Yoshida, Midnight Bisou Put in Breeders' Cup Moves

The last time the Breeders' Cup World Championships were held at Churchill Downs, Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott took the apple cart for the event's signature race and planted it right on its side with a WinStar-owned runner.

Though the similarities between 2011 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) winner Drosselmeyer and Mott's current hopeful Yoshida are pretty much limited to their common connections, the latter has a thoroughly live chance at bringing on a wicked case déja vu come Nov. 3.

With Penny Gardner in the saddle, multiple grade 1 winner Yoshida turned in his last workout in preparation for the Classic when he breezed four furlongs in :49 3/5 over the Churchill main track Oct. 29. The son of Heart's Cry, owned by WinStar Farm in partnership with China Horse Club, SF Racing, and Head of Plains Partners, set fractions of :12 2/5, :24 4/5, and :37 3/5 and galloped out to five furlongs in 1:02 4/5 and to six furlongs in 1:16 3/5.

"We had a good day on the race track and a good day in the barn," Mott said. In addition to Yoshida, Mott will also saddle Channel Maker in the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf (G1T) and Topper T in the Sentient Jet Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1), who both put in their final pre-race drills Oct. 28.

Channel Maker worked Sunday on the dirt for Mott, breezing four furlongs in :49 flat. The son of English Channel  earned an automatic berth in Saturday's turf test by virtue of his Sept. 29 win the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (G1T) at Belmont Park.

"He went well," Mott said, who trains his charge exclusively on the dirt despite his penchant for the grass. "He seems to have come out of it feeling good. He's got a great coat of hair on him and he looks good so we're very happy with him. The race has become very competitive with the Europeans coming in."

Working along with his stablemate Sunday, 2-year-old Topper T breezed four furlongs in :47 3/5 and galloped out to five furlongs in 1:02 2/5. The Iowa-bred son of Bellamy Road  enters the Breeders' Cup off a second-place effort in the Shakopee Juvenile Stakes Sept. 15 at Canterbury Park. 

"The horses that breezed yesterday came back good and they looked good this morning out of their workouts," Mott continued. "We worked Yoshida this morning and he went very well. Got over the track good, he was well into the bridle, finished up well, galloped out nicely, and seemed to come back to the barn in good order. The time wasn't spectacular but the way he did it was really good."

A versatile runner, Yoshida opened his 4-year-old campaign May 5 with a win in the Old Forester Turf Classic (G1T) at Churchill before posting a pair of fifth place efforts in the June 19 Queen Anne Stakes (G1) at Royal Ascot and Aug. 11 Fourstardave Handicap (G1T) at Saratoga Race Course. When he was put on dirt for the first time Sept. 1 for his next start, Yoshida rebounded with an impressive two-length victory over Gunnevera in the Woodward Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1).

"It's always been in the plan (to run him on the dirt)," Mott said. "It was just a matter of timing. It was something we talked about early on but he'd been running so well on the turf that we left him there. We had the opportunity towards the end of August—with no other race in mind—the Woodward was coming up so we said 'Let's give it a shot'."

Seven years removed from his Drosselmeyer's upset Classic triumph, Mott said he was confident as one could be going in to a race that features some of the best runners from around the globe. 

"I don't think you can be overly confident when you're in these kinds of races," Mott said. "The competition is world-class. We've got the best horses in the country, it's a big purse, and everyone will be trying hard. I'm sure their horses are all doing well coming in to it. My confidence is as least as good as it was with Drosselmeyer."

Monday was a light day on the worktab as far as Breeders' Cup contenders were concerned, but one who was at under cover of early morning darkness was multiple grade 1 winner and Longines Distaff (G1) contender Midnight Bisou. The daughter of Midnight Lute  put in the standard easy half-mile work that is typical for Steve Asmussen-trained runners before a race, going four furlongs in :49  with splits of :12 2/5, :24 4/5, and :36 4/5 before galloping out five furlongs in 1:02 3/5.

"It was picture-perfect," said Jeff Bloom of Bloom Racing Stable, which co-owns Midnight Bisou with Madaket Stables and Allen Racing. "Just absolutely cruised through an easy half with a pretty strong gallop out. She pretty much cooled out before she ever got back to the barn. It was about as perfect as you could ask for."

Midnight Bisou has been at the forefront of a sophomore filly group that has lacked for little in terms of quality this season. Her rivalry with divisional leader Monomoy Girl stretches back to their meeting in the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1), and while Midnight Bisou has yet to finish in front of her nemesis, she got the nod in their last meeting when elevated to victory via disqualification in the Sept. 22 Cotillion Stakes (G1) at Parx Racing.

"It was one of those things where watching it live, you could tell she was getting bothered but couldn't really tell how much," Bloom said of the Cotillion. "When we went back and watched the replay, we knew (jockey) Mike (Smith aboard Midnight Bisou) had a lot of horse and it looked like she at any point would be able to go by. Ideally, she wouldn't have been bothered in that race and we could have seen how it would have unfolded."