Breeders’ Bowl Dirt Marathon
The Breeders’ Bowl Dirt Marathon is the longest in distance of all the Bowl races at 14-furlongs on a dirt surface. We have 20 horses entering the race this year, making it the largest field every to compete in this annual event. In comparison, the smallest field had 10 runners back in 2016. Every other time, it was a full field of 14-runners. Weather conditions are up in the air, with forecasters giving a 45% chance of rain at post time. The race is in California and open to horses age 3 and up and has never been won by the same horse twice, however, Let Me Be Cadet did finish second in consecutive years (2020 & 2021).
The race record for highest speed is 119.4 recorded in 2016 by Slip of the Tongue with the lowest odds for the winner being established in 2015 by Little Column B (Paid $8.80) and the highest odds of a winner occurring just last year with Before You Knew lighting up the tote board at 23/1 odds. He will be defending his title as he has been entered into this field for a shot to make it two-in-a-row.
Here’s a look at the 2025 field:
1 SONO ESSENZIALE 21/1 (owned by Temp 3)
Somewhat surprisingly, we have a runner in the Bowl Marathon race that last raced in a high end claiming race. Sono Essenzial (sired by Essential Quality) blew away the field as the 5/2 favorite rallying from a mid-field position to win by over 15 strides. This win pushed his career total to 9 victories over 27 career races, finishing ITM 19 times.
But can he handle the pressure of grade races? The answer would be yes, as he won the 2024 Rocky Top Derby (G2) and this season, took the G2 Old Man. Sono Essenziale is one of a handful of long distance running late closers. To his credit, he earned a third place finish in the G3 Jacksonville Jog this past July and was second in the G3 Olympic Torch in April.
Top speed for the year is 106, which he notched twice including his last outing. Speeds are below others in this field, who are hitting figures above 110 range and will be a challenge to overcome. As for a wet track, he has 6 outings on an offtrack, and has hit the board each time including a pair of wins. Faces a tough task this time out.
2 STREETROIAL 17/1 (owned by Amir1605)
Streetorial was sired by Street Sense and comes into this field with wins in his last pair of starts. Most recently, he won the G3 Molson Export with a 111 speed and it was in a close photo finish. He had to fight his way to the top as he was a tough 15-strides behind at the half. This result mirrored his previous start in a listed stake, where he was the same distance behind at the midway point and won by a half stride with a career best 114 speed.
Streetorial has 7 wins in his 19 race career and has been ITM a nice 15 times. He has made quite a turnaround as he had a pair of awful outing between April and June finishing off the board and a long way behind the winner (some 17 and 24 lengths behind.
The turnaround could not come at a better time for Streetorial as things were not going well for him and the recent starts give hope and promise entering into this big Bowl race. He is gifted with his late run ability and has never raced on an off-track, so ability on a wet track is unknown. He’s on a good roll of late and it could carry forward into this event.
3 CAT SENSES 11 /1 (owned by Given)
Cat Senses (sired by Street Sense) has been performing incredibly well, winning 10 times over 22 starts and has rarely been off the board as he has had a total of 18 top-3 finishes. He enters into the Bowl Marathon off of his first G1 race, the residency URC A tribute to Smockglack where Cat Senses broke away from the field and took a large 9-stride lead into the final quarter of the race to be run down and finishing three lengths behind Trevor Lawrence (also running in this event). The 114 speed he charted was his second fastest of his career.
Prior to this he had a three race win streak which included a pair of listed stake races and the G2 Grumpy Old Man Marathon. This guy loves setting the early fractions and will be aiming to wire the field. He is extremely reliable as he has been ITM in his last ten starts, so it’s been a long time since he’s been knocked off the board.
Cat Senses will be fine if the track turns up wet as he has won both of his off-track condition races. His grade level race history is limited to his last pair of starts. He has proven himself a worthwhile competitor and taking this race will make a lot of people believers.
4 THE HAMBLETONIAN 16/1 (owned by Sjmeola)
The Hambletonain is named after one of Harness racing triple crown races. This gelding was sired by Authentic and has won half of his 14 starts and has been consistent on the track with 12 ITM outcomes.
From July, 2024 through May 2025 The Hambletonian won every race he entered into resulting in a 6-race win streak with grade level top spots coming in the G2 No Surrender, G2 The Buckeye Stayer and G1 Desert Stamina Cup. He likes to run up close to the leader in the early stages of the race and then pounce on top just past the half. His top speed of 117 came in the No Surrender last November.
