2011 Breeders' Cup Draw: Bob Baffert Doubles Up in Search of 6th Win

When it comes to big-time horse races, like the 2011 Breeders' Cup at Churchill Downs, Bob Baffert is the one name that everyone looks for. The star trainer has notched an incredible 2,064 victories, including three Kentucky Derbies, five Preakness Stakes and one Belmont Stakes, in his long and illustrious career preparing horses.

That extensive resume also includes five Breeders' Cup wins, albeit in 57 attempts since 1991.

In fact, Baffert hasn't any horses in the race since 2008, though he's returned to the field this year with two sterling entries—pole-position sitter Prayer For Relief (30-1) and Game On Dude (10-1).

As it stands, Havre de Grace (3-1), Uncle Mo (5-2) and Flat Out (6-1) are the odds-on favorites, but don't bet against Baffert's breeds. He knows, better than anyone in the world of horse racing today, how to win big-money events.

And make no mistake about it, the Breeders' Cup is one such event. It may not carry the general prestige of a Triple Crown race, but the $5 million purse for the winner, amidst the $26 million handed out overall, certainly qualifies the Breeders' Cup as a worthy buy. The event itself consists of 15 races across two days—six on Friday, nine on Saturday—at the one-and-a-quarter-mile track.

Uncle Mo, a filly trained by Larry Jones and the 2010 Breeders' Cup juvenile champion, could well become only the second female horse to win the event, joining 2009 winner Zenyatta in that regard.

As for Havre de Grace, the reigning winner of the Woodward is the top-rated horse according to the NTRA National Poll and has been the best horse running over the last few months.

That being said, there's plenty of reason to believe Baffert's horses may well win. Baffert knows horse racing better than just about anyone in the sport and wouldn't have any horses in the event if he didn't think they were serious contenders to win. Otherwise, he certainly would have had entries over the past two years.

And if Saudi princes and Texas oil barons have found comfort in trusting Baffert with their investments, then why shouldn't we?