Sovereignty Scratched From Breeders' Cup Classic

Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott said Oct. 29 that Sovereignty , the leading contender for Horse of the Year, will not run in the Nov. 1 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1).

"He was good 24 hours ago. ... But then by yesterday afternoon, by seven o'clock last night, he re-spiked, and so we had to re-medicate him," Mott said. "And the decision was made.

"We weren't going to press the envelope."

The son of Into Mischief   had spiked a fever Oct. 27 and Mott wanted to see how the colt responded to medication and rest. The trainer reported that should the 3-year-old experience an elevated temperature again that he would not race Saturday out of precaution. 

"If we don't feel like he's 100% he's not going to run," he said after the initial fever. 

Mott said that Sovereignty was given medication to treat the fever, which worked initially. But after the colt experienced another fever, he was treated with an antibiotic as a precaution.

Outside of the fever, Sovereignty is not showing other signs of illness.

"It's most likely a viral infection," Mott said. "And the blood work indicated that it was viral; white (blood cell) count was still normal. If the white count was out of whack, then you would assume it's a bacterial infection, but it's a viral thing. Antibiotics don't help a virus so, but we did cover him with antibiotics last night, just in case it develops (into a bacterial infection)."

The Godolphin homebred was made the 6-5 favorite for the Breeders' Cup Classic after a 3-year-old campaign that saw him win the Kentucky Derby (G1), Belmont Stakes (G1), and Travers Stakes (G1). With his scratch from the Classic, Fierceness   has been elevated to first choice at 5-2.

The revised morning line from oddsmaker David Aragona is as follows:

1. Fierceness                    5-2

2. Baeza                            10-1

3. Nevada Beach              20-1

4. Contrary Thinking       50-1

5. Forever Young               7-2

6. Sovereignty                   SCR

7. Sierra Leone                  7-2

8. Mindframe                     6-1

9. Journalism                     5-1

10. Antiquarian                  10-1

As for what is next for Sovereignty, Mott said besides recovering from his fever, nothing has been decided on whether he will return to racing or begin his stallion career.

Godolphin's founder, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is the ruler of Dubai and the creator of the Dubai World Cup (G1). The 30th renewal of the now $12 million race is March 28, 2026, at Meydan Racecourse. It is contested over 2,000 meters (about 1 1/4 miles)—a distance over which Sovereignty is unbeaten in three starts.

Sovereignty will head to Kentucky when he flies east in the coming days, which had been the plan even before the fever, Mott noted.

"As far as what's happening for next year, one way or another, he'll have a little bit of time off," Mott said.