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In Depth: Breeders' Cup Juvenile PPs, Video, more


Divisive as much as prestigious, the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile has always held intrigue on Championship day and beyond.  Hope springs eternal with every running, but usually ends with disappointment come May.  Many promising 2-year-olds have convincingly won the race only to either fail winning the Kentucky Derby six months later or veer off the difficult path to get there.  In 28 runnings only one winner has worn the Roses the following year.  Considering the Juvenile winner is usually Champion 2-year-old and early favorite for the Derby, this 4% winning percentage is especially baffling.  As many lumps as the winners have taken, the Juvenile field as a whole usually includes strong contenders that hold up well for the Classics.  The most recent Kentucky Derby consisted of 9 horses that raced in the 2011 Breeders Cup Juvenile, which represented close to half the field.

This 2012 Juvenile is knocked down in stature with the introduction of the new Kentucky Derby point system.  In year’s past the winner was guaranteed a spot in the Derby gate given the huge graded earnings score, but this year the race only awards the winner 10 “points”, putting him on equal footing as the winners of such races as the Delta Jackpot, Grey Stakes, and Smarty Jones Stakes.

Nonetheless, the Juvenile still boasts a huge 2 million dollar purse and features some of the best 2-year-olds we’ve seen all year, including early Derby future book favorite Shanghai Bobby and second favorite Power Broker.  The nine entrants have combined earnings of 28 points for the 2013 Kentucky Derby and look to earn even more Saturday.


Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1)
Santa Anita Park
1 1/16 Miles

Race Video

Title Contender

Speak Logistics

He’s Had Enough

Shanghai Bobby

Monument

Dynamic Sky

Capo Bastone

Fortify

Power Broker

Shanghai Bobby rolls in Champagne; Joha hangs on in Breeders’ Futurity; River Seven breaks maiden in Grey

Champagne Stakes (G1)
Winner (pts): Shanghai Bobby (10)
2nd, 3rd, 4th (pts): Goldencents (4), Fortify (2), Archwarrior (1)
Chart: Equibase
Replay: YouTube
Wrap-up articles: Bloodhorse / Brisnet / DRF / USA Today


Dixiana Breeders’ Futurity (G1)
Winner (pts): Joha (10)
2nd, 3rd, 4th (pts):  Dynamic Sky (4), Java’s War (2), Pataky Kid (1)
Chart: Equibase
Replay: YouTube
Wrap-up Articles: Bloodhorse / Brisnet / DRF / USA Today


Grey Stakes (G2)
Winner: River Seven (10)
2nd, 3rd, 4th (pts): Tesseron (4), Indiano Jones (2), Five Iron (1)
Chart: Equibase
Wrap-up Articles: Bloodhorse / DRF / Brisnet / USA Today

Champagne, Breeders’ Futurity, and Grey head this weekend’s Derby preps

All three Kentucky Derby points races this weekend feature top shelf juveniles.  The Champagne appears the most loaded with the current Kentucky Derby 2nd choice favorite Shanghai Bobby, buzz horse Archwarrior, Doug O’Neill’s shipper Goldencents, Godolphin’s highly regarded Fortify, and possibly Todd Pletcher’s dominating Saratoga maiden winner Micromanage.  The winner is likely to be the  favorite for both the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile as well as the early choice for the Derby.

The Dixiana Breeder’s Futurity drew a full field and has Pletcher’s Tizracer as the morning line favorite at 4-1.  How young horses handle the Keeneland polytrack is always unpredictable and the full race is likely to have excellent payouts.

Current Kentucky Derby favorite Uncaptured will try to continue his undefeated dominance at Woodbine in the Grey Stakes.  He figures to be an extremely short price and the added distance should not be an issue.

For free PPs and background articles on all of these Kentucky Derby preps see below:

Champagne Stakes (G1)
Belmont Park
1 Mile
Articles:


Dixiana Breeders’ Futurity (G1)
Keeneland
1 1/16 Miles
Articles:

Grey Stakes (G1)
Woodbine
1 1/16 Miles
Articles: