Breeders' Cup 2016 TV Schedule: Friday Coverage, Race Times and More
The Breeders' Cup will kick off on Friday, Nov. 4 at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, with a slew of races spread over two days to mark the end of the thoroughbred season.
The event began in 1984 and has attracted many of the top horses in the world since. Below, we'll take a look at Friday's schedule and preview the event.
| Juvenile Turf (G1) | 11:25 p.m. | NBCSN |
| Las Vegas Dirt Mile (G1) | 12:05 p.m. | NBCSN |
| Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1) | 12:50 p.m. | NBCSN |
| Longines Distaff (G1) | 1:35 p.m. | NBCSN |
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Preview
Obviously, all eyes will be focused on California Chrome come Saturday, as he looks to become the first horse in history to win the Dubai World Cup and the Breeders' Cup in the same year, per Debbie Arrington of the Sacramento Bee.
The former Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner certainly has quite the resume. After all, the Kentucky Derby is the most prestigious race in horse racing and one of the most prestigious events in sports, period. The Dubai World Cup holds the sport's largest purse.
And every trainer, owner and jockey wants to close the season with a win at the Breeders' Cup.
Standing in California Chrome's path is a talented field, led by Arrogate and Frosted. But Chrome is currently the betting favorite (-140), according to Odds Shark.
"California Chrome is a horse for the ages," breeder and owner of Harris Farms, John Harris, told Arrington. "He is the whole package—great personality, looks and performance coupled with inherent charisma...I choke up every time he runs, he is just so special."
The talented horse is already the most lucrative horse in North American history. A win at the Breeders' Cup could push him to the title of the world's most valuable horse, as Arrington noted.
That's the big race on Saturday. But what about Friday's top showdown?
The Distaff is the biggest race on tap, and it should be a doozy, with undefeated Songbird, Beholder and the defending champion, Stellar Wind, all in the running. It's likely the winner will emerge from these three horses, though of course anything is possible.
"I’ve studied these mares, a lot," Stellar Wind's trainer, John Sadler, told John Cherwa of the Los Angeles Times. "They are really close. The scenario that will surprise me is if someone wins easily."
Stellar Wind has trumped Beholder the last two times they've raced, and she has five wins and a second-place finish at Santa Anita. That makes her the likely favorite to repeat.
But if Beholder can stalk the early leaders and pounce at the end, Stellar Wind could be vulnerable. Songbird, meanwhile, has the potential to blow away the field with an early start.
It's an intriguing race, certainly.
"It’s a rare race that has this many champions of this quality," Sadler noted. "Circumstances don’t usually work out that you have the top 3-year-old, top 4-year-old and the top older mare. It’s like a lunar eclipse where the moon passes the sun. And they are all landing in top form."
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