Breeders' Cup 2013 Preview

Verry Good - Verrazano can land the Dirt Mile to start Breeders' Cup weekend with a bang

This weekend the 29th Breeders’ Cup world championships will take place at beautiful Santa Anita in California.

It’s a weekend of the year that I always truly look forward to and this year is no different, with numerous other countries and courses trying to emulate the model the meeting has been somewhat diluted in recent years, at least on these shores, but for me it is still the original and the best and no one but no one does this sort of thing better than the Americans.

There’s been some incredible races over the weekend in recent years and we could be set to usher some more great memories in to the annuls of history this coming Friday and Saturday.

With fourteen races over the two days there’s a lot to study going in to the weekend so for the purposes of this preview I’m going to stick to the races in which I have a strong ante-post conviction, however I will still take them in their running order over the two days.

Champions' Day 2013 Preview

Dexter's Fab - Jack Dexter is a major player in the Sprint on Champions' Day

This Saturday is British Champions’ Day at Ascot as the 2013 flat turf season draws to a close.

Twelve months on from the mighty Frankel’s last race the card doesn’t have quite the same excitement around it as a year ago but an incredible day’s racing still looks in prospect in spite of a potential mud bath.

Rather than focus on just the one race in great detail here, given the strength in depth on the card, it seemed right to offer a more succinct take on each of the Group races on the card and to try and pick out my idea of the winner or a horse that offers some each-way value.

The card will begin at 1.45pm with the stayers in the Long Distance Cup (Group 3) and the focal point of the race will rightly be the Queen’s Gold Cup heroine Estimate (9/4).

I tried to get her beat at Royal Ascot and looked a fool for it so I won’t be doing that again here. She looks far and away the most likely winner with the best form to her name, previous course and distance wins in her locker and form on soft ground.

Dewhurst Stakes 2013 Preview

Stars and Strips - Outstrip can shine in the Dewhurst on Future Champions' Day

This Saturday its Future Champions’ Day at Newmarket, featuring a plethora of Group races including the Group 1 Middle Park and the Group 1 Dewhurst, won last year by the brilliant Dawn Approach.

Last year’s Dewhurst saw Dawn Approach go off at a very short-price indeed and though this year’s Coventry winner War Command looks set to be the hot favourite for the race, he faces a field of five other horses including Godolphin’s talented Outstrip.

War Command turned in arguably the most visually impressive victory of the meeting at Royal Ascot when running away with the Coventry and immediately shot to the head of the betting for next year’s classics. The form of the Coventry hasn’t exactly worked out fantastically though and War Command himself gave it another knock when beaten at Group 1 level in the Phoenix Stakes in August.

The son of War Front soon bounced back to winning ways when landing the Group 2 Futurity Stakes at the Curragh though and leads the way here on ratings. Trainer Aidan O’Brien could have run any number here and the fact that he relies chiefly on War Command (with Friendship likely to make the running) suggests a big run is expected and thus he remains the one to beat.

At the prices though, there’s no need to make too much of a case to side with Outstrip however.