A field of 10 older horses went to post in the $1.5 million TwinSpires Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1), a 6 furlong trip around one turn of the main track. Defending champion Drefong was sent off as the 7-5 favorite off his win in the Forego (G1). In to challenge him included 4-1 second choice Imperial Hint, winner of the Smile Sprint (G3) and Donald LeVine Memorial, and 5-1 Roy H, winner of the Santa Anita Sprint Championship (G1).
Roy H chases down Imperial Hint (rail) in the stretch
8-1 Takaful was quickest away through a quarter in 21.82 before Imperial Hint took over through a half in 44.61 while pressed by Roy H. Imperial Hint led to mid-stretch through 5f in 56.56 but Roy H and jockey Kent Desormeaux outfinished him late to win by a length in 1:08.61. It was another 2 lengths back to 9-1 Mind Your Biscuits third, while Drefong was 6th.
Roy H wins the Sprint
Pgm Horse Jockey Win Place Show
8 Roy H Desormeaux 11.80 5.00 3.60
10 Imperial Hint Castellano 5.20 4.00
6 Mind Your Biscuits Rosario 4.40
Winning Time: 1:08.61
$1 Exacta 8-10 25.80
$1 Trifecta 8-10-6 168.80
$1 Superfecta 8-10-6-3 1,095.40
Left: Roy H heads to the winner's circle. Winning jockey Kent Desormeaux said, "He had to man-up the first 200 yards. I had to jockey for position, fighting for a spot two times in 200 yards. After that, he had the catbird seat. He raced off my fingertips and gave me a lovely ride. Absolutely exploded turning for home. He was full of run. We were running from the quarter pole to the eighth pole. We took off. I mean we exploded and couldn't catch the leader for at least 200 yards. Once Roy gained the ascendency, he steadily opened up. I looked at the Jumbotron and the next guys were five behind us, so I was safe with the win."
Right: The trophy presentation for the Sprint. Winning trainer Peter Miller said, "This is amazing. Two Breeders' Cup wins in one day. The race shaped up the way we thought it would. We saw a lot of speed in there and we figured he could sit third or fourth and make his big run. He did it just the way we drew it up. I fel like Chad Brown, I feel like Bob Baffert, one of those guys. "
Left: Roy H in the post parade.
Right: Roy H heads back to the barn after the race. Miller added, "Anyone that asked me about my horses today, I said they're all live. Use them all, and I meant it. It's rare that they all show up like that but we got great rides and great luck!"
Left: Second place finisher Imperial Hint in the post parade. Jockey Javier Castellano said, "I'm not disappointed in the way he ran at all. He ran a great race. He kept running all the way to the end. He just got beat." Trainer Luis Carvajal Jr. added, "He came so close. He ran great. it was a great race, and it was a very tough race. I am so proud of my horse."
Right: Third place finisher Mind Your Biscuits returns after the race. He was also third in this race last year. Trainer Chad Summers said, "We were concerned when we came here that the stretch was short. It got to us today. We were a little bit further back than I was hoping. I wanted to be a little bit closer and be in it a little bit earlier. But he came with his run like he always does. We knew the Forego was a bit of a fluke. I think he showed up today and made us proud. We're disappointed but there's always next year and the Breeders' Cup at Churchill with a little bit longer stretch."
Sixth place finisher and beaten favorite Drefong heads out to the track before the race. Trainer Bob Baffert said, "I knew in the first 100 yards it was over when he couldn't make the lead. What I was afraid would happen, happened. He's been good to us and I really can't complain. I knew the inside post would be tough on him and I could tell when he went across the gap there that Mike (Smith) was a little hesitant with him. You need racing luck. You need a good horse, but you need racing luck. It wasn't his day. This horse doesn't owe us anything. He's been great to us. I can't complain."
2017 Breeders' Cup Wrap Up - Records set, statistics, first-time winning jockeys and trainers, how previous winners finished, and more for the 34th running of the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar.
2017 Breeders' Cup Saturday - There were nine Breeders' Cup races on Saturday at Del Mar headlined by the Classic (G1) where Gun Runner won over Collected. Also on the card, Talismanic won the Turf (G1), World Approval won the Mile (G1), and Good Magic won the Juvenile (G1). Get the results, charts, and photos for all 12 stakes on the card. More photos: Classic - Turf - Juvenile - Mile - Sprint - F&M Turf - F&M Sprint - Turf Sprint - Juvenile Fillies
2017 Breeders' Cup Friday - There were four Breeders' Cup races on Friday at Del Mar headlined by the Distaff (G1) where Forever Unbridled held off Abel Tasman to win by a half length. Also on the card, Rushing Fall won the Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1), Battle of Midway won the Dirt Mile (G1), and Mendelssohn won the Juvenile Turf (G1). Get the results, charts, and photos for all 8 stakes on the card. More photos: Juvenile Turf -
Juvenile Fillies Turf - Dirt Mile - Distaff
2017 Breeders' Cup Entries - Entries closed Monday and post positions were drawn for the 13 Breeders' Cup Championship races on November 3 and 4 at Del Mar. The Classic will have a field of 11 with Gun Runner in post 5 the 9-5 favorite over Arrogate in post 1 at 2-1.
Breeders' Cup Weather - Check out the latest weather forecasts for the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar
Review: Crushing the Cup 2017 - by Jim Mazur and Peter Mallett. An invaluable tool for trying to unlock the mysteries of handicapping the Breeders' Cup races at Del Mar. Updated for 2017, this is their 26th anniversary edition and first for Del Mar.
2016 Breeders' Cup Saturday Results - The feature race was the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic won by Arrogate. Get the results, charts, and photos for all 9 races here.
2016 Breeders' Cup Friday Results - Friday was headlined by the $2 million Ladies Classic won by Beholder. Get the results, charts, and photos for all 4 races here.
Breeders' Cup History - Historical info, past results, and photos from previous runnings
The Breeders' Cup Championship Day - The official page for the Breeders' Cup championship races. Just about anything you need to know about it: results, video clips, and race calls for past years, and eventually nominations, entries, and results.
Free Prep Replays - for major prep races in the Breeders' Cup Challenge. The ones with camera logos have video available.
Breeders' Cup Postcards - Breeders' Cup theme virtual postcards to send your friends including many past winners
Breeders' Cup Supplemental Entries - The old official policy on supplemental entries plus all the supplemental entries and how they fared, mostly it was a losing proposition. There are no more supplements now, only late nominations making it impossible to track since the change.
Left: Roy H heads to the winner's circle. Winning jockey Kent Desormeaux said, "He had to man-up the first 200 yards. I had to jockey for position, fighting for a spot two times in 200 yards. After that, he had the catbird seat. He raced off my fingertips and gave me a lovely ride. Absolutely exploded turning for home. He was full of run. We were running from the quarter pole to the eighth pole. We took off. I mean we exploded and couldn't catch the leader for at least 200 yards. Once Roy gained the ascendency, he steadily opened up. I looked at the Jumbotron and the next guys were five behind us, so I was safe with the win."
Left: Roy H in the post parade.
Left: Second place finisher Imperial Hint in the post parade. Jockey Javier Castellano said, "I'm not disappointed in the way he ran at all. He ran a great race. He kept running all the way to the end. He just got beat." Trainer Luis Carvajal Jr. added, "He came so close. He ran great. it was a great race, and it was a very tough race. I am so proud of my horse."
