ARROGATE, GUN RUNNER, STELLAR WIND, HIGHLAND REEL (IRE), ULYSSES (IRE), LADY ELI AND BOLT D’ORO LEAD 187 HORSES PRE-ENTERED FOR 2017 BREEDERS’ CUP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS AT DEL MAR

Led by defending Breeders’ Cup Classic winner and the world’s all-time leading money earner ARROGATE, Whitney and Suburban winner GUN RUNNER, Longines Distaff standout STELLAR WIND, defending Longines Turf winner HIGHLAND REEL (IRE), Juddmonte International winner ULYSSES (IRE) and Filly & Mare Turf star LADY ELI, an all-star international cast of 187 of the world’s best Thoroughbreds, including a record 46 from overseas, have been pre-entered for the 2017 Breeders’ Cup World Championships.

The 34th Breeders’ Cup World Championships, Thoroughbred racing’s most prestigious two-day global event, consisting of 13 Grade 1 races with purses and awards totaling more than $28 million, will be held for the first time at the Del Mar racetrack in Del Mar, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 3 and Saturday, Nov. 4. There will be four Breeders’ Cup races on Championship Friday and nine Breeders’ Cup races on Championship Saturday.

The Breeders’ Cup will be televised live by NBCSN and NBC. The $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic will be broadcast live on Sat., Nov. 4 at 5:35 p.m. PT/8:35 p.m. ET on NBC (8-9 p.m. ET).

Among the statistical highlights in this year’s pre-entries are that a total of seven races are oversubscribed with more than 14 horses, and more than 12 in the Turf Sprint. There are 50 horses who have qualified for automatic starting positions through the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series that have been pre-entered. Aidan O’Brien has pre-entered 14 horses, the most among trainers, one more than Chad Brown. The Coolmore partnerships lead all owners with 14 horses pre-entered.

This year’s Breeders’ Cup features nine returning or former champions: Arrogate, Highland Reel, Drefong, Oscar Performance, Lady Eli, Champagne Room, Queen’s Trust, Finest City and Mongolian Saturday.