DEL MAR, Calif. (AP) — Life Is Good cruised to a 5 3/4-length victory in the $1 million Dirt Mile on Saturday, giving jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. his third Breeders' Cup victory of the weekend at Del Mar.
One race earlier, Ortiz guided Golden Pal to a 1 1/4-length win in the $1 million Turf Sprint. Both of his mounts were favorites.
Golden Pal rocketed to the front and was never threatened in winning by 1 1/4 lengths. He ran 1 1/4 lengths in 54.75 seconds and paid $7 to win as the 5-2 favorite.
Ortiz and trainer Wesley Ward combined to take the Juvenile Turf on Friday with Twilight Gleaming. Golden Pal won that race last year, making him a two-time Cup winner among his five career victories.
Todd Pletcher trains Life Is Good and earned his 12th Cup win. Ortiz has 14 career Cup victories.
Knicks Go and Belmont Stakes winner Essential Quality were the favorites for the $6 million Classic later Saturday. The field was reduced to eight when Express Train was scratched in the morning with swelling in his right hock, similar to an ankle.
Sun broke through the fog that blanketed the seaside track north of San Diego a day earlier.
The first of Saturday's nine Cup races began with a big upset. Ce Ce, a 6-1 shot, won the $1 million Filly & Mare Sprint by 2 1/2 lengths. Defending champion Gamine, the 2-5 favorite trained by Bob Baffert, finished third, ending her five-race winning streak.
"She just got tired," Baffert said. "The winner ran a great race. She looked great in the paddock. I knew she was the one to beat."
Victor Espinoza rode Ce Ce to his first Cup win since 2015, when the now 49-year-old jockey and Triple Crown winner American Pharoah won the Classic.
