Breeders’ Cup – Excitement Builds

California Chrome and Arrogate are the fancies in a field of 10 3-year-olds and up set for Saturday’s $6 million Gr1 Breeders’ Cup Classic, the climax of the 33^rd Breeders’ Cup World Championship races to be run Friday 4 and Saturday 5 November at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia California.

California Chrome – undefeated in six starts this year

The 2000m Classic is the richest of 13 Championship races worth $28.5 million in purses and awards to be run over the two days at Santa Anita.

Early indications for South African racing enthusiasts are that the meetings will be broadcast live on Tellytrack (Dstv 239).

Four Championship races will be run Friday, highlighted by the $2 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff for fillies and mares at 1800m  and featuring champions Beholder, Songbird and Stellar Wind in a field of eight.

Among the entries are eight winners from the 2015 event at Keeneland.

Irish-bred Found is back for more in 2016

Going for repeat wins in the same race are Tepin (Mile), Found (Ire) (Turf), Wavell Avenue (Filly & Mare Sprint) and Mongolian Saturday (Turf Sprint).

The others are  Juvenile Fillies winner Songbird (Distaff), Sprint winner Runhappy (Las Vegas Dirt Mile), Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Catch a Glimpse (Filly & Mare Turf) and Juvenile Turf winner Hit a Bomb (Mile).

Trained by Art Sherman, California Chrome is undefeated in six starts this year and has pushed his career bankroll to more than $13.4 million. Third in the Classic at Santa Anita in 2014, California Chrome is the even-money favourite and will break from post position four under Victor Espinoza.

Arrogate takes on California Chrome and will have his supporters

Second fancy at 5-2 is the Bob Baffert-trained Arrogate.

A winner of his past four starts, Arrogate exploded onto the national racing scene with a 13 ½-length victory in the Gr1 Travers in his most recent start. Mike Smith will be aboard the lone 3-year-old in the race and break from post position 10.

Baffert, who won last year’s Classic with Triple Crown winner American Pharoah and the 2014 Classic with Bayern, will have a second starter in the race in Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman’s Hoppertunity. Winner of the Gr1 Jockey Club Gold Cup  in his most recent start and earner of more than $3.5 million, Hoppertunity will break from post position nine and be ridden by John Velazquez.

Schedule for SA Punters:

Friday 4 November 2016:

Saturday 5 November 2016:

Bet types to be offered:

Win (Commingled at R16 unit and R32 minimum)

Place (Commingled at R16 unit and R32 minimum)

Exacta (Commingled at R16 unit and R16 minimum)

Double (Commingled at R16 unit and R32 minimum)

Pick 3 (Commingled at R8 unit and R8 minimum)

Pick 6 (Commingled at R32 unit and R32 minimum with no fractions)

SA Local Pools:

Pick 4 (SA local pools)

Swinger (SA local pools)

Trifecta (SA local pools)

Telephone betting will close at midnight. Online betting only will apply thereafter.