Race: Breeders’ Cup Juvenile
Date: Saturday, November 2
Purse: $2,000,000
Distance: 1 1/16 Miles
Post Time: 5:43pm ET/2:43pm PT
TV: NBC Sports Network
At $2 million, the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile is the richest 2-year-old race in North America. The 1 1/16 mile race, restricted to male 2 year-olds, is often a preview of the stars of the Triple Crown races for the following year.
Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Preview
by Ed DeRosa (Director of Marketing Brisnet.com)
Top Contender(s)
This race left me with more questions than answers — the same way I feel every time I watch a movie on the Syfy channel. Is tossing bombs out of a helicopter really the best way to deal with airborne killer sharks? According to “Sharknado,” yes… but I remain skeptical.
Anyway, I’m most impressed by the speed and pace figures of 3-MEXICOMA in this event, but can a maiden race really be considered a viable prep for a $1 million Grade I affair? It worked for Action This Day. He parlayed a maiden win into a huge payday in 2003 (for the sake of this discussion, we’ll ignore the fact that he failed to hit the board in six subsequent starts as a three- and four-year-old).
6-TAP IT RICH also exits a maiden race and adds to the degree of difficulty by attempting to become the first horse ever to win the Juvenile off of a single prep — maiden or otherwise.
Then there’s the 5-2 morning-line favorite, 13-HAVANA. He ran great in the Champagne at Belmont… maybe too great. Since 1997 only two (of 24) entrants that met the Juvenile speed par in their final prep won the big race — and they paid $6.40 (War Pass, 2007) and $4.60 (Shanghai Bobby, 2013).
Hence, by default, I landed on 5-BOND HOLDER as my top contender. The son of Mineshaft appears to be improving and has the same connections as Derby and Preakness hero I’ll Have Another.
Top Pretender(s)
Me for thinking I could handicap this race without the benefit of alcohol.
Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Wagering Information
Exacta / Trifecta / Superfecta / Daily Double / Pick 3 wagering available.
Field and odds for the $2,000,000 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile
| Post | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Odds |
| 1 | Smarty’s Echo | Anne Smith | E.Baird | 20-1 |
| 2 | Dance with Fate | Peter Euron | Rafael Bejarano | 8-1 |
| 3 | Mexikoma | Richard Mettee | Alan Garcia | 12-1 |
| 4 | New Year’s Day | Bob Baffert | Martin Garcia | 8-1 |
| 5 | Bond Holder | Doug O’Neill | Mario Gutierrez | 8-1 |
| 6 | Tap It Rich | Bob Baffert | MIke Smith | 6-1 |
| 7 | Cleburne | Dale Romans | Corey Nakatani | 12-1 |
| 8 | Conquest Titan | Mark Casse | Eurico Da Silva | 30-1 |
| 9 | Rum Point | Doub O’Nell | Edwin Maldanado | 30-1 |
| 10 | We Miss Artie | Todd Pletcher | Javier Casellano | 8-1 |
| 11 | Medal Count | Dale Romas | Robby Albarado | 20-1 |
| 12 | Diamond Bachelor | Patrick Biancone | Julien Leparoux | 12-1 |
| 13 | Havana | Todd Pletcher | Havana | 5-2 |
| 14 | Strong Mandate | D.Lukas | Joel Rosario | 6-1 |