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The Breeders Cup Classic goes off at 5:44 pm with a $6 million purse on the line, and 14 horses lined up to try and take it down.
The race favorite will be Accelerate – the 5-2 ML choice.

I am lined up against him as he hasn’t traveled outside of CA and to me, is not battle tested against the best competition. Also, the trainer has not done well outside of the golden state and draws the widest post, stuck in the 14 hole.

I am looking for a fast pace as Mikinzie, Catholic Boy, and Mendelssohn should be out front early. The problem is the track is favoring front runners and horses closest to the rail, so its difficult to go with a stone closer today.

Here are the horses I like today:

7 – West Coast (5-1)

Baffert trained runner was not fully cranked in his return to the races and got a terrible race set up as he was pressed a long way, and the jockeys ride was very questionable. West Coast has the best figs going back to last year but there are questions on fitness. Trainer has win 3 of the last 4 classic races and I am hoping I am on the right one today as his other entrant will be bet as well. The deciding factor for me is race set up. He should be sitting right off the pace and can take the lead turning for home, to hold off the closers. The West Coast from last year would easily crush this mediocre field but the question is – is this the same horse as last year?

1 – Thunder Snow (12-1)

The horse that could get the best set up today is Thunder Snow. He will be tucked in on the rail and laying just off the fast pace up front. He chased a very fast pace in the jockey gold cup at Belmont and pounced but failed to hold off a long shot. I suspect he will get a similar set up here today and this horse is talented having won the Dubai world cup. His one experience at CD in the derby did not go well as he lost all chance and was pulled up that day, but that will only help backers secure a decent price today.

9 – Mendelssohn (12-1)

This horse is loaded with talent and today could be the day he puts it all together. He pressed a very fast pace at Belmont with fractions of 45 change and 109 flat for 3 quarters going the classic distance of a mile and a quarter. To me, this a tell tale sign he is sitting on a prime effort but he can’t duel on the lead – he must sit just off the front runners. If I had more confidence in the jockey this one may have been my top pick and his key to success today will be in-race tactics and not go crazy up front. This was Whitey’s pick in this years Derby but he was foiled by the sloppy race conditions that day.

10 – Yoshida (10-1)

Turf runner tried the dirt last time and ran down the leaders at Saratoga. I really like this horse and turf runners have run well on the CD surface. If you are looking for a closer, this one is your guy. I will be watching intently on how the track is playing and if there is any hint that closers are fairing better than Friday, I may move this one up. In any event, super players will want to include this one as he could easily pass the tiring horses late for a minor award.

4 – Gunnevera (20-1)

Whitey has always liked the talent on this guy and will include defensively in exotics as he may clunk in the trifecta or superfecta.

Win bet – West Coast
Small Win bet – Thunder Snow

$2 Exacta box
West Coast, Thunder Snow, Mendelssohn

$2 Tri Box
Same

$1 Tri Key
West Coast over the 4 runners mentioned – 1,9,10,4