Racing
Breeders Cup 2021 – Preview and tips
It’s Breeders’ Cup time and racing fans worldwide will be entirely focused on Del Mar on Friday and Saturday for the closest thing we get to a World Championship of horse racing for the 2021 meeting.
It traditionally sees the best US horses taking on the best European horses alongside runners from countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Japan, and South Africa. And with 14 races worth over a total of $31 million in prize money over the two days, it’s set to be a must-see renewal.
So read on to find out all you need to know ahead of the spectacular two-day meeting from Del Mar.
Where and when is the 2021 Breeders’ Cup?
Like the Super Bowl, the Breeders’ Cup is held at a different venue each year and for 2021 the venue is Del Mar racecourse, located just outside of San Diego in California.
This year’s Breeders’ Cup is on Friday, November 5 and Saturday, November 6 and due to the time difference (GMT -7), the races are in the evening in the UK.
How can I watch the 2021 Breeders Cup?
Every race at the 2021 Breeders’ Cup will be shown live on Sky Sports Racing. ITV Racing are also providing live coverage on ITV4 on both evenings – on Friday evening they are showing five live races and on Saturday they are showing eight races live.
What are the races at the 2021 Breeders Cup?
This year there are 14 Breeders’ Cup races – five on Friday and nine on Saturday.
Friday’s races are restricted to juveniles – horses that are two years old – while Saturday brings us several different categories of races with various restrictions and over multiple different distances.
The feature race is the Breeders’ Cup Classic, run over the ‘classic’ American distance and surface of 1 ¼ miles on the dirt.
Friday
21.50 – Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint
22.30 – Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies
23.10 – Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf
23.50 – Breeders’ Cup Juvenile
00.30 – Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf
Saturday
19.05 – Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint
19.40 – Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint
20.19 – Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile
20.59 – Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf
21.38 – Breeders’ Cup Sprint
22.20 – Breeders’ Cup Mile
23.00 – Breeders’ Cup Distaff
23.40 – Breeders’ Cup Turf
00.40 – Breeders’ Cup Classic
Breeders Cup 2021 Banker & Outsider
Banker – Gamine (Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint)
Trained by Bob Baffert, Gamine has won nine of her 10 career races, including this race last year at Keeneland. This season, two of her four victories were in Grade 1 company, including last time out when she landed the Ballerina Stakes at Saratoga.
Alongside this high-class level of form she has speed to burn, so it’s difficult to see any of her rivals living with her – expect her to blitz them all from the front.
Outsider – Smooth Like Strait (Breeders’ Cup Mile)
Sixteen horses are set to head to post for the Mile, and Europe is well represented with runners for Charlie Appleby, Aidan O’Brien, Jessica Harrington, and Paddy Twomey. However, the home team looks strong this year, and the Michael McCarthy trained Smooth Like Strait currently offers some excellent value.
He’s had six runs this season – winning the Grade 1 Shoemaker at Santa Anita and placing in the other five, but he was beaten by less than half a length in each of them. His last two races saw him behind Mo Forza, who also runs here but is as short as 5/1 in the betting.
From a great draw in stall 2, Smooth Like Strait could run a massive race off the front at 16/1.
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