Hambletonian’s style of racing changed a bit in his last start, the Insulin Cap (G2). On the offtrack race, he laggered to the back side of the field, appearing to be bothered by the rain. Falling some 9 strides behind at the half, he came charging home to finish third under a stride with a 109 figure. If it rains, this should not affect this runner. I suspect he will be up running near the front in this field, which is his normal style. This harness themed horse could take one of the big races geared for the thouroughbreds.
5 FLEETWOOD BUNDY 13/1 (owned by Fleetwood)
Fleetwood Bundy is the top listed runner out of sire Super Saver and is the oldest runner in this field at the age of 6. He has won 12 times over his 26 race history and been ITM 20 reflecting a career of consistency. This season, he appeared twice in off-track conditions (only times in his career) and earned a win in the G3 Cowboy Handicap, blowing off the field by 8-strides with a 108 speed. He chalked a third place finish in the G3 Baltimore Special with a 103 speed and losing ground in the stretch and fell 4 back behind the winner.
Should the weather commit to rain, as there is a 45% chance of a downfall, Fleetwood should be ok as he has braved the conditions before. His top speed of the year is 113 and came in a listed local championship stakes where he blew the field by over 27 strides. Fleetwood also hit a 110 speed in the Razorback Route finishing 4th and making up 8-strides in the final quarter of the race.
Fleetwood Bundy is no stranger to the Breeders’ Bowl Dirt Marathon as he competed in this event back in 2023 where he took some minor purse funds with a 5th place finish. He has moved up in age and has shown an ability to still hit speeds in the 110 level. Coming in off a 7th place finish in the Molson Export does lend some concern as he was flat in the race and never a threat. Be nice to see a strong bounce back in this race.
6 QUADRENNIUM 22/1 (owned by Xpansion93)
Quadrennium is one of two grade race winners out of sire Olypiad and this gelding has earned wins in 8 of his 20 starts and has 5 second place finishes to boot. His only grade level win came this past May in the G3 Dying Breath in which he won by a comfy 3-length margin with a career best speed on 112.
He followed that up by being on the losing end of a photo finish in the G3 Europe Stayer, closing in the stretch and missing by a neck at the line with a 104 speed. The G3 Kegstand, Quadrennium’s most recent start resulted in an awful finish, ending up in fourth but double-digit lengths behind the winner and a sub-100 speed.
Quadrennium steps back up the G1 racing for his second try, his first was in April in the Hail to the King and he finished well back near the rear of the field. He doesn’t look to be a serious threat in this race. He will need to pull off another effort like he had in the Dying Breath race but his last start brings up a big concern as to where his form is heading.
7 CONNIE AND BT 34/1 (owned by Given)
This young 3-year old colt, sired by Curlin, will be competing with older horses for the first time. He recently made his first two starts at the G1 level starting with the 3rd leg of the triple crown races in the New Yorker where he started the race at the rear of the field and powered his way to the front and destroyed the field by over eleven strides and a 107 speed.
He followed this with another G1 win in the Chatterbox Stakes on a good wet surface and again started near the back of the field and came on late to win (108 sp) by just under 4 strides, a bit smaller margin than the New Yorker, but a longer 13f compared to 12f.
Connie and BT comes in with a four-race win streak and winning 7 of 10 starts. He is out of Hall of Fame game mare Cadet Cat (who ran in the 2014 Breeder’s Dirt Marathon and finished 4th) and all 10 of her kids (not including the one bred this year) are winners of stake events. This guy has a lot going for him but the speed figure needs to flow up a few notches. He has a great bloodline behind him and has a great future ahead of him and it could start by besting the older runners in this field.
8 CLIFTON CANISTER 25/1 (owned by Tyedye)
Clifton Canister is a child from sire Invincible Spirit. He has found six wins in 19 starts and been ITM 13 times. Two of those wins came this racing year with the first in a listed stake event where he recorded his career best speed of 112 and he came from a well back 14-strides to beat the field by 2. He followed that up with his only grade level win in the G1 Baltimore Special nocking off a 105 speed and winning by a stride on offtrack conditions.
He started the season off with a third in the G2 Buckeye Stayer, but was a good dozen lengths behind the winner and never found his late run footing. His most recent start was in the Jacsonville Jog and he was able to make up 6-strides in the final quarter of the race which was not enough and he finished fourth and a half-dozen lengths behind the winner.
