier to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1), Delight led from start to finish and drew off strongly down the homestretch to defeat a large field by five lengths. The Jonathan Thomas trainee has improved by leaps and bounds since her third-place debut in April at Keeneland.

• Andthewinneris ran out of his skin down the homestretch of the 1 1/16-mile Bourbon S. (G2) at Keeneland, swallowing the leaders with a powerful turn of foot to dominate by 2 3/4 lengths. His sire is Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) winner Oscar Performance, so Andthewinneris has a shot to emulate his sire after earning a ticket to the Juvenile Turf.

• Private Creed produced a perfectly timed rally to nab the Indian Summer S., a 5 1/2-furlong steppingstone to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1). Private Creed wore down No Nay Hudson and held off Mo Stash to prevail by three-quarters of a length, picking up his second stakes win following a triumph in the Juvenile Sprint S. at Kentucky Downs.

Cave Rock, And Tell Me Nolies shine at Santa Anita

Santa Anita was also busy last weekend, hosting a trio of Breeders’ Cup qualifiers:

• Cave Rock was the star of the show, picking up his third blowout victory from as many starts in the American Pharoah S. (G1). Stretching out over 1 1/16 miles proved to be no obstacle for the Del Mar Futurity (G1) winner, who led at every call to win by 5 1/4 lengths in the fast time of 1:43.05. The victory secured Cave Rock a berth to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, where he’ll likely be a heavy favorite to win.

• Not to be outdone, And Tell Me Nolies picked up a third consecutive victory when battling to first place in the Chandelier S. (G2). Somehow overlooked at 8-1 odds despite entering off a win in the Del Mar Debutante S. (G1), And Tell Me Nolies rallied after a stumbling start to prevail by three-quarters of a length, earning her ticket to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.

• Going to Vegas showcased her stamina in the Rodeo Drive S. (G1), winning the 1 1/4-mile Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1) qualifier for the second straight year. Left alone on the lead through slow fractions, Going to Vegas kicked on strongly down the homestretch to beat the deep-closing Family Way by 1 1/4 lengths.

Elite Power, Nagirroc ascend at Aqueduct

Aqueduct got in on the Breeders’ Cup qualifying action with a pair of under-the-radar weekend prep races:

• First up was the seven-furlong Vosburgh S. (G2), in which Elite Power made his stakes debut a winning one. The Bill Mott-trained son of Curlin tracked and then set a slow pace before finishing strongly down the homestretch to trounce a small field by 5 3/4 lengths, earning his way to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

• Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint contenders took center stage in the Futurity (G3), a six-furlong sprint in which Aqueduct maiden winner Nagirroc employed tracking tactics to edge pacesetters Gaslight Dancer and Vacation Dance by a neck. The top five finishers were separated by only half a length.

Other notable graded stakes results

In addition to the official Breeders’ Cup qualifiers, several other graded stakes contested over the weekend figure to have major Breeders’ Cup implications:

• Nest emerged as the possible favorite for the Breeders' Cup Distaff after posting a blowout 9 3/4-length victory in the 1 1/8-mile Beldame S. (G2) at Aqueduct. The three-time Grade 1 winner handled older rivals with ease and heads to the Breeders’ Cup with a three-race win streak.

• The five-year-old mare War Like Goddess trounced a strong field of male rivals in the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (G1) at Aqueduct, tracking a steady pace before rallying with authority to win the 1 1/2-mile turf test by 2 3/4 lengths. The daughter of English Channel finished fast and is slated to face males again in the Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1).

• In the E. P. Taylor S. (G1) at Woodbine, Rougir bounced back from three straight defeats to overcome traffic trouble and win the 1 1/4-mile turf test by a neck. The Chad Brown trainee is returning to peak form just in time for a possible tilt at the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf, a race in which she ran seventh in 2021.

• Golden Pal, winner of the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G2) and 2021 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (G1), staked his credentials for the 2022 Turf Sprint with a victory in the Woodford S. (G2) at Keeneland. The speedy four-year-old set blazing fractions of :21.25 and :43.42 on his way to victory by 1 1/2 lengths in the stakes-record time of 1:01.39.

• Diana S. (G1) winner In Italian picked up her second consecutive Grade 1 prize when snatching a gate-to-wire victory in the one-mile First Lady S. (G1), capitalizing on a modest pace to beat rallying stablemate Regal Glory by one length. The Breeders’ Cup Mile or the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf could both be viable goals for In Italian.

Upcoming Win and You’re In qualifiers

The Breeders’ Cup Challenges Series wraps up with a final pair of qualifiers at Ascot in England:

• Saturday: Champion S. (G1) at Ascot: Undefeated superstar Baaeed races for the final time in this 1 1/4-mile Breeders’ Cup Turf steppingstone. His key rival is Derby (G1) and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. (G1) winner Adayar, whom trainer Charlie Appleby indicated to At The Races is a possible Breeders’ Cup starter.
• Saturday: Queen Elizabeth II S. (G1) at Ascot: The brilliant three-year-old filly Inspiral has recorded victories in the Prix du Haras de Fresnay-le-Buffard Jacques le Marois (G1) and Coronation S. (G1) this season, stamping the John and Thady Gosden trainee as a clear favorite for this Breeders’ Cup Mile qualifier. Possible challenges include the improving Erevann and recent Woodbine Mile (G1) hero Modern Games.

Stay tuned to TwinSpires Edge for more coverage and analysis as the road to the Breeders’ Cup continues.