<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u200bThe Breeders’ Cup has delivered some of the most heart-stopping, legendary moments in horse racing history. From electrifying dead heats to dramatic underdogs and unforgettable championship runs, the event brings together the absolute best in the sport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u200bHere is my list of my top 10 favorite Breeder’s Cup races in my lifetime<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u200bLocation:<\/strong> Churchill Downs<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winner:<\/strong> Awesome Again<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bThe 1998 Classic featured arguably the single greatest field ever assembled in American horse racing history. A juggernaut field including :Skip Away<\/strong> (1997 Horse of the Year), Silver Charm<\/strong> (1997 Derby & Preakness winner), Touch Gold<\/strong> (1997 Belmont winner), Victory Gallop<\/strong> (1998 Belmont winner), Coronado’s Quest( 1998Haskell and Travers Winner)and Swain<\/strong> (European turf star).<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bIn a grueling stretch run, it was Patrick Byrne’s unheralded Awesome Again<\/strong>, ridden by Pat Day, who split horses in the final furlong to out-drive Silver Charm and Swain in an all-time thrilling battle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bLocation:<\/strong> Churchill Downs<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winner:<\/strong> Goldikova<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bNo horse in Breeders’ Cup history had ever won the same race three years in a row. Enter French heroine Goldikova<\/strong>. Having captured the Mile in 2008 and 2009, the legendary mare returned to Churchill Downs in 2010 facing a formidable field of international turf stars. Under jockey Olivier Peslier, she unleashed her signature electric turn of foot down the lane, surging past Gio Ponti to secure an unheard-of third consecutive victory\u2014firmly cementing her status as turf racing royalty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bLocation:<\/strong> Gulfstream Park<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winner:<\/strong> Daylami<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bThe 1999 Turf was a masterclass in grey-coated dominance. Trained by Saeed bin Suroor for Godolphin, Daylami<\/strong> arrived in Florida boasting victories in the Coronation Cup, Eclipse Stakes, and Irish Champion Stakes. Ridden by Frankie Dettori, the striking grey swept past the field around the turn with breathtaking ease, drawing off to win by by 2+ lengths en route to an European Horse Of The Year Award. A scratch from the 1998 edition of the race, the big Grey offered redemption for his rider Frankie Dettori who was “widely” criticized for his ride on Swain for Godolphin in the prior year’s Breeder’s Cup Classic<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bLocation:<\/strong> Belmont Park<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winner:<\/strong> Cigar<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200b”Unconquerable, invincible, unbeatable!” \u2014 Tom Durkin\u2019s iconic call summed up the 1995 Classic perfectly. Cigar<\/strong> entered Belmont Park riding an 11-race winning streak in his legendary 1995 campaign. Splashing through a muddy, rain-soaked track, Jerry Bailey maneuvered Cigar past the leaders entering the stretch, and the horse accelerated away to complete a perfect 10-for-10 season. It stands as one of the most authoritative Classic victories ever witnessed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bLocation:<\/strong> Churchill Downs<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winner:<\/strong> Kona Gold<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bPersistence and pure brilliance defined Kona Gold<\/strong>. After finishing third in the 1998 Sprint and second in 1999, the fan-favorite gelding returned in 2000 at age six on a mission. Trained by Bruce Headley and ridden by Alex Solis, Kona Gold pressed a blistering pace before unleashing a relentless drive to win in a track-record time of 1:07.77<\/strong> for 6 furlongs. It was a magnificent reward for a horse that spent three years at the absolute pinnacle of sprinting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bLocation:<\/strong> Arlington Park<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winner:<\/strong> Vindication<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bThe 2002 Juvenile gave racing fans a glimpse of pure, untouched genius. Trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Mike Smith, the undefeated son of Seattle Slew dismantled a stacked field of two-year-olds at Arlington Park, winning with plenty left in the tank. Vindication is an unfortunate case of what may have been having been injured and retired after the Juvenile but this race is special to me because of his rider, Mike Smith. Smith was my grandfather’s favorite jockey and he had been in a down part of his career having been injured in 1998 and subsequently moving his tack to California in this 2000 season. Vindication was an appropriately named horse to start the resurgence of Smith’s career<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bLocation:<\/strong> Santa Anita Park<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winner:<\/strong> Beholder<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bTwo champion