The field is almost set for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) at Santa Anita Park on Saturday (Nov. 4). The 1¼-mile Classic is the grand finale of racing’s two-day, 14-race, $31 million championships. In the days leading up to the race, usracing.com will publish snapshots of the entries. Updates with odds and post positions will be published following the draw on Monday, Oct. 30.
White Abarrio, trained by Richard E. Dutrow Jr. Photo Credit: Scott Serio/Eclipse Sportswire/Breeders Cup
Breeders’ Cup Classic Contenders: WHITE ABARRIO
By US Racing Team
White Abarrio took advantage of a relatively weak, six-horse field and the distance limitations of 2-5 favorite Cody’s Wish to crush the Whitney (G) by 6¼ lengths at Saratoga on Aug. 5 The rout by the striking pale 4-year-old came in his second start for trainer Rick Dutrow, Jr.
His 10-1 odds were due to his 0-for-7 record in stakes since sweeping the Holy Bull (G3 and the Florida Derby (G1) for trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. the previous year at Gulfstream Park. Before dominating the nine-furlong Whitney he was 5-for-6 at Gulfstream and 0-for-7 everywhere else.
Dutrow is a brilliant horseman, so maybe in hindsight the dramatic turnaround wasn’t that shocking, but the Classic is a much bigger ask than the Whitney. Facing a full field of proven distance horses at 1¼ miles off a three-month layoff is a quantum leap. Dutrow doesn’t sound worried.
“Watching him run like he did in the Whitney, I knew he didn’t need any preps,” he told bloodhorse.com. “I thought it was a perfect scenario to go right into it. He is in such a zone right now.”
And what, you may ask, is an abarrio? According to the Lexington Herald-Leader, some of the colt’s owners named the white beast for their hometown of Abarrio, Spain.
Breeders’ Cup Classic Odds and Post Positions
Betting advice: Not expecting anything close to a repeat performance from White Abarrio in the Classic, where he might be overbet because of the Whitney margin. For Dutrow fans only.
Post position: 3
Odds: 4-1
Jockey: Irad Ortiz, Jr.
Trainer: Rick Dutrow, Jr.
Owner: C-2 Racing Stable, Antonio Pagnano
Biggest Win: Whitney Stakes (G1), Saratoga, Aug. 5
Age: 4
Career record: 14-6-1-3
Career earnings: $1,826,350
Top Equibase speed figure: 121
Pedigree: Race Day-Catching Diamonds, by Into Mischief
Color: Gray
Running style: Off the pace
Notes: Transferred from the barn of Joseph to Dutrow prior to the Met Mile (G1) in May after the New York-based Dutrow completed a 10-year suspension for numerous medication violations … Dutrow, 64, is a controversial but likable character with no filters. In 2008 the engaging rogue declared that Kentucky Derby-Preakness winner Big Brown was a “foregone conclusion” to win the Belmont (G1), in which he was pulled up and finished last … Dutrow has three Breeders’ Cup wins, including the 2005 Classic with Saint Liam, who was voted Horse of the Year … Dutrow’s father, Maryland-based Richard Dutrow, Sr. (1937-99), trained 3,665 winners, including a then-record 352 in 1975.