Breeders Cup announces new stayers' race for 2008 · 12.12.07

Monday’s BloodHorse headline said it all: Breeders’ Cup Adds 3 Races. The new races, to be added for the 2008 Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita and run on the Friday card, will be the $1-million Turf Sprint, for 3-year-olds and up at 6 1/2 furlongs on the grass; the $1-million Juvenile Fillies Turf at one mile on the grass; and the $500,000 Dirt Marathon for 3-year-olds and up at 1 1/2 miles.

Lots of discussion about this here – some of it contributed by yours truly.

With the Turf Sprint the BC brain trust is obviously trying to attract more international horses that aren’t suited for the BC Turf (1 1/2 m) or Turf Mile. While it might dilute the fields for other BC races as some suggest, that might be partially compensated if more foreign horses compete. This will tend to make the BC the true “World Thoroughbred Championships” that it bills itself as.

As for the Juvenile Fillies Turf – I’m torn between two one-word reactions: “Why?” and “Meh”.

But the Dirt Marathon is long overdue. However it can only be part of the process towards both breeding stamina back into the Thoroughbred and raising the profile of stayers in the sport. More stayers’ races will have to be carded around the continent for this to have any meaning. Then, as more high-class horses are allowed to find their niche as stayers, perhaps the Eclipse Awards will even inaugurate a “Top Stayer” category, similar to Europe and Australia.

That being said, I don’t like the name “Dirt Marathon”. The term “marathon” is meant for human races of 26 miles and umpty-ump yards (imagine a modern Thoroughbred try to run that – harrumph). I woul rather see it set at an even 2 miles, as the Jockey Club Gold Cup used to be. Then they could simply call it the Breeders Cup 2-Mile (“Powered by Duracell”?). Other races run at 1 1/2 miles or longer could simply be referred to as “stayers’ races”.

I reported earlier that some racing secretaries had approached the Breeders’ Cup about carding a series of stayers’ races leading up to a potential BC “marathon”. And yea, verily, it has come to pass. Not only will there be the Dirt Marathon next year, but the New York Racing Association announced today that the Brooklyn Handicap will be stretched to 1 1/2 miles, and moved from the fall to June 6. This will make the Brooklyn the first prep race for the Dirt Marathon.

“The Breeders’ Cup has added a $500,000 race on Oct. 24 (Dirt Marathon), so some racetracks have worked together to create a pattern for this category,” [NYRA racing secretary Paul J.] Campo said. “Keeneland, California, New York, and Philadelphia Park are putting on similar races as well”.

I’ll be watching this closely.

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What do you think?

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