Quiet Morning at Keeneland on BC Day 2
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Photo: Chad B. Harmon
Keeneland's Rice Road training center was very quiet early the morning of Oct. 31, as only a few of the horses participating in the second day of the Breeders' Cup were sent to the track.
Among those horses sent to the main track for light exercise were Frosted and Effinex, both of whom will contest the featured $5 million Classic (gr. I).
American Pharoah, the Triple Crown winner who will close out his career in the Classic, did not go to the track Saturday morning. Assistant trainer Jimmy Barnes said some of the Bob Baffert stable horses are exercised the morning of a race, but American Phroah is not among them.
ANGST: American Pharoah Aims to Thrill One Last Time
With few horses on the track, the only news of the day was the announcement that Awesome Again Stakes (gr. I) winner Smooth Roller was scratched out of the Classic because of a tendon issue in his left front.
ANGST: Smooth Roller Out of Breeders' Cup Classic
Meanwhile, Breeders' Cup executive vice president and chief operating officer Bob Elliston said Keeneland and Breeders' Cup officials were pleased with the previous day's success, the first time Keeneland has hosted the World Championships.
The reported crowd of 44,947 was the largest for a Friday since the Breeders' Cup expanded to a two-day event in 2007 and represented a 21% increase over Day 1 at Santa Anita Park last year and an 8% increase over the prior Friday attendance high of 41,614 at Churchill Downs in 2010.
Total handle for Friday's 10-race card was $44,949,165, a slight decrease from the 2014 figure of $45,815,111. Total handle for the four Breeders' Cup races was $28,234,543. The on-track crowd at Keeneland wagered $7,550,279, an 8% increase over the 2014 on-track handle at Santa Anita of $6,970,456.
"You plan, plan, and plan, and you hope you've thought of everything," Ellison said. "This being the first time (at Keeneland), there were a lot of moving parts and it went well."
Day 1 was highlighted by the Longines Distaff (gr. I) victory of Stopchargingmaria, who was reported in good shape at the Todd Pletcher barn the morning after her win the previous day.
ANGST: Stopchargingmaria Prevails With Distaff Win
After a splendid fall day Friday, Saturday began with a brisk 44-degree temperature and cloudy skies, which were expected to remain throughout the day with a 60-degree high temperature.