Horse Racing Business will be publishing Breeders’ Cup “what if” dream races in the ensuing weeks, as researched and prepared by Patrick M. Premo. Patrick is an avid racing fan with a special interest in the history of the sport. In his former day job, Patrick spent 37 years as an accounting professor at St. Bonaventure University–a fine school academically, south of Buffalo, New York near the Pennsylvania border–before retiring three years ago.
Patrick has selected 20 horses per Breeders’ Cup race and has used the rule that no horse can be entered in more than one race (Secretariat, for instance, would be in the Breeders’ Cup Classic rather than the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, even though he was American Horse of the Year as both a 2-year-old and 3-year-0ld). Other than that, any racehorse in history could qualify and the objective is to seed the field with the best 20 horses that meet the conditions. Each entrant selected is listed by the year that he or she was foaled and in what nation he/she did most of its racing.
Today’s launch begins with two races—Juvenile Colts and Geldings and Juvenile Fillies, on dirt or synthetic. An outstanding 3-year-old (or older) horse that developed late and was not an outstanding 2-year-old would not qualify for the Breeders’ Cup 2-year-old races. In other words, each racehorse was evaluated for a specific race rather than over his or her entire career.
Juvenile Colts/Geldings (dirt or synthetic)
1878 Ben Brush USA
1884 Tremont USA
1895 Hamburg USA
1905 Colin USA
1911 Old Rosebud USA
1919 Morvich USA
1921 Sarazen USA
1925 Dice USA
1936 El Chico USA
1937 Bimelich USA
1939 Alsab USA
1942 Pavot USA
1948 Battlefield USA
1956 First Landing USA
1962 Bold Lad USA
1972 Foolish Pleasure USA
1973 Honest Pleasure USA
1981 Devil’s Bag USA
1995 Favorite Trick USA
2000Vindication USA
Juvenile Fillies (dirt or synthetic)
1899 Endurance By Right USA
1906 Maskette USA
1925 Anita Peabody USA
1929 Top Flight USA
1938 Level Best USA
1943 Beaugay USA
1944 First Flight USA
1945 Bewitch USA
1946 Myrtle Charm USA
1955 Idun USA
1958 Bowel of Flowers USA
1959 Cicada USA
1963 Moccasin USA
1970 La Prevoyante CAN
1980 Landaluce USA
1988 Meadow Star USA
1992 Flanders USA
1995 Countess Diana USA
1996 Silverbulletday USA
2001 Halfbridled USA
Who would be the favorites for each of these races? Handicapping would be a real brain teaser.
Look for additional races every Wednesday morning until all of the Breeders’ Cup races have been presented. Next week, on December 8, 2010, the races featured will be the 2-year-old colts/geldings and 2-year-old fillies, both on turf.
Copyright © 2010 Horse Racing Business
Colin and Flanders would be my choices. Flanders and Serena’s Song were two of the best in the same year. You could have put SS on the list.
Cicada might have won the K. Derby if things had gone differently. If her stablemate Sir Gaylord had turned up lame earlier she would have gone in the Derby not the Oaks. She was owned by Meadow Stable of Secretariat fame.