Breeders’ Cup Online Betting – Curlin-less Classic?
The Sport of Kings is counting down the days to the 25th running of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships. Santa Anita will host the two-day event with three additional races added, making for a total of 14 races with combined purses of $25.5 million.
On Friday, October 24, starting at 3:30pm EST ESPN2 will deliver the first day of horse betting action that features five races including the Filly & Mare Sprint (3:35pm);
Juvenile Fillies Turf (4:15pm); Juvenile Fillies (Gr.I 4:55pm); Filly & Mare Turf (Gr.I 5:25pm) and Ladies’ Classic (Gr.I 6:15pm).
On Saturday, October 25, beginning at 1:00pm EST ABC will air the first four of nine races on the day, which provides us with the Marathon (1:10pm); Turf Sprint (1:50pm); Juvenile (Gr.I 2:30pm) and Mile (Gr.I 3:15pm).
At 3:30pm EST, grab the remote and flip to ESPN, who takes over television coverage and brings to us the final five races of this year’s Breeders’ Cup World Championships, starting with the Dirt Mile (3:55pm); Juvenile Turf (4:35pm); Sprint (Gr.I 5:15pm); Turf (Gr.I 6:00pm) and the one The Sport of Kings has been waiting on—the Breeders’ Cup Classic (Gr.I 6:45pm), which will feature the much anticipated showdown between Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Big Brown and Curlin, the 2007 horse of the year and richest racehorse of all time. Or will it?
Curlin became the first horse in North America to top $10 million in career earnings, winning the $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup on Saturday, Sept. 27 on a sloppy track at Belmont Park. The $450,000 winner’s purse pushed Curlin’s career bankroll to $10,246,800. Cigar held the old mark of $9,999,815, which stood for 12 years.
Curlin’s next $3 million could be bagged with a victory in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic, however, this year’s Classic will be the first contested on a synthetic track, a surface Curlin has never raced on in his career. This raises many concerns for the connections of Curlin about running on the unfamiliar surface at San Anita, thus, could lead to a Curlin-less Classic.
Whether the richest horse in North America gets it on with Big Brown in the Classic depends on Curlin’s workouts on the San Anita Pro-Ride synthetic surface. In Curlin’s first workout on the Pro-Ride surface, he drilled a half-mile in 52.80 seconds. The defending Classic winner and the 2007 Horse of the Year then galloped a mile on Wednesday. His work on Monday was the first of what would be three workouts here if he were to run in the Classic.
Curlin’s next bit of business will be a 5-furlong workout in company of Hawaii Calls, another of trainer Steve Asmussen’s horses, between races four and five on Santa Anita’s synthetic surface on Monday in another step toward determining whether he will run in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic.
It would be a major disappointment to the online horse betting fans if Curlin is not entered in the Classic. The way his next workout goes on Monday is paramount to his chances of facing Big Brown and some of Europe’s top horses. A decision must be made soon since pre-entries for the Breeders’ Cup will be announced Oct. 16. BetUS horse racing odds list Curlin the chalk at +200 with Big Brown at +400 as favorites to win the 25th running of the Breeders’ Cup. Don’t forget to sign up for the BetUS Sportsbook Breeders’ Cup Pick’em contest!
