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The Breeders’ Cup World Championships is an annual series of Grade I Thoroughbred horse races which was first established in 1984 and takes place in early November at various racetracks in the United States.

It was a one-day event until 2006 when it was expanded to two days.

With over $31m in total prize money in 2021 it usually always attracts the best horses from Europe.

In total, British horses have won 23 races at the Breeders’ Cup which is 12 behind Ireland on 35. The full list of British winners up to 2020 are:

• 1984 – Lashkari (Breeders’ Cup Turf)
• 1985 – Pebbles (Breeders’ Cup Turf)
• 1989 – Steinlen (Breeders’ Cup Mile)
• 1990 – In the Wings (Breeders’ Cup Turf)
• 1991 – Sheikh Albadou (Breeders’ Cup Sprint)
• 1995 – Ridgewood Pearl (Breeders’ Cup Turf)
• 2001 – Banks Hill (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf)
• 2004 – Ouija Board  (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf)
• 2005 – Intercontinental (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf)
• 2006 – Ouija Board (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf)
• 2007 – Lahudood (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf)
• 2008 – Donativum (Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf)
• 2009 – Midday (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf)
• 2013 – Dank (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf)
• 2013 – Outstrip  (Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf)
• 2016 – Queen’s Trust (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf)
• 2017 – Wuheida (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf)
• 2017 – Talismanic (Breeders’ Cup Turf)
• 2018 – Enable (Breeders’ Cup Turf)
• 2018 – Expert Eye (Breeders’ Cup Mile)
• 2019 – Belvoir Bay (Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint)
• 2019 – Uni (Breeders’ Cup Mile)
• 2020 – Glass Slippers (Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint)

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For the latest Breeders Cup betting odds we can recommend odds & sports news website Vegas-Odds.com, which offers sportsbetting odds from U.S facing sportsbooks.

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Countries with winners at the Breeders’ Cup as of August 2021 …

• United States – 281
• Ireland – 35
• Great Britain – 23
• France – 8
• Canada – 6
• Argentina – 6
• Germany – 1
• Japan – 1

The final Classic of the British flat season is quickly approaching, as the brightest three-year-olds in training will travel to Doncaster for the featured race in September. It is set to be a stacked field of quality that go to post for the race, which will be run over one mile and six furlongs.

Hosting both the St. Leger Stakes and the Racing Post Trophy, the Doncaster Racecourse is as important to British horse racing, as the Gulfstream Race Track to Americans (click here to learn more).

The purse for the race also makes it one of the most lucrative races, with a £700,000 purse available. However, which horses could be among the favourites for the St Leger when it is run on Saturday, 11th September?

Hurricane Lane

Charlie Appleby’s three-year-olds have been in excellent form this season, while Godolphin will be looking for yet another famous win after previously claiming success in the Belmont Stakes and Epsom Derby earlier in the season.

Hurricane Lane could be their leading contender for success in the St Leger, as his form has progressed excellently throughout the season.

His only defeat so far came when he finished third in the Derby behind stablemate Adayar. However, he bounced back and showed his quality by storming to the line to beat Lone Eagle by a neck in the Irish Derby.

That was swiftly followed up with a dominant display in the G1 Grand Prix de Paris, as he beat Wordsworth by six lengths. A Classic win would be the perfect way to end his season.

Adayar

Hurricane Lane’s stablemate, and Derby winner Adayar is also currently available in the betting. However, it is unknown whether this Appleby-trained horse will target the St Leger, as the Arc could instead be his target in the second half of the season.

Adayar’s season has gone from strength to strength throughout the campaign. He went into the Derby as a 14/1 shot after back-to-back seconds in Classic trials at Sandown and Lingfield.

However, his performance at Epsom was one of the standouts in recent years. He dismantled the field to win by four and a half lengths from Mojo Star. That success was followed up with another huge win in the King George & Queen Elizabeth Stakes, as he beat both Mishriff and Love in a star-studded renewal.

Alenquer

William Haggas-trained Alenquer remains one of the most respected three-year-olds in training this season, despite having come up short in recent starts.

He was beaten by Hurricane Lane in the Grand Prix de Paris, before coming second behind a dominant Mishriff in the recent Juddmonte International Stakes at the Ebor Festival. However, he has claimed two famous wins already this season, and is rightly among the leading contenders for the St Leger.

His first big win in 2021 came as he beat Adayar by half a length in the Classic Trial at Sandown, despite being a 25/1 chance. That was followed up by a Royal Ascot win in the G2 King Edward VII Stakes. There could be more to come.

Lone Eagle

Martyn Meade has enjoyed a fine season with Lone Eagle to this point, but a Classic winner would be the perfect way to sign off for his three-year-old season. He was narrowly denied the dream Irish Derby winner that he had dreamed of back in June, as he was chinned on the line by Hurricane Lane.

That was followed up with a run in the King George & Queen Elizabeth Stakes, but he could only finish fifth or five in the high-quality field.

Still, he has won four from eight career starts, which included a win in a listed race at Goodwood in May. He did claim a graded victory as a two-year-old in the G3 Godolphin Flying Start Zetland Stakes at Newmarket last year, but a graded win this term would be thoroughly deserved.

WILLIE MULLINS is targeting Princess Zoe at an Ascot return in the middle of a gruelling October schedule for the six-year-old.

