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Breeders' Cup 2018 Results: Tracking Winners and Prize Money Payouts on Saturday
November 3, 2018
After an exciting opening day at the 2018 Breeders' Cup, the action continued Saturday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.
While nine races were on tap, everything was building up to the main event and arguably the sport's biggest race, the Breeders' Cup Classic.
Accelerate topped the field and made his case for Horse of the Year honors by winning the Classic and giving trainer John Sadler his first Breeders' Cup win.
Here is a rundown of how every race on Saturday, along with payout and prize-money information, courtesy of the Breeders' Cup's official website.
Filly & Mare Sprint ($1 million purse)
Finish — Post — Horse (Win; Place; Show) (Prize Money)
1 — 14 — Shamrock Rose ($53.80; $21.40; $11.20) ($550,000)
2 — 6 — Chalon (n/a; $14.60; $9.20) ($170,000)
3 — 12 — Anonymity (n/a; n/a; $15.60) ($90,000)
Shamrock Rose came all the way from last place to win the Filly & Mare Sprint on a photo finish.
As seen in the following video courtesy of the Breeders' Cup, Shamrock Rose barely nosed out Chalon and Anonymity for the win:
Shamrock Rose's win was a major boon for longshot betters, as she went off at 25-1 and paid $53.80 on a $2 win bet.
Even trainer Mark Casse knew Shamrock Rose faced an uphill battle, per the Breeders' Cup's official Twitter account: "I knew it was a tall task, but she's an exceptional filly."
Marley's Freedom entered the race as the odds-on favorite, but she had to settle for fourth after Irad Ortiz Jr. led Shamrock Rose to victory.
Turf Sprint ($1 million purse)
Finish — Post — Horse (Win; Place; Show) (Prize Money)
1 — 9 — Stormy Liberal ($16.00; $6.40; $4.00) ($550,000)
2 — 11 — World of Trouble (n/a; $3.80; $3.00) ($170,000)
3 — 5 — Disco Partner (n/a; n/a; $3.40) ($90,000)
For the second consecutive year, Stormy Liberal won the $1 million Turf Sprint at the Breeders' Cup.
Stormy Liberal made a late break on the outside to chase down 2-1 favorite World of Trouble and win the race as a 7-1 shot:
With the victory, Stormy Liberal became the first horse to win the Turf Sprint in consecutive years since Mizdirection in 2012 and 2013.
Jeremy Balan of Blood Horse was among the many to marvel at Stormy Liberal's ability to grind out another win in a high-stakes race:
Jay Privman of Daily Racing Form also praised the Peter Miller-trained horse:
Unlike the opening race of the day, the Turf Sprint was largely chalk up front, as Disco Partner finished third with a morning line of 7-2, meaning each of the top three betting choices finished in the money.
Dirt Mile ($1 million purse)
Finish — Post — Horse (Win; Place; Show) (Prize Money)
1 — 1 — City of Light ($7.20; $4.20; $3.20) ($550,000)
2 — 6 — Seeking the Soul (n/a; $7.00; $4.60) ($170,000)
3 — 8 — Bravazo (n/a; n/a; $5.80) ($90,000)
City of Light turned in a dominant performance Saturday and was never tested in his Dirt Mile victory at the Breeders' Cup.
Guided by jockey Javier Castellano, City of Light took the early lead and bolted away from the rest of the field:
City of Light won as the No. 2 betting choice at 5-2, but trainer Michael McCarthy had little doubt that he was the horse to beat, per the Breeders' Cup's official Twitter account: "We loved the post, Javier rode a great race and it was no secret that we were going to run away from there. At the three-eighths, I knew it was over."
Catalina Cruiser was a heavy 4-5 favorite, but he fell behind early and never recovered en route to a sixth-place result.
Castellano is now a two-time winner in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, tying him with Rafael Bejarano for the most all-time by a jockey.
Filly & Mare Turf ($2 million purse)
Finish — Post — Horse (Win; Place; Show) (Prize Money)
1 — 6 — Sistercharlie ($8.60; $4.20; $3.40) ($1,100,000)
2 — 3 — Wild Illusion (n/a; $4.80; $3.40) ($340,000)
3 — 9 — A Raving Beauty (n/a; n/a; $6.40) ($180,000)
Ireland's Sistercharlie made a late charge to edge out Wild Illusion in the Filly & Mare Turf at Churchill Downs on Saturday.
Wild Illusion seemed poised to steal the win from A Raving Beauty with a closing burst, but Sistercharlie made a move on the far outside to beat them both:
Sistercharlie was the second betting choice behind Wild Illusion, but she benefited from a fantastic ride by jockey John Velazquez.
She also had history on her side since trainer Chad Brown has dominated the Filly & Mare Turf over the years, according to At The Races:
Sistercharlie is the first Irish horse to win the race, and she continued a three-year streak of non-American horses winning it, as Queen's Trust and Wuheida of Great Britain prevailed in 2016 and 2017, respectively.
Sprint ($2 million purse)
Finish — Post — Horse (Win; Place; Show) (Prize Money)
1 — 9 — Roy H ($7.40; $4.00; $2.60) ($1,100,000)
2 — 1 — Whitmore (n/a; $5.80; $3.60) ($340,000)
3 — 5 — Imperial Hint (n/a; n/a; $2.60) ($180,000)
Roy H repeated Saturday as the winner of the Breeders' Cup Sprint at Churchill Downs.
