All Eyes On The Breeders’ Bowl Classic

Twenty quality horses line up to take on the challenge of the Breeders’ Bowl Classic. The six million dollar race is one of three races of that distinction run at a mile and a quarter on the dirt each year, the other two being the Sand Castle Classic for all ages and the Bluegrass Derby for three year olds. The winners of both of those races are entered here as is last year’s Breeders’ Bowl Classic winner. There’s a good mix of horses who like the distance and those trying it for just the first or second time which makes for an interesting handicapping challenge. There are also a number of horses coming in off long layoffs the longest of which is from early July. Of course the field features quite a few three year olds attempting their elders for the first time. Let’s take a look at the oversize field.

#1 Bro Bro 8/1

Co-favorite Bro Bro draws inside and looks to add to his earnings that already total nearly $5,000,000. He’s an Uruguayan-bred son of Orb out of the grade two winning Dubawi x Storm Cat mare Desert Cowgirl. She was a dirt sprinter who ran second in the F and M Sprint back in 2015 (she ran again the following year as well) but she has not reproduced herself outside of Bro Bro. He’s a five year old gelding who began his stakes career with wins in local championships but this season he has branched into grade one competitions and has been quite good at them. On March 1st he was third in the California Handicap. Run back 28 days later he navigated a full field of twenty in the Sand Castle Classic, coming from thirteenth early on to win by two and a half lengths while running a 117 speed. He took a break from the top level to win another local championship before making his final prep for this spot back in a grade one, this time the Western Ocean CA Classic where he was a fast closing second beaten just a head. All of those races came at a mile and a quarter.

#2 Gun Running Indy 30/1

Gun Running Indy is the first three year old in the field. He’s not only facing older horses for the first time but he’s also making his first start past a mile and an eighth. His last two runs have come at that distance with his best finish coming two starts back when second in the Grade Two Swamps Stakes over this course. He sat midpack that day before making up some ground around the turn. He ran a 112 speed in that spot, a number that equaled his previous start which saw him win a grade three at a mile and a sixteenth. Most recently he was a flat fourth in the Grade Two State Penn Derby. His speeds are decent for a three year old but he’ll have to improve to compete against the best of the older runners here and do so at an unfamiliar distance. His pedigree says that shouldn’t be a problem though he’s a scratchbred by Gun Runner x A.P. Indy x Unbridled’s Song.

#3 Box of Deception 53/1

Last season Box of Deception won the biggest race for two year olds regularly run over the California track, the Grade One Movieland Futurity. He’s made only four starts since that December race and has yet to find the winner’s circle but he’s run second in two big races against fellow three year olds. He ran second in the Bluegrass Derby after battling for the early lead and taking it around the turn but tiring down the stretch. He followed that up with a second in the Grade One Eddie Haskell Stakes at a mile and an eighth where he was a bit further off the early leaders but didn’t make up much ground in the stretch. He ran a career best 111 speed on that July day. His most recent start came over two months ago in the Grade One Travelers Stakes at a mile and a quarter and he was much further back early on and faded badly down the lane to finish tenth. He’s a son of Into Mischief out of a graded placed stakes winning Curlin x Kingmambo mare. He is her second foal and first graded winner.

#4 Dream Sensed 38/1

Another three year old who exits the Grade One Travelers is Dream Sensed. He finished fourth that day after battling on the front end before fading down the lane to lose by over seven lengths. Prior to that he scored the biggest victory of his career in the Grade Two Fake Honeymoon Stakes at a mile and a quarter over a good track. In that spot he was seventh early on before closing stoutly to win with a 106 speed. That running style seems more indicative of what to expect for this son of Street Sense. The Fake Honeymoon was his third win in a row, all at today’s distance. His dam is grade one winning Frankel x Storm Cat mare Dream Simulator who was best going a mile and three quarters on the dirt. She also produced a grade three winner who was strictly a turf horse.