The Group One filly finished runner-up to Subjectivist in the Gold Cup at the Royal meeting in June, and followed that up with another second-placed finish in the Irish St Leger Trial Stakes at the Curragh.

She is priced at hosre odds 7/1, as per horse bettiung apps in the UK, for the Long Distance Cup after being edged out by Melbourne Cup-winner Twilight Payment at the Curragh. Princess Zoe appeared to be going at least as well as the winner running up against the rail, but Twilight Payment stayed on the better of the two to score by a length-and-three-quarters, reports RacingQuestions.co.uk.

The lack of a win this year for the daughter of Jukebox Jury has not diminished Mullins’ belief in a horse who won the Qatar Prix du Cadran in 2020, with the Ascot trip sandwiched between two returns to Paris – an attempt to retain the Prix du Cadran and the Prix Royal-Oak on October 24.

“The reason she ran at the Curragh (Irish St Leger Trial Stakes) is because I want to run her three times in October and didn’t want to have to run her in September,” said the Irish training machine, a man far more accustomed to producing National Hunt winners.

“The plan is to go back and defend her crown in the Cadran, then head to Ascot for the Long Distance Cup on Champions Day, and then the Prix Royal-Oak. We might only get to take in two out of the three when it comes down to it but I’m aiming her at all three.

“I actually think she’s better than she’s ever been now. Joey (Sheridan – jockey) thought he had Twilight Payment covered all the way up the straight but just couldn’t get to him. He’s a very good horse and he loves the Curragh too. The ground had dried out an awful lot in 24 hours. It was good and safe but it had dried out a lot.

“We were running over six furlongs short of our optimum trip. That was a mile and six and our optimum is two and a half miles.”

There will be some serious competition back at Ascot with Stradivarius and the Alan King-trained Trueshan, winner of the race in 2020, heading the betting (5/2), with Twilight Payment (8/1) also expected to make the trip to the Berkshire track. The ground will be key to any battle between the first three in the betting, with Goodwood Cup winner Trueshan and Princess Zoe favouring cut in the ground whereas Stradivarius prefers a sounder surface. However, Princess Zoe did finish more than two lengths ahead of Stradivarius in this year’s Gold Cup on good to firm ground.

Seven-year-old Stradivarius halted a run of defeats with victory in the two-mile Sagaro Stakes at Ascot in April, and was withdrawn on the day of the Goodwood Cup in July due to the soft surface. Trueshan claimed a first Group One in the Goodwood race and is clearly a horse on the up on the top-level stayers’ circuit and as well as a defence of the Long Distance Cup, Alan King is also eyeing the Prix du Cadran.

 

 

CHARLIE APPLEBY is in pole position to claim his first St Leger prize, with Hurricane Lane a clear favourite to claim the final classic of the season.

The three-year-old already boasts an impressive CV with wins this year in the Dante Stakes at York, the Irish Derby and Grand Prix de Paris. Early betting for the oldest of the classics has Hurricane Lane trading at around evens, with another Appleby-trained superstar, Adayar, quoted at 2/1. However, the UK horse analysts believe that, Epsom Derby and King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes winner will be targeted at the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe after a warm-up run in the Prix Niel.

The two sons of Frankel are clearly the cream of the crop at Appleby’s Newmarket base, with the trainer weighing up the best plans for the three-year-olds who have taken the sport by storm this year, reports RacingQuestions.co.uk.

He appears to be still weighing up whether to run both at Longchamp, but the indications are that Hurricane Lane will end his season after running at Doncaster.

Appleby said: “This is only a plan in pencil so far, but as Adayar hasn’t yet done any travelling we are looking at sending him to Paris for the Prix Niel. That will give him experience of travelling but also experience of the Arc track.

“Hurricane Lane has already won at Longchamp (Grand Prix de Paris), so the likelihood is that he will be trained for the St Leger. Both those races are three weeks before the main event but we would have to assess the extent to which the two horses are put to the sword at Doncaster and Longchamp before taking a decision about the Arc.

“You would hope and imagine Adayar wouldn’t have too hard a race in the Niel, so if Hurricane Lane did have a hard race in the Leger, he might be the one we start thinking about waiting another year to run in the Arc.”

Hurricane Lane was clearly the yard’s No.1 in the lead up to the Derby, but Adayar surprised many by turning over his stablemate and winning at Epsom at a price of 16/1. The two Appleby horses were separated by Mojo Star, and Hurricane Lane will be locking horns again with the Richard Hannon-trained son of Sea the Stars in the St Leger, reports BBC Sport

In the Irish Derby, Mojo Star met a host of problems in running but stayed on well to finish fifth – he is expected to provide Hurricane Lane with a stern challenge over the 1m6f clash on Town Moor.

The Irish challenge will be led by Ottoman Empire (8/1), Johnny Murtagh’s improver registering a fourth straight win in the Group Three John Pearce Racing Gordon Stakes at Goodwood, considered a leading trial for the Doncaster classic. However, it will be another jump in class, but so far he has proved he has been up to every challenge placed in front of him.

The Aidan O’Brien-trained Wordsworth was deemed the most likely Irish challenger, but the runner-up in the Irish Derby disappointed in the St Leger Trial at the Curragh. The Galileo colt is currently trading at around 20/1, and with 16 of the last 19 St Leger winners returned at 8/1 or shorter, it may be wise to focus attention on those horses at the top of the betting market.