Eddie Read Kicks Off Breeders' Cup Fantasy 'Capping

It’s stone-cold reality that fantasy sports are the rage in sports.
Football and baseball are the most popular options but that doesn’t mean there are not hordes of fans monitoring rebounds or saves for a basketball or hockey fantasy league.
On Sunday, horse racing will gallop onto the scene with the launch of the third edition of the Breeders' Cup Fantasy ‘Capping online game here.
The Eddie Read Stakes at Del Mar will serve as the opening act in a test of handicapping skill and wagering prowess that will involve 14 stakes over the course of 12 weekends and will reward the savvy overall winner with a VIP trip to this year’s Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita.
“The idea is to use the game to help introduce new people to racing,” said Justin McDonald, vice president of Marketing and Digital Media for the Breeders’ Cup. “We want to give them a reason to look at races, check on the results, and learn how to wager.”
While fantasy sports rely on statistics, the Breeders’ Cup game revolves around wagering. Players can wager $20 mythical dollars on each of the Breeders’ Cup preps in one of four ways: $20 to either win, place or show on an individual horse or a $10 boxed exacta. At the end of the 14 races, the 10 players with the most winnings will receive prizes such as the trip to Santa Anita, $500 in cash, an iPad mini and Breeders’ Cup merchandise.
Because totals are cumulative, entrants can join at any point during the contest and still have a chance to win a prize.
“We see this as a way to educate people on how to wager,” McDonald said. “Horse racing is perfect for online wagering and the thought is that if people make fantasy bets and do well it can motivate them to come out to the track or bet online with real dollars.”
Where the game mirrors fantasy sports is that players are grouped into leagues in one of three ways. There are public leagues in which entrants are randomly placed in a league with nine other players.
Entrants can also form their own private leagues with family and friends. While the game does not award a prize for winning a league per se, people can use this format to follow the lead of pro sports fantasy leagues and have entry fees and payoffs that provide much more than bragging rights for the fortunate winners.
Finally there are invitational leagues. In partnering this year with Daily Racing Form, the Breeders’ Cup game has four leagues hosted by DRF handicappers Mike Watchmaker, Dan Illman, Matt Bernier and Peter Fornatale so that entrants can match their skills with the experts.
“We hopeful that we can grow the game this year,” McDonald said. “We’ve tweaked some things and most of the races are on television so it’s easier for people to follow along. We believe we have a tool that can show people how much fun racing can be.”
From the looks of things, that’s not a fantasy.