Highland Falls Ranks Sixth in NTRA, Breeders' Cup Polls
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Photo: Skip Dickstein
Highland Falls in the Jockey Club Gold Cup winner's circle at Saratoga Race Course
Godolphin homebred Highland Falls has joined the top 10 in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association's Top Thoroughbred Poll, ranking sixth following his four-length win in the $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course Sept. 1.
Trained by Brad Cox and ridden to victory Saturday by Flavien Prat, the 4-year-old Curlin colt holds a record of 3-2-0 from six starts this season for earnings of $1,065,800. In addition to the Gold Cup, Highland Falls won the June 1 Blame Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs and was runner-up in both the Oaklawn Handicap (G2) and Monmouth Cup Stakes (G3).
Glassman Racing's Whitney Stakes (G1) winner Arthur's Ride , who faded to fifth in the Gold Cup after dueling with Highland Falls through the early stages, remained on the leaderboard while dropping from fourth to ninth.
The top of the poll is a replay of the Aug. 24 Travers Stakes (G1), with Fierceness leading Thorpedo Anna by a head (1 point).
The presence of Fierceness at the top of the NTRA's week 32 poll mirrors the latest Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) rankings released Sept. 3.
Three-year-olds dominate the Classic rankings. Epsom Derby (G1) winner City of Troy ranks second with Forever Young , Sierra Leone , and Dornoch rounding out the top 5. Highland Falls and Arthur's Ride lead the older horses, ranking sixth and seventh, respectively.