Major Racing Events > Breeders’ Cup > Sprint
| 2020 Sprint Contenders |History | Records | Past Results
2021 Breeders’ Cup Sprint
The 2021 Breeders’ Cup Mile will be held at the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club on Saturday, November 6th.
Information and winners of the “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series races for the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Sprint:
| DATE | RACE | COUNTRY | WINNER |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7/4/21 | John A. Nerud Stakes | USA | Mind Control |
| 7/31/21 | Bing Crosby Stakes | USA | TBD |
| 10/2/21 | Santa Anita Sprint Championship | USA | TBD |
| 10/8/21 | Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix | USA | TBD |
| 10/9/21 | The Vosburgh | USA | TBD |
2020 Breeders’ Cup Sprint Results & Payouts
Final results and payouts for the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Sprint:
| POST | HORSE | JOCKEY | WIN / PLACE / SHOW |
| 7 | Whitmore | Irad Ortiz Jr. | $38.80 / 13.80 / $7.60 |
| 2 | C Z Rocket | Luis Saez | $7.60 / $5.00 |
| 8 | Firenze Fire | Jose Lezcano | $6.40 |
| 9 | Empire of Gold | Declan Carroll | |
| 5 | Manny Wah | Tyler Gaffalione | |
| 11 | Diamond Oops | Florent Geroux | |
| 12 | Hog Creek Hustle | Corey Lanerie | |
| 10 | Yaupon | Joel Rosario | |
| 15 | Lasting Legacy | Brian Hernandez Jr. | |
| 4 | Bon Raison | Adam Beschizza | |
| 6 | Frank’s Rockette | Junior Alvarado | |
| 3 | Collusion Illusion | Flavien Prat | |
| 1 | Echo Town | Ricardo Santana Jr. | |
| 13 | Jasper Prince | Jose Ortiz | |
| 14 (SCR) | Vekoma | Javier Castellano |
Exotic Payouts:
- $1.00 Exacta (7-2) Paid: $138.00
- $0.50 Trifecta (7-2-8) Paid: $546.00
- $0.10 Superfecta (7-2-8-9) Paid: $2,988.58
The BC Sprint History
The Breeders’ Cup Sprint is a recently raised $2 million race contested at 6 furlongs. The world’s fastest Thoroughbred’s compete among open competition for horses three-years-old and older. The BC Sprint has been run every year since 1984 with Eillo winning the inaugural race at Hollywood Park.
The 1989 BC Sprint at Gulfstream was a memorable race, as the filly Safely Kept turned for home in the lead following blistering splits. But jockey Angel Cordero, Jr. came flying along the rail with Dancing Spree to nip her by a nose at the wire for owner Ogden Phipps.
The 2015 winner Runhappy, a three-year-old son of Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver, won as the 8-5 favorite in a then track-record time of 1:08.58 at Keeneland.
Many of the winners from the Breeders’ Cup Sprint go on to earn honors as American Champion Sprint Horse from the Eclipse Awards, including Roy H (2017, 2018), Whitmore (2020), Mitole (2019), Drefong (2016), Big Drama (2010), Squirtle Squirt (2001).
Breeders’ Cup Sprint Historical Records:
Jockey Corey Nakatani has won the Breeders’ Cup Sprint a record four times, while trainer Bob Baffert has been a winner a record five times including in 2016 with Drefong. The 2016 runner-up, and race favorite Masochistic, was disqualified more than a month after the race following a pair of tests which confirmed the presence of the steroid stanozolol in the horse’s system. The horse’s trainer and connections also forfeited the accompanying $255,000 place money.
Five horses stopped the clock with a winning time of less than 1:08.00, with the fastest time by Baffert-trained Midnight Lute in 2008 (1:07.08). Midnight Lute is a two-time winner of the BC Sprint, winning each time with the late jockey Garrett Gomez aboard. Midnight Lute shares the record for most wins with Roy H, who won the race back to back in 2017 and 2018. Four other winners have also recorded times that broke the 1:08.00 plateau. These include Kona Gold in 2000, Artax in 1999, Cajun Beat in 2003 and Trinniberg in 2012.
