Pharoah’s primed for one last hurrah
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert believes he has done everything possible to bring American Pharoah into his final race in peak form.
Now it’s up to the Triple Crown winner to deliver a final dynamic performance today in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland.
The colt who ended the 37-year Triple Crown drought is heading to stud duty at a nearby farm after the Classic. He’s coming off a narrow loss in the Travers Stakes in August at Saratoga, his lone defeat in seven races this year.
“The time off gave him the chance to get his strength back,” Baffert said. “He’s at his peak, he’s happy and he’s doing really well. He’s going to come out of there running.”
American Pharoah looks like the probable pacesetter in the 1 ¼-mile race largely devoid of speed horses. The start will be critical. If the 3-year-old colt breaks cleanly from post No. 4 and establishes a commanding lead, the rest could be chasing for second money.
“My job is to have him at peak performance,” Baffert said. “Then it’s up to [jockey] Victor Espinoza to play the break and decide what he’s going to do with him. He has an idea because he’s on the inside so there’s not a lot of thinking going on there.”
Baffert is banking on another cool-handed ride from Espinoza.
“I told him to keep him happy and stay in his groove,” Baffert said. “He can’t worry about what’s going on around him.”
The task got easier when champion mare Beholder was scratched Wednesday because of a lung irritation. That leaves a field of eight trying to spoil American Pharoah’s farewell.
“It’s important for me to see him go out with a win because I’m his caretaker,” Baffert said. “This one is for Pharoah. This isn’t for Bob Baffert, it’s for the horse.”
The Breeders Cup extravaganza features nine seven-figure stakes today, highlighted by the Classic, with American Pharoah the 4-5 morning-line favorite. Pharoahites will bet him out of devotion. Others will shop for maximum value.
NBC’s Bob Neumeier is battling the old heart/head conundrum.
“The fan in me hopes American Pharoah wins, because it’s good for the sport,” he said. “The handicapper in me says go the other way because he’ll be bet off the board.”
Neumeier is leaning toward 4-1 Tonalist, last year’s Belmont champion and repeat winner of the Jockey Club Gold Cup.
NBC analyst Randy Moss also is looking elsewhere. Weighing risk against reward, he said he can’t play Pharoah after a long season in his first try against older horses.
“American Pharoah almost certainly will control the pace, but from a betting perspective, I don’t think his odds reflect his chances to win,” Moss said. “I think he has the edge, but I wouldn’t be surprised in the least to see him lose.”
Jimmy Jerkens, the trainer of long-shot Effinex, expects a peak effort from Pharoah in his final race.
“What he’s done is incredible by today’s standards,” Jerkens said. “He could [regress] and still be tough to beat. That’s how good he is.”
This is the first time that Keeneland has hosted the
Breeders’ Cup. Racing fan Kim Langston, who made the trip from Daphne, Ala., had no doubt that Breeders Cup officials made the right choice in selecting the track.
“I always thought they [Keeneland officials] could pull it off because they’ve always been professional,” Langston said after posing for pictures by the Breeders’ Cup statue. “Being a smaller track helps the appeal. At Churchill Downs, it’s so big you can’t see anything. Being in a smaller space makes it more personal.”
Keeneland officials have long desired this event, which is expected to have an estimated economic impact of $65 million. It’s the Breeders’ Cup first trip to Kentucky since 2011 at Churchill Downs, which has hosted eight times.
From a competition standpoint, the track’s biggest move toward attracting top-flight horses and events was the switch from a synthetic Polytrack surface to dirt last year, following an industry trend. Keeneland already had plans in place for seating, sponsorships, parking and traffic, culminating in the June 2014 announcement that it would host this year’s championships.