The 20th Running of the G1 BC Classic
Saturday, November 5, 2022
KEE Race #16 $6,000.000
3+ 122/126 (F&M 119/122) Lbs 11/4
Course Record-2:00.71 (Charleys Latte-2020)
Stakes Record-1:58.57 (Maruzensky-2012)
Winning Trainers: 15 Australia Wide and Mb Stables (3x)
Winning Riders: 16 M. Berry, J.L. Ortiz, T. Gaffalione (2x)
How are champions crowned? Champions have to perform throughout their seasons to reach a culminating event. Right now the Phillies and Astros are competing in the World Series. The initial rankings for the CFP were released this week as football team’s try to build a resume strong enough to get into that foursome from which we will crown college football’s best team. The Stanley Cup Finals, the Super Bowl, and the World Cup will all crown their champion based on who can be performing their best when the stakes are at their highest. In horse racing, we too will crown a champion. This weekend provides the opportunity for our game’s greatest competitors to prove that after a long, arduous season, they are in fact champions. The BC was designed to pit the best versus the best in a winner-take-all format. Over the year’s divisions have been added; however, the final destination remains the same: The Breeders Cup.
On Saturday, the culmination of another racing season will take place at KEE in beautiful Lexington, KY. Make no mistake, the $6,000.000 G1 BC Classic is our World Series, Super Bowl, World Cup, and Stanley Cup rolled all into one. Three year olds who started their seasons dreaming of roses will get the chance to compete against those elders that have thrilled us time and time again. Are divisional championships on the line? Yes they are. Could someone cement their legacy as HOY? Yes they can. Do we have our own field/court/rink to decide who takes these honors? Yes we do! Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the G1 BC Classic!
Eighteen horses were entered into Saturday’s mile-and-a-quarter G1 BC Classic but, with the field capped at 14, Cheveley Park and Mr Insurrection will have to sit on the AE list to see if someone scratches (Proud Crown was 18th on the list, but he was retired after being lame when he got back to the barn following a routine gallop and Puissance de La Mer was withdrawn from consideration on Thursday). Good luck to the AE’s should they draw into this field. Of the 14 in the gate, 11 are already G1 winners this season. Individuation, the leading contender for 3yo male honors, has won back-to-back G1s and three consecutive races. Charleys Latte, probably a cinch for older dirt male honors, does him one better as he has taken his last three races, all at the G1 level. The winners of the KYD, PRK, and BEL are here, as well as Saturday Khartoum, Champion In Action, and Combat Wombat who, despite their advanced age, earned their way here with victories in the G2 Foster, G2 Lukas Classic, and G1 Pacific Classic, respectively, in their last races. The BC Classic was always going to draw the best field of the year, but how anyone could expect it to be this stacked is tough to imagine. Enough with the pre-game, let’s get to the introductions for the 20th running of the G1 BC Classic:
#1 Shadow Police (Smokey Stover/R. Gutierez 119): Filly gets a three-pound break from her classmates as well as three more from the elder statemen, and she also drew the rail. Lass was successful on two occassions down at FG trying this tactic and earned her way into the KYD. Since that 13th-placed effort, she took the G3 IND Oaks between losing efforts against G1 company while sticking with the ladies. Trainer sends two runners in here and this doesn’t look like the one to which they are pinning their hopes.
#2 Mr Pancake (Arindel/E. Jaramillo 122): Colt was powerful in G1 FLA Derby victory on the front end. He was only beaten a length in the KYD before struggling in his next two starts; however, the last two tries against G1 company saw him back on the front-end and, while he had to settle for the runner-up slot both times, he looked more like his old self. He was on a pretty consistent schedule of racing once per month, but we haven’t seen him since August. If the layoff doesn’t negatively effect him, he should be pretty easy to find once the stalls open and he may prove to be hard to run down.
#3 Sports Page (Fractious/T. Gaffalione 126): $800.000 purchase floundered in his first start for this outfit, but the gelding had already secured enough points to gain entry here. He had been pretty consistent with his efforts prior to that last one, so it’s reasonable to expect better from here this time. Gelding took the G1 Gold Cup in his 2nd race of the season back in May so he deserves extra-consideration for that equal-weight victory so early in his 4yo year. Have to figure the pace is going to be hot and that should allow this guy to settle into stride and plot a course as he launches his bid. Trainer will have a better handle on him for this one.
#4 All Take (Alydar Stables/V. Espinoza 122): The winner of the G2 TAM Derby and G1 PRK looked a lot more like himself in the runner-up effort last out. So while the G1 PA Derby was an improvement from what we had been seeing since May, it is also a tad alarming in the fact that he hasn’t ran strongly in back-to-back races since he was down in Florida. He is one that likes to come from off of the pace so he should be able to save a lot of ground with this draw and he retains the jock’s services from the latest effort. Tough call on a horse that should get a good set-up in front of him, but doesn’t always produce his best.
