The international rivalry expected in Saturday’s $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar has been reflected in the early betting for America’s richest race.
Forever Young, the Japan-based colt who finished a close third in the Kentucky Derby, was showing as the favorite Friday.
Fierceness, the Eclipse Award winner as the top juvenile male last year, and City Of Troy, the four-time Group 1 winner from Ireland who will be racing on dirt for the first time, also were among the shortest-priced horses in the field of 14.
Three-year-olds were getting more than their fair share of the win pool, even though only five were entered for the race that begins Saturday at 5:41 p.m. EDT.
The Breeders’ Cup Classic will be run at 1 1/4 miles on the main track at Del Mar, where the National Weather Service forecast a cloudy, windy day with a high temperature near 63 degrees and south wind of 5-10 mph that will be westerly at the back of horses in the homestretch in the afternoon.
This was the win pool showing Friday at 6:25 p.m. EDT including win odds and the morning line.
| Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Odds | ML |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Forever Young | Yoshito Yahagi | Ryusei Saiki | 5-2 | 6-1 |
| 2. Highland Falls | Brad Cox | Luis Saez | 14-1 | 20-1 |
| 3. City Of Troy | Aidan O'Brien | Ryan Moore | 7-1 | 5-2 |
| 4. Mito | Doug O'Neill | Kyle Frey | 50-1 | 30-1 |
| 5. Señor Buscador | Todd Fincher | Joel Rosario | 50-1 | 30-1 |
| 6. Derma Sotogake | Hidetaka Otonashi | Christophe Lemaire | 35-1 | 20-1 |
| 7. Ushba Tesoro | Noboru Takagi | Yuga Kawada | 35-1 | 12-1 |
| 8. Pyrenees | Cherie DeVaux | Brian Hernandez Jr. | 70-1 | 30-1 |
| 9. Fierceness | Todd Pletcher | John Velazquez | 5-1 | 3-1 |
| 10. Tapit Trice | Todd Pletcher | Irad Ortiz Jr. | 19-1 | 30-1 |
| 11. Sierra Leone | Chad Brown | Flavien Prat | 7-2 | 12-1 |
| 12. Arthur's Ride | Bill Mott | Junior Alvarado | 10-1 | 15-1 |
| 13. Newgate | Bob Baffert | Frankie Dettori | 25-1 | 20-1 |
| 14. Next | Doug Cowans | Luan Machado | 12-1 | 8-1 |
| 15. Rattle N Roll (ae) | Kenny McPeek | Jose Ortiz | 99-1 | 30-1 |
