A full field of 14 older horses contested the $1 million Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1) going about 6 1/2 furlongs down the unique Hillside course at Santa Anita. Poker (G3) winner Obviously was sent off as the 7-2 favorite in the full field of 14 off his third place finish in the City of Hope Mile (G2). In to challenge him included 6-1 second choice Washington DC, second in the Prix de l'Abbaye (G1) last out, and 13-2 third choice Om, second in both the Del Mar Mile (G2) and City of Hope Mile.
Obviously leads down the stretch
Jockey Flavien Prat sent Obviously to a clear lead down the hillside chute through fractions of 21.41 and 43.08, pressed by 12-1 Pure Sensation and stalked by 27-1 Mongolian Saturday. Crossing into the infield, he continued to lead by 1 1/2 lengths through 3/4 in 1:05.21. Om, last early under Gary Stevens, unleashed a strong rally despite Stevens losing his whip at the 1/16, but Obviously held on to win by a nose in 1:11.33. It was a length back to Pure Sensation third.
Obviously wins the Turf Sprint
Pgm Horse Jockey Win Place Show
2 Obviously Prat 9.60 5.20 3.60
12 Om Stevens 6.00 4.40
1 Pure Sensatiion Carmouche 6.60
Winning Time: 1:11.33
$1 Exacta 2-12 29.10
$1 Trifecta 2-12-1 312.40
$1 Superfecta 2-12-1-6 9,686.30
Left: Obviously heads to the winner's circle. Winning jockey Flavien Prat said, "We had a great race. As always, he didn't break super fast. After a few steps, that's why he showed the speed. I was pretty surprised to be on the lead that easy. And once he got the lead, he relaxed well. And right before crossing, I asked him to pick it up. And after that, I was gone."
Right: The trophy celebration. Trainer Phil D'Amato (holding the trophy) said, "We tried the Mile a bunch of times and kind of always got caught around the 1/16 pole. He had run in the past down the hill with some success, and we just thought, if we put him on the lead here, he had enough bottom in him that if they beat him, they beat him on the square. It wasn't that he was going to get tired, and it worked out."
Left: Obviously heads over the the turf course before the race.
Right: Obviously heads back to the barn. Co-owner Anthony Fanticola said, "Well, it's one for the old guys, I can tell you he doesn't know he's eight. But I tell you, we have a tremendous team, and Phil D'Amato, his whole staff, I got the best partner in the world. Boomer's Bloodstock, who picked this out, Boomer and McCall are just dynamite folks. They really know their horse people. Flavien gave the ride of a lifetime. He's a heck of an athlete and probably one of the best riders probably in the world."
Left: Second place finisher Om returns after the race. Trainer Dan Hendricks said, "He missed the break slightly and had to make up a lot of ground on a really good horse. We can't be prouder." Jockey Gary Stevens added, "He got wiped out leaving the gate, which he did to himself, and it was a tough beat. He broke completely sideways from the gate and he had to overcome a lot. Almost got it done."
Right: Third place finisher Pure Sensation heads over to the turf course before the race. Trainer Christophe Clement said, "I'm happy with our race except for the final result. He got a perfect ride and ran his race. We were unfortunately third best today."
2016 Breeders' Cup Saturday - There were nine Breeders' Cup races on Saturday at Santa Anita headlined by the Classic (G1) where Arrogate ran down California Chrome to win by a half length. Also on the card, Tourist upset Tepin in the Mile (G1) and Champagne Room was a huge upset in the Juvenile Fillies. Get the results, charts, and photos for all 12 stakes on the card. More photos: Classic - Juvenile Fillies - Turf Sprint - F&M Sprint - F&M Turf - JuvenileSprint - TurfMile
2016 Breeders' Cup Friday - There were four Breeders' Cup races on Friday at Santa Anita headlined by the Distaff (G1) where Beholder edged out favorite Songbird to win her 3rd Breeders' Cup race. Also on the card, New Money Honey won the Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1), Tamarkuz won the Dirt Mile (G1), and Oscar Performance 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
2016 Breeders' Cup Thursday Works - Photos and comments for 39 of the Breeders' Cup horses on Thursday November 3 in the morning at Santa Anita, including Found and the rest of the Aidan O'Brien horses out of quarantine.
2016 Breeders' Cup Wednesday Works - Photos and comments for 33 of the Breeders' Cup horses on Wednesday November 2 in the morning at Santa Anita, including Flintshire and Beholder as well as California Chrome.
2016 Breeders' Cup Tuesday Works - Photos and comments for 66 of the Breeders' Cup horses on Tuesday November 1 in the morning at Santa Anita, including California Chrome.
2016 Breeders' Cup Monday Works - Photos and comments for 53 of the Breeders' Cup horses on Monday October 31 in the morning at Santa Anita.
2016 Breeders' Cup Entries - Final entries were taken and post positions drawn on Monday for the 13 Breeders' Cup Championship races on November 4 and 5 at Santa Anita. Check out the post positions, odds, and horses for all the races.
Breeders' Cup program pages to print - these are the short version with number, odds, silks, and basic info from BreedersCup.com for Friday and Saturday.
DRF Quick Sheets for the Breeders' Cup - a very short overview the last 3 Beyer figures for all the horses for Friday and Saturday.
Breeders' Cup Weather - Check out the latest weather forecasts for the Breeders' Cup at Santa Anita
Review: Crushing the Cup 2016 - by Jim Mazur and Peter Mallett. An invaluable tool for trying to unlock the mysteries of handicapping the Breeders' Cup races at Santa Anita. Updated for 2016, this is their 25th anniversary edition.
2015 Breeders' Cup Saturday Results - The feature race was the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic won by American Pharoah. Get the results, charts, and photos for all 9 races here.
2015 Breeders' Cup Friday Results - Friday was headlined by the $2 million Ladies Classic won by Stopchargingmaria. 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 now.
Left: Obviously heads to the winner's circle. Winning jockey Flavien Prat said, "We had a great race. As always, he didn't break super fast. After a few steps, that's why he showed the speed. I was pretty surprised to be on the lead that easy. And once he got the lead, he relaxed well. And right before crossing, I asked him to pick it up. And after that, I was gone."
Left: Obviously heads over the the turf course before the race.
Left: Second place finisher Om returns after the race. Trainer Dan Hendricks said, "He missed the break slightly and had to make up a lot of ground on a really good horse. We can't be prouder." Jockey Gary Stevens added, "He got wiped out leaving the gate, which he did to himself, and it was a tough beat. He broke completely sideways from the gate and he had to overcome a lot. Almost got it done."
