Breeders' Cup 2013: Highlighting Best and Worst Performances in Classic

At its best, the Breeders' Cup Classic is the perfect conclusion to the year in horse racing.

With a thrilling finish between some of the top horses and jockeys all going for their piece of a $5 million purse, the Classic was certainly at its best on Saturday evening at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif. 

Mucho Macho Man was ultimately victorious as he narrowly edged out Will Take Charge and Declaration of War to make his mark on Breeders' Cup history. Here's a replay of the race in its entirety and the complete results for the field. 

Note: All odds, results and statistics via BreedersCup.com unless otherwise noted.

Place	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Post*
1	Mucho Macho Man	Gary Stevens	Kathy Ritvo	6
2	Will Take Charge	Luis Saez	D. Wayne Lukas	10
3	Declaration of War	Joseph O'Brien	Aidan O'Brien	5
4	Fort Larned	Brian Hernandez Jr.	Ian Wilkes	7
5	Last Gunfighter	Javier Castellano	Chad Brown	1
6	Palace Malice	Rafael Bejarano	Todd Pletcher	8
7	Paynter	Martin Garcia	Bob Baffert	2
8	Flat Out	Joel Rosario	William Mott	12
9	Game On Dude	Mike Smith	Bob Baffert	9
10	Moreno	Joseph Talamo	Eric Guillot	4
11	Planteur	Ryan Moore	Marco Botti	3

Best Performances

Mucho Macho Man Makes History

Heading into the final high stakes race of the season, Kathy Ritvo-trained Mucho Macho Man faced an impressive field of thoroughbreds and proved to be better than them all. 

Thanks to the perfect blend of speed and endurance, the 2011 Kentucky Derby third-place finisher was able keep up with the pace and pull ahead from the pack when it mattered most. Will Take Charge pressed the action at the end, but it was clear that Mucho Macho Man was a deserving champion. 

Aside from the horse's incredible performance, Ritvo turned in her own historic performance as she became the first woman to train a Breeders' Cup champion. 

There were other horses in the field that turned in strong performances, but it was Mucho Macho Man that left a legacy. 

Will Take Charge Surges to Second Place

It may seem obvious that the second-most impressive performance goes to the horse that finished second in the race, but Will Take Charge certainly earned the distinction. 

The three-year-old just about lived up to his name. Staying just outside of the top five for the majority of the race, jockey Luis Saez finally made his move with about 300 yards to go as he challenged Mucho Macho Man down the stretch.

Although he came up just short, a $900,000 payday and second-place finish in the final major race of the season is nothing to sneeze at.

Worst Performance

Game On Dude Fails to Live up To Odds-On Favorite Status

When you have the odds-on favorite in a race with a $5 million purse, you plan on ending the day significantly richer than you were at the beginning of the day. 

Unfortunately, trainer Bob Baffert and Game On Dude's handlers found out that isn't always the case. Game On Dude closed as the post-time favorite but came up short when his moment came to etch his name into the Breeders' Cup menu. 

After setting the pace early on in the race, jockey Mike Smith simply couldn't get anything more out of his horse down the final stretch. 

Game On Dude showcased the top-end speed that made him a favorite early on, but his late-race swoon epitomized the unpredictability of high-stakes horse racing.