Search
where the horse is always the hero
Article Item
Posted 2024-07-24 19:54:04  
Big Weekend of Worldwide Racing Action

Racing fans are in for an exciting racing weekend across the world this weekend with three high-stakes races at Ascot Racecourse, Del Mar Racetrack, and Saratoga Race Course and the Champions Cup at Greyville in Durban. 

At Ascot, just outside London, the $1.6 million King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes on Saturday promises an exciting showdown between Auguste Rodin and Rebel’s Romance in what could be an 11-horse field. The winner secures an automatic, fees-paid entry into the Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1) in November. 

At Del Mar, the venue for the Breeders’ Cup, sprint sensation The Chosen Vron is the favorite in the $400,000 Bing Crosby Stakes (G1) on Saturday. The winner earns an automatic, fees-paid berth in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1).

Meanwhile, at Saratoga, the $500,000 Jim Dandy Stakes (G2) features a stellar lineup of three multiple graded stakes winners: Preakness champion Seize the Grey, Florida Derby winner Fierceness, and Blue Grass winner Sierra Leone. The Jim Dandy, a key prep race for the Travers Stakes on August 24, showcases the best 3-year-olds.

King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes

Aidan O’Brien-trained Auguste Rodin, fresh off a win in the Prince of Wales Stakes and currently listed at 5-4 odds, aims for his seventh Group/Grade 1 win, having already secured a spot in the Breeders’ Cup Turf with his Prince of Wales victory. Rebel’s Romance, the 2022 BC Turf winner, is on a four-race winning streak under trainer Charlie Appleby, including a victory in the Dubai Sheema Classic (G1) in March.

Fierceness Returns in Jim Dandy after skipping Haskell

Fierceness, the 2-year-old champion trained by Todd Pletcher, returns to the track following a disappointing 15th-place finish as the favorite in the Kentucky Derby (G1). Seize the Grey, trained by D. Wayne Lukas, is back after his Preakness win, while Chad Brown’s Sierra Leone returns following a second-place finish in the Derby and a third in the Belmont Stakes (G1).

A Double in the Bing Crosby?

The Chosen Vron, who has won 13 of his last 14 starts and is 4-for-4 this year, rides a five-race win streak. Trained by Eric Kruljac, the 6-year-old gelding’s only recent loss came in the BC Sprint, where he finished fifth. The Bing Crosby is the first stakes race on the West Coast offering an expenses-paid berth to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint. It has been a key race on the road to the Breeders’ Cup since the early 1990s, with notable winners like Thirty Slews (1992), Lit de Justice (1996), and Kona Gold (2000).

Also at Del Mar on Saturday is the San Diego Handicap (G2). Potential contenders for the 1 1/16 miles on dirt include Bob Baffert-trained Arabian Knight and Phil D’Amato-trained Newgrange.

The Greyville features include the WFA Gr1 Champions Cup which extensively covered here.

Image of Auguste Rodin DRC extraction 

Rate:
Email link to a friend | Printable Version
Latest News
Latest 10 news articles
5 hours ago
5 hours ago
1 days ago
2 days ago
2 days ago
2 days ago
  • Breeders' Cup
    Displaying 10 ResultsSee All
    purton aims to fill rare void in hong kong classic mile7 days ago

    Zac Purton, Hong Kong’s most successful jockey, is set to chase an elusive milestone in the HK...

    View | Add Comment
    met day selections 2025-01-22

    Run for over 150 years, the Cape Met holds a special place in the hearts of Capetonians young and ol...

    View | Add Comment
    one stripe set for breeders’ cup mile after sale2025-01-17

      One Stripe, the Cape-based star who captured the prestigious King’s Plate earlier this...

    View | Add Comment
    one stripe - king of the turf 2025-01-04

    One Stripe delivered a dazzling performance when it counted, claiming victory in the prestigious Kin...

    View | Add Comment
    fourie double grand slammed the paddock field2025-01-04

    With a blistering pace set by Lavender Bay, the stablemate of Saartjie, the Paddock Stakes was perfe...

    View | Add Comment
    wide open king's plate represents lack of south african standout2025-01-04

    The depth in the field of largely 120 to 130-rated horses represents the quality South Africa posses...

    View | Add Comment
    kenilworth’s grand showdown: l’ormarins king’s plate and cartier paddock stakes2024-12-30

    Kenilworth Racecourse is set to host an electrifying day of racing action featuring two of South Afr...

    View | Add Comment
    excitement builds for l’ormarins king’s plate 2025 as entries announced2024-12-23

      The 164th renewal of South Africa's premier weight-for-age mile, the L’Ormarins King&r...

    View | Add Comment
    uruguay gains breeders’ cup challenge qualifier for breeders’ cup dirt mile2024-12-22

    A Breeders’ Cup Challenge: Win and You’re In race is coming to Uruguay, Breeders’ ...

    View | Add Comment
    torpedo anne smashes another grade 1 victory in distaff2024-11-05

    Thorpedo Anna, representing Brookdale Racing, Mark Edwards, breeder Judy Hicks, and Magdalena Racing...

    View | Add Comment