#5 To Shape A Dragon 36/1

To Shape A Dragon scored the biggest win of his career in the classic Grade One Middle Jewel Stakes at a mile and three sixteenths. He closed from eleventh that day to win going away with a 109 speed. He’s made three starts at that distance, all against grade one competition. Prior to the Middle Jewel he was third in a Derby-Lock Prep and after the Middle Jewel he was second in the Clerk of Scales Stakes. In the Clerk of Scales he was much closer to the early pace and didn’t have that same turn of foot down the stretch but he did run a 108 speed. He made his most recent start in the Grade One Travelers and there he was well back early on again and finished second but he actually lost ground down the stretch that day. Still he ran a career best 110 speed and he enters this spot well rested. He’s a scratchbred son of Good Magic x Deputy Minister x Mr. Prospector.

#6 Big Boy Pants LV 11/1

Five year old Big Boy Pants LV scored the biggest victory of his career two years ago when he took a Derby-Lock Prep at a mile and an eighth. Since then he has only won twice, once in a listed stakes last season and the second two starts back in an allowance, both at a mile and an eighth. His most recent race saw him add a sixteenth of a mile and run a fast closing second in a listed where he ran a career best 114 speed. It was only his fourth start of 2025 so he’s not been over raced coming into this spot. He’s only tried this distance twice, both times as a three year old and in the two biggest races for that age group, the Bluegrass Derby and the Travelers and he was well beaten in both but he’s obviously a different animal as a five year old. He’s a son of Gun Runner out of a Medaglia D’oro x Ghostzapper mare. He is the first foal for his dam and her only stakes winner.

#7 Justify’s Deputy 39/1

Justify’s Deputy has never been out of the money in his nine career starts. The three year old son of Justify out of a Medaglia D’oro x Deputy Minister mare is the second graded winner from his dam who has three previous foals. Her other graded winner is a full sister to this colt. He’s a late runner who has only run past a mile and an eighth once and that was in the Grade One Travelers back in August. In that spot he was next to last early on and made up just over five lengths but was third, beaten six lengths at the wire. He ran a 108 speed in that spot which was below his career best 113 which he had run in his previous start. That race was a win in the Grade One Eddie Haskell in which he turned a seven length deficit at the top of the stretch to a length and a quarter margin in his win. He’s going to need some luck navigating such a large field from so far back.

#8 Seattle Gold Front 10/1

Seattle Gold Front is a five year old scratchbred gelded son of War Front x Seeking the Gold x Seattle Slew. He ran 15^th in this race last year in what is his only prior start at this distance. He entered that Breeders’ Bowl off a win in the Grade One Bob Woodward Memorial going a mile and an eighth. That is the only grade one victory of his career. He’s been lightly raced this season as this will be just his fifth start of the year. All of the other races came at that mile and an eighth distance and saw the late runner finished third in a grade two to start the year and then third again in a grade one. After an off the board finish in a grade one back in May he ran the best race of the season in this year’s Bob Woodward. In that spot he ran a fast closing second to lose by just a head with a 117 speed.

#9 Tap Explosives 30/1

The best chance of the three year olds in the field is this colt who won both the Bluegrass Derby and the Grade One Travelers at this distance. In between those two races he was also third in the Middle Jewel. He’s a midpack runner who sat in seventh in the Travelers before making a strong middle move and won going away by almost five lengths while running a 115 speed. He obviously loves the distance and that number puts him right up there with the best of the older horses. He’s also had over two months rest since the Travelers so who knows how much better he might be with some maturity? He’s a son of Tapit out of the grade two winning Quality Road x Bernardini mare Explosive Road. He’s her fourth foal, the previous three include a grade two winner and a stakes winner.

#10 He Wants Guns 13/1

The winner of this race last season, He Wants Guns matured at the right time although his big win was not enough to earn Champion Three Year Old Dirt Route honors (that would go to Bluegrass Derby winner Alternate Xmas). In five starts this year though, He Wants Guns has yet to find his way to the winner’s circle. Indeed he has only hit the board in one of those runs. That was a third place finish in the Grade One Sand Castle Classic at this distance back in March. The midpack runner did run a solid race in his prep for this spot. Going a mile and a quarter again he was fourth in the Grade One Jockey Guild Gold Cup. He sat sixth early on but closed strongly down the stretch to only lose by a length and three quarters while running a 113 speed. His connections are hoping that he’s a horse who does his best running in the fall as they look for back-to-back wins. He’s a son of Into Mischief out of the Champion Curlin x Tapit mare She Wants Biceps. He is her first foal and so far only winner.