#5 Ocean Of Wisdom (Nakamura Stables/D.E. Centeno 122): G1 BEL winner found the summer months to be a drag before bouncing back with a G3 score up at WO last month. That confidence-booster should serve him well as he looks to string together wins for the first time since he started his career 2-2. Gelding has danced a lot of dances with 10 races under his belt in ’22, but he has been an all-or-nothing type as his four wins are his only ITM finishes this year. One thing he does have going for him is that he’s beaten big fields in graded races with very different tactics.
#6 Saturday Khartoum (Rousee/J. Rosario 126): 8yo has had a pretty solid campaign this year three stakes wins from eight starts and got here by virtue of his half-length victory in the G2 Foster. He didn’t fire his best at SAR but he also didn’t need to. Understandable that some may dismiss him off of that effort; however, his works say he’s got something left in the tank. He’ll need it here as anything less than his “A” game probably won’t be good enough, but horses don’t last until their 8yo campaign without having some heart.
#7 Gigabyte (Smokey Stover/J.R. Velazquez 122): KYD winner was a neck short of grabbing the first two legs of the TC before the effort at BEL. Comes into this with three consecutive show finishes, but the last one is pretty impressive being that it came against elders in a G2. This guy appears to be coming-up to a big effort and the conditoner has produced big results on these weekends before. A KYD/BC Classic double would be pretty eye-catching on an end-of-season resume and he may need it if he hopes to take divsional honors.
#8 Champion In Action (Night Rider Stables/E.J. Zayas 126): 3x graded winner on the season ran his best race last time in G2 Lukas Classic. He showed a different dimension in that one as he made all of the running before prevailing by a full length. Prior to that win, most of his best work had come from further back in the field so, while he may be an “old dog”, at least he’s showing that he’s willing to do whatever it takes. Last two have him on a nice form progression and he just needs to keep it moving in order to have a chance here.
#9 Positive Id (Gdp Inc/G. Boulanger 122): Former $30.000 claimer won three consecutive starts once he was tagged. The third of those victories was in the G1 Haskel where he sat just off of the pace before motoring home to score by a dtermined head. Couldn’t replicate the same effort at SAR but the G1 PA Derby was a nice effort as, even though he was 4th, he was only beaten a half-length. With only eight races under his belt, there’s no reason to expect him to have already reached his ceiling. Another positive step in his progression and he can be right there when the money’s on the line.
#10 Individuation (Mb Stables/L. Saez 122): He was purchased for $300.000 back in December and quickly proceded to establish himself among his division’s elite. Like we said earlier, he brings back-to-back G1 tallies, and three straight wins overall, into this engagement. He already has four graded victories in 2022 and another one here could put him over the top in the HOY conversation. Having said all of that, gelding has yet to face elders of any kind and he gets the best the game has to offer in this one. To his credit, he seems to run however he is asked and that should serve him very well in this spot with so much on the line.
#11 Tempestuous (Mb Stables/A. Cedillo 126): 4yo gelding has fallen off of his form a bit since winning the G1 Big Cap and G2 Alysheba earlier this season. He took those races in vastly different fashions but he hasn’t been able to replicate either race since. Probably not the top option for his stable in here; however, if he can duplicate either of his efforts from his graded wins, he can hold his own even in a field as stacked as this one.
#12 Sensei (Mb Stables/M. Franco 126): G1 Awesome Again score punched his ticket for this and he has put together a really strong trio of races in preperation for this assignment. Gelding has had a solid 4yo season with five exacta finishes from seven starts. He’s another one in this group that has shown an ability to get the job done from various posts/trips and that aid his cause. Gets a positive jockey switch for this and he should be relatively fresh with only eight races thus far in 2022. He’s a good candidate to outrun his odds.
#13 Combat Wombat (Maxmillion Farm/Ru. Gonzalez 126): 7yo has taken a G3, G2, and G1 this season as he has rebounded nicely since opening his season with a dud down at GP. His current form cycle is really strong as he has put together six consecutive strong efforts. If he can keep it going, and there’s nothing to suggest he shouldn’t, he should have every chance turning for home. Trainer has had a typically strong year and he figures to be confident when he leads this one over. The post is a concern, but he does retain the services of the pilot from that last effort and should be ready to produce another big effort.
#14 Charleys Latte (Fractious/R.M. Hernandez 126): The 2020 BC Classic winner had to endure a 10-race losing streak between wins; however, he has found his groove again with a three-race winning streak, all G1’s, he brings with him. In soccer they say, “Form is temporary, but class is permanent” and there may be no better example of that in the HRP community than this runner. He is the KEE track-record holder for this trip and he could not be in any better form as he seeks to become the only the second horse to win two BC Classics. Interestingly, he reunites with the same pilot from the 2020 Classic for the first time since January of 2021. Has to overcome this draw, but one would be wise to remember what happened the last time he stood in the KEE gate.
Final Analysis: Holy smokes, this is a deserving group that has been assembled to put the bow on the HRP 2022 season. Individuation and Charleys Latte will deservedly grab the attention of a lot of punters. We can appreciate why anyone would lean in that direction, but we like two others for the top honors. Champion In Action and Combat Wombat will be used in a big exacta box and they will key trifectas with Individuation, Charleys Latte, and Sensei. Congratulations to all that got their horses to this point and good luck in the biggest race of the year: The 2022 G1 BC Classic!
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES
