Breeders' Cup Mile
The Breeders' Cup Mile is a 1-mile (1.6 km) Grade 1 Weight for Age stakes race for thoroughbred racehorses three years old and up, run on a grass course. It has been conducted annually as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships since the event's inception in 1984. All Breeders' Cups to date have been held in the United States except for the 1996 event in Canada.
Grade I race | |
Location | North America |
---|---|
Inaugurated | 1984 |
Race type | Thoroughbred – Flat racing |
Website | Official Breeders' Cup website |
Race information | |
Distance | One mile (8 furlongs) |
Surface | Turf |
Track | Left-handed |
Qualification | Three years old & up |
Weight | Weight for Age |
Purse | US$2,000,000 |
The purse was raised from $1.5 million US to $2 million in 2007.
Freddy Head has won this race twice as a jockey and three times as a trainer.
There is no official stakes record for the Breeders' Cup Mile as it is run on different racecourses each year, some of which are significantly faster than others. In 2012, Wise Dan set a then-course record at Santa Anita with his time of 1:31.78.[1] Although Tourist ran faster than this with a time of 1:31.71 in 2016, he just missed the current Santa Anita course record of 1:31.69.[2]
Automatic berths
Beginning in 2007, the Breeders' Cup developed "The Breeders' Cup Challenge", a series of races in each division that allotted automatic qualifying bids to winners of defined races. Each of the thirteen divisions has between two and twelve of these "Win and You're In" qualifying races.
In the Breeders' Cup Mile Division, runners are limited to 14 and there are up to ten automatic berths. Note though that one horse may win multiple challenge races, while other challenge winners will not be entered in the Breeders' Cup for a variety of reasons such as injury or travel considerations.
The 2019 "Win and You're In" races are:[3]
- the L'Ormarins Queen's Plate, a Group 1 race at run in January Kenilworth Race Course in South Africa
- the Gran Premio Club Hipico Falabella, a Grade 1 race run in May at Club Hipico in Chile
- the Shoemaker Mile, a Grade 1 race run in May at Santa Anita Park in California
- the Yasuda Kinen, a Grade 1 race run in June at Tokyo Racecourse in Japan
- the Queen Anne Stakes, a Group 1 race run in June at Royal Ascot in England
- the Sussex Stakes, a Group 1 race run in July at Goodwood Racecourse in England
- the Fourstardave Handicap, a Grade I race run in August at Saratoga in upstate New York
- the Prix Jacques Le Marois, a Group 1 race run in August at Deauville Racecourse in France
- the Woodbine Mile, a Grade 1 race run in September at Woodbine Racetrack in Canada
- the Shadwell Turf Mile, a Grade 1 race at Keeneland in Kentucky
Records
Most wins:
- 3 – Goldikova (2008, 2009, 2010)
Most wins by a jockey:
- 3 – Olivier Peslier (2008, 2009, 2010)
- 3 – John R. Velazquez (1998, 2012, 2017)
Most wins by a trainer:
- 3 – Freddy Head (2008, 2009, 2010)
Most wins by an owner:
- 6 – Flaxman Holdings / Niarchos family (1987, 1988, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2014)
- 3 – Wertheimer et Frère (2008, 2009, 2010)
Winners
† Indicates filly/mare
See also
References
- "Wise Dan (horse)". American Classic Pedigrees. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
- Voss, Natalie (5 November 2016). "Tourist Gets Revenge Against Late-Flying Tepin In Breeders' Cup Mile". Paulick Report. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
- "Breeders' Cup Announces Challenge Series Schedule". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 23 June 2019.