#11 Time For Bernie 9/1

Time For Bernie seeks his first top level win in this spot but he’s got fourteen victories in his win column so he knows how to find the wire. Last season as a three year old he won two listeds at this distance with 115 and 116 speeds. This year he has two graded victories. The first came inMay when he won the Grade Three Billy Donald at a mile and an eighth. He ran a career best 120 speed there by coming from tenth early on and closing over eight lengths down the lane. His other victory this year came going a sixteenth of a mile longer in the Grade Two gotta Fix the Sprinklers Classic. He employed similar tactics there but this time converted a ten length deficit at the top of the stretch to a three quarters of a length win while running a 117 speed. Time For Bernie prepped for this race in the Grade One Jockey Guild Gold Cup where he finished second with a 114 speed. He’s a son of Not This Time out of a stakes winning Bernardini x Kingmambo mare and is her only stakes winner.

#12 Big Ron 10/1

Big Ron is a four year old son of Frankel out of the Hall of Fame and Champion Redoute’s Choice x Kingmambo mare Wister Road. He is the fourth grade one winner produced by the mare who won the Breeders’ Bowl Distaff in 2013. Big Ron was tenth in this race last year after scoring his first elite win in the Travelers. This year he won the Grade Two Toilet Scrubbers Anonymous Handicap at a mile and three sixteenths going wire to wire with a 119 speed. He was second in two grade ones including the Sand Castle Classic at this distance. In each of those races he battled for the lead early before tiring down the stretch. He did not have that problem in his most recent start, the Grade One Jockey Guild Gold Cup. In that spot he got a relatively easy lead and coasted around the track to win by just over a length with a 115 speed.

#13 Slew Mischief 8/1

The other co-favorite is this scratchbred four year old son of Into Mischief x Seattle Slew x Street Cry. He’s looking for his first grade one victory here although he has seven victories at this distance. His most recent race saw him take his first graded victory by winning the Grade Two Windy City Gold Cup with a 118 speed. In that spot he was second early on without challenging the early leader before assuming command around the turn and turning on the afterburners in the stretch, winning by seven and a half lengths. His only defeat at this distance came in his previous start, the Grade One Western Ocean CA Classic. In that spot he was further back early on than is typical for him and he did close nicely down the stretch to finish fourth, beaten just two lengths. It was his graded debut and sometimes sim horses can hiccup when making that initial jump. Obviously the oddsmaker thinks that that was a toss out race and if he runs back to his last he’ll be certainly tough to beat.

#14 Movie Starr 9/1

Movie Starr has three grade one victories under his belt and all three have come over this course and distance. In 2024 he won the Movieland Shiny Cup and this season he added wins in the California Handicap and the Western Ocean CA Classic as well. In between he was off the board in last year’s Breeders’ Bowl but he also won a listed at this distance to start the year. He’s been off since the Western Ocean back in mid-August. In that spot he sat sixth early on but closed from over four lengths back at the stretch call to get up to win by a head. He ran a 116 speed which is the fastest he’s run this year but last season he set a career best of 123 when winning a grade three at this distance. He’s a five year old son of Medaglia D’oro out of an Empire Maker x Deputy Minister mare and is his dam’s only stakes winner.