The legendary trainer Bob Baffert has established himself as a force in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint with five wins. He first saw the winner’s circle with Thirty Slews in 1992 before winning the aforementioned back-to-back reigns with Midnight Lute in 2007 and 2008. He has since won with Secret Circle in 2013 and most recently with Drefong in 2016.
Corey Nakatani has won this race on four occasions, making him the winningest jockey in Breeders’ Cup Sprint history. He won with Lit Justice first in 1996 and followed up a year later with Elmhurst in 1997 and again with Reraise in 1998. Nakatani would return nearly a decade later to win his fourth title aboard Thor’s Echo in 2006.
| YEAR | HORSE (AGE) | JOCKEY / TRAINER | TIME / VENUE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Whitmore (7) | Irad Ortiz Jr. / Ron Moquett | 1:08.61 / Keeneland |
| 2019 | Mitole (4) | Ricardo Santana Jr. / Steve Asmussen | 1:09.00 / Santa Anita Park |
| 2018 | Roy H (6) | Paco Lopez / Peter Miller | 1:08.24 / Churchill Downs |
| 2017 | Roy H (5) | Kent Desormeaux / Peter Miller | 1:08.61 / Del Mar Racetrack |
| 2016 | Drefong (3) | Martin Garcia / Bob Baffert | 1:08.79 / Santa Anita Park |
| 2015 | Runhappy (3) | Edgar Prado / Maria Borell | 1:08.58 / Keeneland |
| 2014 | Work All Week (5) | Florent Geroux / Roger Brueggemann | 1:08.28 / Santa Anita Park |
| 2013 | Secret Circle (4) | Martin Garcia / Bob Baffert | 1:08.73 / Santa Anita Park |
| 2012 | Trinniberg (3) | Willie Martinez / Shivananda Parbhoo | 1:07.98 / Santa Anita Park |
| 2011 | Amazombie (5) | Mike E. Smith / Bill Spawr | 1:09.17 / Churchill Downs |
| 2010 | Big Drama (4) | Eibar Coa / David Fawkes | 1:09.05 / Churchill Downs |
| 2009 | Dancing in Silks (4) | Joel Rosario / Carla Gaines | 1:08.14 / Santa Anita Park |
| 2008 | Midnight Lute (5) | Garrett Gomez / Bob Baffert | 1:07.08 / Santa Anita Park |
| 2007 | Midnight Lute (4) | Garrett Gomez / Bob Baffert | 1:09.18 / Monmouth Park |
| 2006 | Thor's Echo (4) | Corey Nakatani / Doug O'Neill | 1:08.80 / Churchill Downs |
| 2005 | Silver Train (3) | Edgar Prado / Richard Dutrow | 1:08.86 / Belmont Park |
| 2004 | Speightstown (6) | John Velazquez / Todd A. Pletcher | 1:08.11 / Lone Star Park |
| 2003 | Cajun Beat (3) | Cornelio Velásquez / Steve Margolis | 1:07.95 / Santa Anita Park |
| 2002 | Orientate (4) | Jerry Bailey / D. Wayne Lukas | 1:08.89 / Santa Anita Park |
| 2001 | Squirtle Squirt (3) | Jerry Bailey / Robert J. Frankel | 1:08.41 / Arlington Park |
| 2000 | Kona Gold (6) | Alex Solis / Bruce Headley | 1:07.60 / Belmont Park |
| 1999 | Artax (4) | Jorge F. Chavez / Louis Albertrani | 1:07.80 / Churchill Downs |
| 1998 | Reraise (3) | Corey Nakatani / Craig Dollase | 1:09.00 / Gulfstream Park |
| 1997 | Elmhurst (7) | Corey Nakatani / Jenine Sahadi | 1:08.20 / Churchill Downs |
| 1996 | Lit de Justice (6) | Corey Nakatani / Jenine Sahadi | 1:08.60 / Hollywood Park |
| 1995 | Desert Stormer (5) | Kent Desormeaux / Frank Lyons | 1:09.00 / Woodbine |
| 1994 | Cherokee Run (4) | Mike E. Smith / Frank A. Alexander | 1:09.40 / Belmont Park |