Jockey Paco Lopez kept Roy H near the leader for much of the race before making his move on the outside and pulling away from the rest of the field down the stretch:
Despite winning the race last year, Roy H was only the second betting choice behind Imperial Hint, who finished a distant third.
Per TVG's Joaquin Jaime, Roy H's win continued Saturday's trend of the favorites failing to come out on top:
Miller is the first trainer to win the Breeders' Cup Sprint in back-to-back years since Midnight Lute pulled off the feat for Bob Baffert in 2007 and 2008.
Lopez is also a Breeders' Cup winner for the first time, as he replaced Kent Desormeaux, who rode Roy H to victory last year.
Mile ($2 million purse)
Finish — Post — Horse (Win; Place; Show) (Prize Money)
1 — 7 — Expert Eye ($13.80; $7.00; $4.60) ($1,100,000)
2 — 10 — Catapult (n/a; $7.20; $4.60) ($340,000)
3 — 12 — Analyze It (n/a; n/a; $4.60) ($180,000)
Expert Eye came from well off the pace to steal the Breeders' Cup Mile from Catapult and Analyze It on Saturday.
Despite being outside the top six on the final turn of the race, Expert Eye turned on the jets when jockey Frankie Dettori guided him to the outside:
By getting past Catapult, Expert Eye denied jockey Drayden Van Dyke what would have been his second Breeders' Cup victory of the day.
In a race normally dominated by more experienced horses, Expert Eye became the first three-year-old to win since Karakontie in 2014.
Expert Eye was the No. 2 betting choice behind Oscar Performance, but Oscar Performance broke slow out of the gates and struggled to a last-place finish.
Distaff ($2 million purse)
Finish — Post — Horse (Win; Place; Show) (Prize Money)
1 — 11 — Monomoy Girl ($5.60; $3.40; $3.00) ($1,100,000)
2 — 9 — Wow Cat (n/a; $5.40; $4.00) ($340,000)
3 — 7 — Midnight Bisou (n/a; n/a; $4.40) ($180,000)
Monomoy Girl became the first favorite to win Saturday when she prevailed by a length in the Breeders' Cup Distaff.
After taking the lead just prior to the final turn, Monomoy Girl ran strong down the stretch and held off both Wow Cat and Midnight Bisou for the victory:
Just six months earlier, Monomoy Girl won the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs, and she managed to score another big win in Louisville on Saturday.
Trainer Brad Cox said after the race that he was confident Monomoy Girl would perform well given how great she looked during training, according to the Breeders' Cup's official Twitter account: "She ran the way she was training. She was training like a monster and she ran like a monster. She is a special filly, one of a kind, an unbelievable filly."
After winning last year's Breeders' Cup Classic, jockey Florent Geroux got on the board with a win in the 2018 Distaff.
He now has five career Breeders' Cup wins to his credit, while Cox scored his first Breeders' Cup win as a trainer thanks to Monomoy Girl.
Turf ($4 million purse)
Finish — Post — Horse (Win; Place; Show) (Prize Money)
1 — 2 — Enable ($3.60; $3.00; $2.60) ($2,200,000)
2 — 5 — Magical (n/a; $6.80; $4.80) ($680,000)
3 — 11 — Sadler's Joy (n/a; n/a; $8.80) ($360,000)
Great Britain's Enable showed Saturday that she can also get the job done in the United States, as she prevailed in the Breeders' Cup Turf.
The race came down to a pair of fillies, as Enable and Magical pulled away from the field with Enable holding onto the lead from the far outside:
With Saturday's win, Enable added to the already impressive resume she built in Europe, according to Coral:
Dettori picked up his second win of the day as a jockey, and he pulled the right strings in the Turf by bringing Enable well outside and allowing her to dart to the lead late.
Per At The Races, trainer John Gosden discussed Enable's continued improvement after the race: "What a wonderful race between two great fillies. Enable has been brave and strong. All credit to her. Maybe she's getting better."
Enable was a heavy favorite entering the race, and she didn't disappoint, as she is now the only horse to win both the Breeders' Cup Turf and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
Classic ($6 million purse)
Finish — Post — Horse (Win; Place; Show) (Prize Money)
1 — 14 — Accelerate ($7.40; $6.00; $4.40) ($3,300,000)
2 — 4 — Gunnevera (n/a; $21.80; $11.80) ($1,020,000)
3 — 1 — Thunder Snow (n/a; n/a; $8.00) ($540,000)
Accelerate put an exclamation point on a remarkable season Saturday by winning the $6 million Breeders' Cup Classic.
After watching Mendelssohn lead for much of the race, Accelerate made his move on the outside down the stretch and held off Gunnevera to win:
Accelerate has now won six of his past seven starts, and TVG's Andy Serling is of the belief that he deserves Horse of the Year honors:
Balan was among those who agreed with his assessment:
While Accelerate did his job as the favorite, nothing was guaranteed, especially considering the Breeders' Cup record of trainer John Sadler entering the race.
Sadler was 0-44 in Breeders' Cup races prior to the Classic, Accelerate helped him pick up the biggest win of his career.
Jockey Joel Rosario was amazed by Accelerate's performance, according to the Breeders' Cup's official Twitter account: "That was about as good as it gets. That horse is simply unbelievable."
Rosario had five Breeders' Cup wins prior to the Classic, including two this year, but Saturday marked his first Classic win.