For the good part of the past year, Clifton Canister has been cranking out speeds in the mid-100 range. He appears in his first G1 race and will need to get that speed up over 110 to compete and beat this field, a challenge which may be tough to accomplish.
9 FRINGILLA VIGO 23/1 (owned by Padrebri)
Fringilla Vigio is the only female to enter into this field she is a Teofilo bred mare. She has a career record of 8-9-2 with 26 races under her belt. She enters the Bow race after winning a pair of 2-mile dirt races, taking the G2 Scottsdale Stayer by three lengths and a 102 speed and the G2 Breakdown by five lengths and the same speed figure.
Earlier this year, she ran in a trio of G3 events at 14 furlongs and took home a second in the Charlotte Cup, her best finish in these events as well as her 2025 best speed of 107. Fringilla Vigio’s style is more of a mid-field runner where she waits her time and then makes her move.
Fringilla Vigio has never raced against the men before and that itself will make it a hard challenge to get the win. Added to that is she has never hit the 110 speed level, which many of her competitors have and it looks like the winning speed figure will be several notches above this for the winnerto take the victory.
10 BEFORE YOU KNEW 9/1 (owned by Tenpoint)
The 2024 Breeders’ Bowl Dirt Marathon king is back to defend his crown. Before You Knew exploded out of the gate in last years event and ran away from the field by 10 lengths by the midway point. The huge lead was big enough for him to coast the rest of the way to win by over 7 lengths with a 116 speed.
He followed that victory up with one in the Big Apple, on a wet track, with a 117 speed and even better 11-length margin to conclude the 2024 season. 2025 has not been as nice as this speedy runner has struggled to hit the board with one third place finish (Razorback Route) in three starts. He has been consistent with his speed, hitting a 113 figure in each outing.
Sired by Curlin, Before You Knew ha won 7 of his 14 career races and was in-the-money two other times. After winning five in a row to conclude the 2024 season, 2025 in comparison has been disappointing. There is a good chance we will have a wet track at post time and this may work in the favor of Before You Knew as he has won all three offtrack races he has appeared in.
11 STAR WALKIN’ 15/1 (owned by Beerkeg)
Star Walkin’ has a long eleven straight races competing at the top G1 stakes level of racing which started in February of 2024. In this duration, he has netted two wins with one being the Derby Lock in the Arkansas Derby and the other came this past June in the Razorback Route. In the Razorback, he raced near the pace setter and rallied in the stretch to win by a stride with a career best 114 speed.
Star has a third place finish in the New Yorker and more recently a second in the Hail to the King in which he posted a 112 speed. Things looked promising in his last start the Seattle Stayer where Star Walkin’ fired off to a 5-length early uncontested lead but tired in the stretch run and finishing the race in fifth.
Star Walkin’ (a Curlin sired gelding) has a long history of racing in G1 events but is inconsistent with the results and has been hit-or-miss. He has 5 career wins and ITM 8 times over 18 lifetime races. He’ll probably be a contender early on, near the front of the field, but may find it hard to keep his position there in the later stages of the race.
12 DANCER’S VIEW 17/1 (owned by Dahmanas)
This War Front sired horse ran in five consecutive grade level races from November last year through June this season and pulled out a win in the G3 New Orleans Stayer with a 5-stride margin and career best 113 speed. Dancer’s View also etched out a pair of seconds in the Rocky Top Derby (G2) and Desert Stamina Cup (G1) in this series of races.
He has raced a notch lower of late, competing in a pair of 2 mile listed stake races in which he won the first with a 108 sp and was third in the next one with a 103 speed. Career-wise, Dancer’s View has a 6-6-3 record over 23 races.
Without doubt, Dancer’s View best race to date was his 10/1 win in the New Orleans Stayer where he came from a dozen lengths behind to snag a nice win. It will take another effort like this one to best this field and that race was the only time he surpassed 110 in stake competition. A tough time is before him and a wet track will not help as he has raced 3 times on a wet surface and has hit the board once.
13 GHOSTLY CAMEO 9/1 (owned by Amir1605)
This Ghostzapper bred horse, owns a record of 8-3-2 over 25 lifetime races. Ghostly Cameo concluded the 2024 season on a hot note with a second and a win in listed stake races and sported speeds of 111 and 113 respectfully.