| 1993 | Cardmania (7) | Ed Delahoussaye / Derek Meredith | 1:08.60 / Churchill Downs |
| 1992 | Thirty Slews (5) | Eddie Delahoussaye / Bob Baffert | 1:08.20 / Santa Anita Park |
| 1991 | Sheikh Albadou (3) | Pat Eddery / Alex Scott | 1:09.20 / Gulfstream Park |
| 1990 | Safely Kept (4) | Craig Perret / Alan E. Goldberg | 1:09.60 / Churchill Downs |
| 1989 | Dancing Spree (4) | Ángel Cordero Jr. / C. R. McGaughey III | 1:09.00 / Belmont Park |
| 1988 | Gulch (4) | Ángel Cordero Jr. / D. Wayne Lukas | 1:10.40 / Gulfstream Park |
| 1987 | Very Subtle (3) | Pat Valenzuela / Melvin F. Stute | 1:08.80 / Churchill Downs |
| 1986 | Smile (4) | Jacinto Vásquez / Scotty Schulhofer | 1:08.40 / Hollywood Park |
| 1985 | Precisionist (4) | Chris McCarron / Ross Fenstermaker | 1:08.40 / Santa Anita Park |
| 1984 | Eillo (4) | Craig Perret / Budd Lepman | 1:10.20 / Aqueduct |
Historical Breeders’ Cup Sprint Results:
2019 Breeders’ Cup Sprint Entries & Morning Line Odds
| PP | Horse | Trainer | Morning Line Odds | Jockey |
| 1 | Catalina Cruiser | John W. Sadler | 4-1 | Joel Rosario |
| 2 | Hog Creek Hustle | Vickie L. Foley | 20-1 | Mike Smith |
| 3 | Firenze Fire | Jason Servis | 12-1 | Irad Ortiz, Jr. |
| 4 | Mitole | Steven M. Asmussen | 9-5 | Ricardo Santana, Jr. |
| 5 | Engage | Steven M. Asmussen | 15-1 | John Velazquez |
| 6 | Shancelot | Jorge Navarro | 4-1 | Jose Ortiz |
| 7 | Whitmore | Ron Moquett | 15-1 | Flavien Prat |
| 8 | Landeskog | Doug F. O’Neill | 12-1 | Abel Cedillo |
| 9 | Imperial Hint | Luis Carvajal Jr. | 4-1 | Javier Castellano |
| 10 | Matera Sky | Hideyuki Mori | 30-1 | Yutaka Take |
2016 Breeders’ Cup Sprint Results
The $1.5 million Twinspires Breeders’ Cup Sprint had a smaller field of seven, but Drefong made it 4-for-4 in 2016 with a big Breeders’ Cup victory at Santa Anita. Running head-to-head with another California speed ball through a fast half mile in :44.03, Drefong moved ahead of Masochistic on the inside as they hit the top of the stretch. Jockey Martin Garcia urged him home and shook clear a sixteenth from the wire and held firm just over a length in front.
Drefong covered 6 furlongs on a fast track in 1:08.79, and gave trainer Bob Baffert his fifth Sprint victory and his 13th Breeders’ Cup World Championship win overall.
“What a racehorse. What a race. He’s been getting better and better, but we didn’t know how fast he was. He had trained so well coming into this race I thought he was peaking. When I saw him in the paddock I just knew he was going to get it done.”
Baffert’s Lord Nelson, the 5-2 morning-line favorite, was scratched before the race after being treated for an infected cut.
Garcia won his second BC Sprint and fourth Breeders’ Cup race overall. Drefong (7-2) paid $9.80, $4.80 and $3.80. The 8-5 favorite Masochistic returned $4.00 and $2.80, and Mind Your Biscuits rallied hard in the stretch to finish third ($4.60).
A $1 exacta was worth $15.00 while a $1 trifecta returned $112.30.
Drefong won his stakes debut in August in the Grade I Kings Bishop at Saratoga. The Breeders’ Cup Sprint was his fifth straight win overall and increased his earnings to more than $1.2 million in six career starts.