Breeders' Cup qualifier

After a summer of toing and froing and ding-dong battles, Ascot's feature G1 QIPCO Champion Stakes brings it all to a satisfyingly gladiatorial climax on Saturday. Having revelled in Ombudsman's dramatic surge at the end of the Prince of Wales's, Delacroix's huge move coming off Leopardstown's bend in the Irish Champion and the relentless power of Calandagan at the close of the King George, it all comes together in a perfect blend on a perfect sunlit autumn afternoon for the latest QIPCO Champions Day. The headline race is a qualifier...

With a plethora of Breeders' Cup berths up for grabs over the past weekend, Repole Stable's Final Score (Not This Time) grabbed the last one when taking Keeneland's GII Castle & Key Bourbon Stakes, a qualifier to the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Del Mar. Final Score was driven to the front from the word jump, rolling out and opening quarter mile in :22.51. Soon running head-and-head with Casa Cielo (Caravaggio)) through a :47.69 half, he continued to play cat-and-mouse what that rival into the final turn. With Irad...

Johannes capped off a four-race win streak in 2024 when winning last year's renewal of the GII City of Hope Stakes before enduring a tough beat at the hooves of More Than Looks in the GI Breeders' Cup Mile at Del Mar in November. With only a single prior race under his belt in 2025, the 5-year-old set the stage for his return to the World Championships at the seaside oval with a gutsy victory over Cabo Spirit in the "Win and You're In' qualifier for the Mile on Nov....

The New York Racing Association, Inc. announced the stakes schedule for the 28-day fall meet at Belmont Park, which will include 20 graded stakes, including 47 stakes worth $11.15 million in purses. The fall meet, which will run from Thursday, Sept. 16 through Sunday, Oct. 31 will offer four Grade I races and five "Win and You're In" qualifiers to the Breeders' Cup in November at Del Mar. The first Breeders' Cup qualifier is the $1-million Jockey Club Derby for 3-year-olds going 1 1/2 miles on the turf Sept. 18....