The hot performance carried over into 2025 with a second and a pair of back-to-back wins in a trio of listed stake events with speeds ranging in a nice 111-116 range. These outcomes graduated Ghostly Cameo into grade level racing where he has competed three times and knocked off consistent speeds of 109 in each race. However, he had only one top-three finish to brag about which was a third in a residency sponsored G1 race, URC A tribute to Smokeglack, beaten by over 9-stirdes by Trevor Larence who is also running in this Bowl event.
Ghostly Cameo had a nice run in the listed stakes level but has hit a wall moving into the graded level. Still, he can pop speeds above 110, which will be needed this time out. He’s not out of the picture but will be adding on several furlongs from the 12 furlong distance range he has been competing at.
14 HAD IT COMING 15/1 (owned by Worldclass)
This Tapit bred colt comes in with a record of 4-3-3 over a career spanning 19 starts. He has just wrapped up running 5 consecutive G1 races and will be making his 6th appearance at this level in the Bowl Marathon. Over these races, he picked up a win in the Hail to the King in April. Had it Coming fell some 14-lengths behind the leader at the half and advanced strongly to overtake the lead and pulled away to win by a pair of lengths with a 113 speed, equaling his career best.
The other four starts didn’t yield much to brag about, but he did hit a 110 speed in his last race, the Jockey Guild Cup, however, finished 9th but closed to within 4-strides after trailing by 10 at the ¾-pole. His other worthwhile outcome was a fourth on the turf running a 109 speed and it was on a wet surface.
Had it Coming does have a decent late move, but often it is ill-timed and he waits too long to get moving. Many times this happens going into the final quarter of the race and if he can start that move earlier, such as after passing the halfway point, he would stand a much better chance of going to the winner’s circle.
15 SEA DRAGON HUNTER 18/1 (owned by Padrebri)
Sea Dragon Hunter is a Curlin sired scratchbred colt who has amassed over $1.5 million in earnings. He has won 8 of 15 starts and has been ITM 11 times. He enters off a nice win in the 16f G1 Seattle Slayer, which he won by a good 5-stride margin and a 105 speed. The speed may be of concern to some, as a 110+ speed will be needed to win this event, however, the comfy margin he won by did not require high of a speed figure, so he went the relax way to finish the race.
This may be a good thing as the wear would be conceivably preserved. Plus, he’s been resting since the end of August. 2025 has been a good year hitting the board in all 4 race appearances this season, all G1 races. In addition to his last start, Sea Dragon notched a second in the Razorback Route (making up 10-strides in the last quarter of the race) and a 113 speed. A 3rd place finish came in the Hail to the King event, with a 111 speed. Prior to that, he won the 16f Cayuga Lake Special by almost a length and 106 speed.
Sea Dragon Hunter looks to be in good form and well rested. He shows one race on a wet track which was a win in an allowance event, so I don’t foresee a wet track being a big concern. He will be running late and expect him to be a contender here.
16 WIRAQUCHA 16/1 (owned by Tenpoint)
Winning three of his last four starts helped to boot Wiraqucha into the Bowl Marathon race. Using his front run ability, he steered the field from start to finish in his last start the Monster Mash and wired the field with a 112 speed and by a near 4-stride margin. The proceeding race was another gate-to-wire victory in the G3 Jacksonville Jog with a 106 speed and 6-length margin.
Back in April, Wiraqucha wired the field in the G3 Olympic Torch by another 6-lengths and a 109 speed. He has won 6 races in 18 starts and been ITM 8 times. In each of his six wins, he was either first or second by the third call. Sired by Flightline, that’s where this colt will need to be to get the win.
If he is in any other spot by the third call, his chances to get the win will likely diminish vastly. Finding a jockey to keep Wiraqucha up by the lead will be a key to his success in this race.
17 EUDAEMONIC 17/1 (owned by Tenpoint)
Eudaemonic just earned his first grade level race in his last start and that came on the dirt track surface in the G3 Fall Championship where he hit his career best speed of 116 and first time over the 110-level. He crippled the field as the 17/1 longshot, winning by a huge 8-lengths. The win improved his record to 4-7-0 in 18 starts.