mares. Undefeated brilliance versus veteran greatness. The 2016 Distaff produced one of the most thrilling nose-to-nose duels in sports history. The three-year-old phenom Songbird<\/strong> (11-for-11 entering the race) set the pace, while the six-year-old legend Beholder<\/strong> stalked her every step. Down the stretch, the two mares locked side-by-side in a ferocious, stride-for-stride battle, neither yielding an inch. At the wire, Beholder got her nose down by a fraction of an inch in a finale that left the Santa Anita crowd roaring. The Breeder’s Cup was intended as a Clash of Champions and we got our money’s worth that day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Johar & High Chaparral (2003 Breeders’ Cup Turf)<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bLocation:<\/strong> Santa Anita Park<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winners:<\/strong> Johar & High Chaparral (Dead Heat)<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bif you thought the 2016 Breeder’s Cup Distaff was close, how about a dead heat in the 2003 Turf. European superstar High Chaparral<\/strong> (the defending champion) and American challenger Johar<\/strong> surged together in the final strides alongside Falbrav. Hitting the wire in tandem, the photo-finish camera couldn’t separate them even after several minutes of review. The result? The first and only dead heat for victory<\/strong> in Breeders’ Cup history\u2014a legendary share of glory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bLocation:<\/strong> Santa Anita Park<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winner:<\/strong> Zenyatta<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bUnbeaten in 13 races, the queen of racing took on the boys for the first time in the 2009 Classic. True to her signature style, Zenyatta<\/strong> dropped to dead last early on, trailing by double-digit lengths. Coming around the far turn, jockey Mike Smith navigated her through traffic before pulling her wide into the stretch. Unleashing a monstrous late burst, she blew past Gio Ponti to become the first female horse ever to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic<\/strong>, keeping her undefeated record intact and bringing down the house. This one was special to me as my first visit to Santa Anita, a day I will never forget. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bLocation:<\/strong> Belmont Park<\/p>\n\n\n\n Winner:<\/strong> Tiznow<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bStanding atop the list is a race that transcended horse racing. Running at Belmont Park in New York just weeks after September 11, 2001, the weight of the nation hung in the air. Defending champion Tiznow<\/strong>, trained by Jay Robbins, squared off against European powerhouse Sakhee<\/strong> (fresh off a triumph in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe).<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u200bSakhee took the lead in deep stretch, but Tiznow fought back with unbelievable courage under jockey Chris McCarron, clawing back to win by a nose at the wire. Tom Durkin\u2019s iconic cry\u2014“Tiznow wins it for America!”<\/em>\u2014remains the most poignant and unforgettable moment in Breeders’ Cup history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n What are some of your favorite Breeder’s Cup moments? Leave them in the comments below. Let’s hope for some more memorable moments this weekend!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u200bThe Breeders’ Cup has delivered some of the most heart-stopping, legendary moments in horse racing history. From electrifying dead heats<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92805,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[2],"class_list":["post-77145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-previews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77145","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/92805"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=77145"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77145\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77287,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77145\/revisions\/77287"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=77145"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=77145"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=77145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\u200b9. Three-Peat: Goldikova (2010 Breeders’ Cup Mile)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\u200b8. European Brilliance: Daylami (1999 Breeders’ Cup Turf)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\u200b7. The Unbeatable Cigar (1995 Breeders’ Cup Classic)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\u200b6. Golden Speed: Kona Gold (2000 Breeders’ Cup Sprint)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\u200b5. Vindication (2002 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\u200b4. An Instant Classic: Beholder vs. Songbird (2016 Breeders’ Cup Distaff)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\u200b3.Hit The Wire Together:Johar and High Chapparral(2003 Breeder’s Cup Turf)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\u200b2. The Queen: Zenyatta (2009 Breeders’ Cup Classic)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\u200b1. “Tiznow Wins It for America!”: Tiznow (2001 Breeders’ Cup Classic)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n