#15 Woette’s Judge 12/1

Woette’s Judge was graded placed as a three year old on the Triple Crown trail but it wasn’t until last November where he broke through with a grade two victory for the first time. The now five year old was gelded immediately before that race and initially it seemed to help his form. He won the Grade Two Lewis & Clark Stakes at a mile and an eighth by sitting fourth early on before making steady progress around the turn and holding off the closers to win by a measured length with a 117 speed. He ran the same distance in his next start, the Grade One Glenn Kegasus Tradition Killer and employed similar tactics but his speed dropped a couple of points and he finished second by a length. That’s when things seemed to unravel. He’s been off the board in four of his last five starts with the only bright spot being a third place finish in the Grade One Bob Woodward. None of his races this season have come at today’s distance and indeed his only really good form going longer was that graded placing as a three year old where he was second going a mile and five sixteenths. He’s a son of Tiz the Law out of a Montjeu x Kingmambo mare. She has produced three other graded placed stakes winners but Woette’s Judge is her only foal to have broken through at the graded level.

#16 Alternate Xmas 15/1

Last season’s Champion Three Year Old Dirt Route earned that distinction based largely on his victory in the Bluegrass Derby. He dropped his next seven races although he hit the board in a few of those but he broke through this season with a win in the Grade One Movieland Shiny Cup. Run at this distance he sat very far back early on before closing sharply down the stretch to get the win by a quarter of a length with a 116 speed. He followed that up with a fifth place finish in the Grade One Jockey Guild Gold Cup where he was a bit farther back early on and left himself too much to do down the stretch although he again showed a nice close and was only beaten two lengths while running a 113. He’s a son of Frankel out of the grade one winning Medaglia D’oro x Redoute’s Choice mare Another Lifetime. He is her only stakes winner from four foals.

#17 Jamisontap Again 14/1

Based on the 2021 runner up in this race Jamison Again (Awesome Again x Storm Cat), four year old Jamisontap Again by Tapit has banked over two and a half million dollars in his career. The winner of last year’s Middle Jewel he ran in the Breeders’ Bowl as a three year old but in the Dirt Mile, not the Classic. He finished a solid fourth that day after trying to close from dead last early on. In six starts this season he has only one win in the Grade Two Slugger’s Breeder’s Bowl back in May. He again was near the back of the pack but moved up nicely around the turn and picked things up even more down the stretch to get up to win by a quarter of a length. Aside from his Middle Jewel win at a mile and three sixteenths, most of his success has come at a mile and a sixteenth, the distance of the Slugger’s. The distance here coupled with the large field he’ll have to weave his way through may be too much for this well bred gelding.

#18 Bloody Mischief 61/1

The longest shot on the board and deservedly so is the three year old scracthbred Bloody Mischief by Quality Road x Deputy Minister x Mr. Prospector. He’s never won a graded stakes, never won at this distance and hasn’t run since early July. He did run second in the Grade One Middle Jewel at a mile and three sixteenths but he followed that up with a fifth place finish in the Grade One New Yorker (his only try going longer than the Middle Jewel distance) and then was off the board again in another grade one. All of those races were restricted to three year olds which is just another mountain to overcome for this colt.

#19 Dynasensational 22/1

Last year’s Champion Two Year Old Dirt Colt, Dynasensational won the Breeders’ Bowl Juvenile a year ago. His only win since then came two starts back when he took an allowance going a mile and a sixteenth against four opponents. He sat fourth early on before opening up down the stretch and running a 110 speed. He improved in his last start going a mile and an eighth in a listed to a 115 speed where he was second, beaten just a quarter of a length. He’s another who has never faced his elders before and his only start at this distance came in the Bluegrass Derby where he was thirteenth. He’s a son of Zensational out of the grade two winning Dynaformer x Swain mare Dynaswain. He is her second stakes winner and only graded winner.

#20 Royal Influence 12/1

Four year old Royal Influence is a son of Tapit based on the grade one winning Empire Maker x Medaglia D’oro hemare Power Grab. He ran fifth in last season’s Bluegrass Derby which was his only try at this distance. He’s in career best form at the moment. In his last four starts he’s won three times and was second by a neck in his other race. The last three of those races came at a mile and an eighth and include his second graded stakes victory, the Grade Two Bluegrass Cup Classic in his most recent start. In all of those races he has lead from the get go and breaking from the twenty hole he’s going to need to flash that early speed to hopefully clear the field and not get hung too wide. He ran a career best 117 speed three starts back and ran just a point lower in that last start.

Good luck to all!