Life Is Good an Underdog for First Time in Final Start

The undefeated Flightline  has accomplished some rather unexpected feats this year.

One of the most surprising is that he turned Life Is Good   into an underdog.

As the 4-year-old Life Is Good heads into the final race of his career in the Nov. 5 $6 million Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Keeneland, he is in the unique position of being something other than the betting favorite for the first time in his career.

"Its going to be a different feeling," trainer Todd Pletcher said about CHC and WinStar Farm's son of Into Mischief  . "Every time we've run him he's been an odds-on favorite and expected to win."

That will not be the case Saturday. Though Life Is Good was the early favorite for 2022 Horse of the Year honors after he beat 2021 Horse of the Year Knicks Go   in the Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes Presented by 1/ST BET (G1), Flightline has become the darling of the racing world after winning the TVG Pacific Classic (G1) by 19 1/4 lengths. The top-ranked horse in the Longines World's Best Racehorse ratings, Flightline was tabbed a 3-5 morning-line favorite in the 1 1/4-mile Classic.

Life Is Good, who will begin life as a stallion at WinStar Farm after the Classic, wasn't even pegged as the second-choice in a field of eight. That honor went to Runhappy Travers Stakes (G1) winner Epicenter  (5-1). Life Is Good, whose lone loss in five 2022 starts was a fourth-place finish in the Dubai World Cup Sponsored by Emirates Airline (G1) at the same 10-furlong distance as the Classic, was listed at 6-1.

That price is gigantic compared to the odds in each of Life Is Good's 11 career starts. He has yet to be sent off at odds higher than 4-5 and was 1-5 or less in five starts—all of them wins.

"In some ways it's a little easier as an underdog," Pletcher said. "He's doing great. We're looking forward to running him and we'll see how it pans out. It's the toughest race he's run in and I'd say it will probably be the toughest race for Flightline as well."

While the Classic will mark Life Is Good's final start, Pletcher finds plenty of consolation in knowing the speedy bay colt will be well-received as a stallion.

"It's what you set out to achieve when you're training any of these colts. If you can find them a spot on a stallion roster, then you've accomplished your goal. In his case, he's a tremendously talented horse. He has every trait that you would want in a potential stallion from great conformation to tremendous speed. To me, he's one of the top prospects to come around in years. It's exciting when you get to see them go off and hopefully reproduce themselves," Pletcher said. "He's part of an outstanding group of 4-year-olds with some outstanding stallion prospects and I would have to put him at the top of the list."

Winner of last year's Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1), Life Is Good owns four grade 1 wins among a record of nine wins in 11 starts. Bred by Gary and Mary West Stables and bought for $525,000 from the Paramount Sales consignment at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, he has earned $4,361,700.