New Breeders Cup race announced
 

Just watching TVG right now and they just popped in saying that there is gonna be a 2 year old sprint on the card now.

You have to be kidding me.

JUVENILE SPRINT RACE ADDED TO BREEDERS’CUP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS;*TWO-DAY RACING EXTRAVAGANZA EXPANDS TO 15 RACES*

LEXINGTON, Ky.* (June 14, 2011) – The Breeders’ Cup announced today that a new race, the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Sprint, has been added to the Breeders’ Cup World Championships beginning this year at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Sprint will be run as a six furlong race open to 2-year-old colts, geldings and fillies, and will be contested on the main track for a purse of $500,000. The new race will have a maximum of 14 starters.*The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Sprint becomes the 15th race of the two-day, $26 million Breeders’ Cup World Championships, which will be held November 4-5 at Churchill Downs. The new race will be run on Friday, November 4.*The creation of Juvenile Sprint was developed through the combined efforts of Breeders’ Cup Wagering Committee, chaired by David Willmot, and the Breeders’ Cup Racing and Nominations Committee, chaired by Clem Murphy.*“Our goal in the Wagering Committee focused on creating a Breeders’ Cup race that would generate not only betting interest for the public but also provide an additional opportunity for the two year old crop from which our owners and breeders could benefit.” said Willmot. “A six furlong sprint race for Juveniles has the potential to provide highly competitive fields in this new division.”*Murphy commented: “In discussions with horsemen on selecting a new race, an overwhelming majority requested that we add a Juvenile Sprint to the Championships program. There are a number of talented 2-year-old sprinters around the world who are not suited or may not be ready to run the two turns at 1 1/16 miles of the Juvenile or Juvenile Fillies in early November. The Juvenile Sprint provides horsemen with an alternative.”*This is the first expansion of the World Championships program since 2008, when the number of races was increased from 11 to 14 for the 25th running at Santa Anita Park.The Breeders’ Cup began in 1984 with seven races and purses of $10 million. An eighth race, the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf, was added in 1999. The Breeders’ Cup was expanded to 11 races for the 2007 running at Monmouth Park.**Total purses for the two-day Championships this year will remain at $26 million, which includes purses for the undercard races on both days. The purse of this year’s Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Sprint will be $1.5 million. It was contested at a $2 million purse in 2010

It's going to be interesting to see what kind of fields they get. The entry box wasn't exactly full for the juvenile races last year. The races being on dirt basically negate European participation and the 2YO 6f races from days gone by have been phased out (Cowdin, and the filly one). Trainers won't be in a hurry to cut 2YOs back for a purse that's the same as the Breeders' Futurity and only slightly more than the Champagne.

Is today April 1st?

I think a Breeders Cup race for Grays is coming. A matter of time.

Is Wesley Ward on the Breeders Cup board of directors?

This is a ridiculous idea.
:confused:

If that were true the BC would be held in April at KEE.

Instead of Chapa I think some of the people on the Breeders Cup Committee need a drug test.

Or the buzzer/tazer.

I can't imagine this race not drawing an overflow field and being a very good betting event. . .

I also thought a 2 day format was a bad decision until I had the chance to bet full graded stakes fields for 2 days. It is now an event that I don't want changed. I agree with Hockey...

I have to say, I still wish the BC was one day...I guess I'm the only one left.

I like the one day format also.

From a business perspective, races with the "Breeders' Cup" brand handle way more than a nondescript undercard stake.... significantly so. So the spreadsheet side of the decision makes sense.

From a personal handle perspective, it's another race to handicap, and it's hard as is to devote the right amount of time to all of them. And naturally, you need more coin to get involved.

From a horse perspective... I would legitimately worry about yanking horses out of the Juvenile. Does Stay Thirsty stay in the Juvenile last year? But ultimately, the field for this race is not going to be confused with the group in the Juvenile, and the trade-off to a stronger betting race on the undercard probably makes it worth it.

Must be a Jersey thing.

:tro:

Put me in the minority but I actually like this addition. Unlike the Juvy Turf events, this actually has a place in American racing. What do the vast majority of 2yo's in this country do? They sprint on dirt.

I still wish it was zero days but yeah, one is much better than two.

Classic..................this was my first thought as well!!