Eudaemonic has split his wins between the dirt and turf and is sired by Sea the Stars. Prior to this dirt win, he ran four times on the turf with speeds ranging from 104 to 109 with a pair of seconds, once coming in an allowance race, the other in the G3 Destination Moon Cup, a sponsored race that he missed the top slot by six strides.
His last start was brilliant and may be hinting a desire to stay on the soil. However, he ventures back to the turf for this Breeders’ race that he’s eligible to compete with hopes that he can etch out another big win at the same 17/1 odds.
18 UNDER THE NEON 11/1 (owned by Britghtvalr)
A very consistent runner, Under the Neon has been ITM 13 of his 16 dirt appearances and has collected 7 wins in the process. He is a Quality Road bred gelding and in his last start, the G1 Monster Mash, he closed strong, trailing by 14 strides at the third call to finish second roughly 4 strides off the winner and a favorable 110 speed.
Under the Neon in the prior start, crossed under the line in first in the G2 Big Show, some 18…that’s right…18 lengths ahead of the field with a 112 speed figure at two miles. This came on the heels of an 11-length win in the G2 Nakatomi Stayer with a 114 speed, his best of this season.
Under the Neon (a Quality Road bred sire) has a strong kick and the ability to run away from the field if he gets to the front, and has the opportunity to blow away this field. He was beat out by Wiraqucha in the Monster Mash and will once again compete with him here in this Bowl race, seeking his revenge.
19 TREVOR LAWRENCE 9/1 (owned by Newmarket)
Bred for the turf, with the pedigree of Sea the Stars x Dubawi x Sadler’s Wells, this horse turned out to be a dirt runner, following his mother’s (Trespenpunto) path who favored the soil over the grass. He has 16 dirt starts with 9 wins an been ITM 14 times.
He has been very lightly raced this season with only 3 starts. The first came in February n the Khartoum Challenge III with a poor 7th place finish and 108 speed for the 10f contest. Since then, he has won his last pair of starts with a G2 victory in the Crooklyn Handicap, fighting his way from 11th at the half to win by over a stride. He came back with a G1 in the residency sponsored URC A tribute to Smokeglack event where Trever rallied from 16 behind at the half to win by 3 and a 116 speed.
Last year, Trevor Lawrence ran in the Breeders’ Dirt Marathon and trailed by a large 20 lengths at the half to finish second behind Before You Knew who he will be facing once again this year. Trevor looks to make it three-in-a-row in graded races and looks to be in fine condition and could bounce back and improve on his outcome in last year’s Bowl race.
20 CAT CRUSH 19/1 (owned by Given)
This Bernardini sired runner has won 11 of 24 outings and been ITM 13 times. He’s a child of hall-of-fame game mare Cadet Cat who has all 10 of her children winning a stake races (excluding the 2yo born this season).
Cat Crush has limited stake race experience, competing three times, once at the end of 2024 where he was fourth in a listed event. After a mix of allowance race first and second base finishes, he took on his second listed stake race, a two mile event which he won by an easy 8-stride margin and 108 speed. He rolled into the G1 Seattle Stayer, his first grade level race, in his last start and came from 10 off the lead to finish third by five.
Cat Crush has scattered a few races with speeds of 110 or higher with the last back in March. He won three-in-a-row which ended with his listed stakes win, all at the 2-mile distance and included allowance events. He cuts back to 14f and should be alright with the distance. Getting the speed back up into the 110-range will be a necessity to take down this field and the extreme outside post does not add any help.
My Picks
As I wrote this article, there track conditions were not known and a 45% chance of a wet track, so here are my set of picks:
Wet Track
Returning champ Before You Know is a perfect 3 for 3 on the wet track and will be dangerous if it does rain. My top pick for a wet track.
Trevor Lawrence has been on the board in both of his offtrack outings. Looks to be in good form to boot winning last pair of starts.
The Hambletonian put in strong 3rd finish in listed stakes when running on offtrack for first time in his last start. Gets 3rd pick.
Dry Track
Trevor Lawrence gets the nod on the dry track. He won last two after trailing by a large margin. Chance to revenge his 2nd place finish in last years Marathon race.
Sea Dragon Hunter last outing had 105 speed, but would have been higher if he was pressured more, won by 5. Prior pair of starts were over 110 in speed. I think he can hit up there again and gets second pick.
Under the Neon has won 2 of his last 3 by 11 and 18 lengths respectfully and speeds of 110 or higher in last four. Form looks good and figures to go well, third choice.