Carl Spackler, one of the leading United States contenders in this year's Euro-dominated Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T) field, logged his final preparations the morning of Oct. 26 for trainer Chad Brown.
A homebred for Bob Edwards' e Five Racing Thoroughbreds, Carl Spackler drilled a half-mile over the turf course at Keeneland in :50 2/5 in company with fellow Mile hopeful Chili Flag. Regular rider Tyler Gaffalione, Edwards' son-in-law, was aboard the 4-year-old son of Lope de Vega for the breeze. Gaffalione has piloted the colt in his last seven starts, a partnership resulting in six stakes victories, two of them at the grade 1 level.
Breaking off just behind Chili Flag to the pole, Carl Spackler drew even with the grade 1-winning mare around the turn and finished strongly with his company. He galloped out the five furlongs just ahead of Chili Flag. With the cones up on the turf course, forcing both horses to work extremely wide around the turns, the duo was given a final time of :50 2/5. According to Keeneland clockers, the pair finished up their final quarter-mile together in :22 4/5.
"It was very straightforward work. He's really feeling good out there," Gaffalione said of Carl Spackler. "It was just two talented horses trying to get the best out of each other. They work together well. They were doing it the right way. They broke off at a good tempo, picked it up when we asked him, and had a nice gallop out."
WATCH: Gaffalione Discusses BC Mile Contender Carl Spackler
Despite the fact that Carl Spackler will be facing one of the toughest fields assembled in recent memory in the $2 million Mile, Gaffalione remains confident in his mount.
"He's shown us everything we need to see this year. He's coming into the race in great form so we have tons of confidence," Gaffalione said.
The colt's forwardly placed running style could serve him well racing over Del Mar's firmer turf course against the late-kicking Europeans. In his most recent start, the Oct. 5 Coolmore Turf Mile Stakes (G1T) at Keeneland, Carl Spackler took the race into his own hands, powering to a gate-to-wire tally over More Than Looks.
"He's a very forward horse," Gaffalione said. "He puts himself in the game a little bit more (this year). He's traveling and still finding good acceleration from there so we probably won't change anything up (on race day). We'll let him get out there, run his race, and see if we're good enough."
Seven Breeders' Cup Hopefuls Breeze on Keeneland's Main Track
Trainer Cherie DeVaux sent out five Breeders' Cup pre-entrants to work over the Keeneland main track Saturday morning, highlighted by Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) contender Vahva and Mile hopeful More Than Looks.
"This morning we were just working, looking for maintenance moves out here," DeVaux said. "There's nothing going to be too flashy, just trying to make sure they're on task and doing as well as they can be. All of them looked great. This week, not looking for too much out of them is the objective."
Victory Racing Partners' More Than Looks, runner-up to Carl Spackler in the Coolmore Turf Mile last time out, turned in a solo half-mile work in :49 3/5.
Vahva, winner of the Derby City Distaff Stakes (G1) in May at Churchill Downs, drilled a half-mile in :48 over a track largely playing slow for the morning. Her time was the second fastest of 86 horses to work a half-mile.
Among other Breeders' Cup contenders working at the Lexington oval was Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap (G1) victor Nakatomi (Breeders' Cup Sprint, G1), who clocked five furlongs in 1:01 in company with grade 1 winner Chi Town Lady, and Breeders' Futurity (G1) runner-up Ferocious (Breeders' Cup Juvenile, G1), who was timed in 1:01 4/5 for five furlongs for trainer Gustavo Delgado.
Thorpedo Anna, Tapit Trice Among new York Workers
In addition to 10 Breeders' Cup horses who worked Saturday at Belmont Park, another equine star, Thorpedo Anna, put in her final breeze at Saratoga Race Course.
Brookdale Racing, Mark Edwards, Judy Hicks, and Magdalena Racing's Thorpedo Anna, expected to be a heavy favorite in the Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1), breezed five furlongs in 1:01.24 on the Oklahoma dirt training track at Saratoga under exercise rider Danny Ramsey. She worked in company with the stakes-placed 4-year-old gelding Denington, outfinished him late, and galloped out well past her stablemate.
Trainer Kenny McPeek shared video of the workout on the social media platform X.
Thorpedo Anna workout from my perspective. Beautiful fall morning in Saratoga Springs. pic.twitter.com/oleC89YBvw
— Kenny McPeek (@KennyMcPeek) October 26, 2024
"It's a gorgeous fall morning here in Saratoga. This is Denington on the inside and Thorpedo Anna on the outside, going five-eighths. The instructions for him: to stay right next to Denington until the quarter pole," McPeek said.
Thorpedo Anna, far and away the leader of the 3-year-old filly division, is 7-2-0 in nine starts with $2,803,663 in earnings. She won the Cotillion Stakes (G1) most recently after a runner-up finish to Fierceness in the Travers Stakes (G1).
At Belmont, one of the major works of the morning was turned in by Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) hopeful Tapit Trice, who breezed a half-mile in :49.21. Whisper Hill Farm and Gainesway Stable's grade 1 winner captured the Woodward Stakes (G2) in his last start Sept. 28.
Along with Fierceness, he is one of two Classic starters for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher.
"Tapit Trice will probably be a little bit further back, and Fierceness will most likely be towards the front," Pletcher said. "I don't think they compromise each other's chances."
Nearly Two Dozen Breeze on West Coast
With the Breeders' Cup being held in Southern California in a week, not surprisingly, most of the breezes Saturday were on the West Coast. As many as 18 potential starters breezed at Santa Anita Park, the principal training base for Southern California-based horses, and four more worked at Del Mar.
One of the fastest workers at Del Mar was Frizette Stakes (G1) runner-up Snowyte, who was clocked covering five furlongs in :59 in preparation for the Nov. 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1). New York-based trainer Danny Gargan sent her west early to get her accustomed to the track. He trains her for Pine Racing Stables, Don Alberto Stable, Belmar Racing and Breeding, and R. A. Hill Stable.
More horses will take some spins with gallops and jogs over the Del Mar oval in the coming days. A group of 43 European horses, with the exclusion of those who have shipped over from Keeneland, are expected to arrive at Del Mar Saturday evening. Those horses will be in quarantine Oct. 28, which would put them on schedule to appear on the Del Mar track Oct. 29.
Eight of O'Brien's 19 Pre-Entries Withdrawn
Speaking during a media teleconference Oct. 23, Irish trainer Aidan O'Brien hinted that his number of equine travelers to Del Mar for the Nov. 1-2 Breeders' Cup could dip from the 19 he pre-entered.
Now it officially has. On Oct. 26, Breeders' Cup posted to X that eight of his horses had been withdrawn from consideration for the two-day event.
Bubbling is out of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1T), Monumental from the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1T), Aesop's Fables from the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T); Continuous and Illinois from the Breeders' Cup Turf (G1T), and Henry Longfellow, Mountain Bear, and River Tiber from the Mile.
O'Brien, an 18-time Breeders' Cup winner, still has 10 left to compete, among them City of Troy, the top-rated turf horse in the world who will attempt to transfer his excellence to dirt in the Nov. 2 Breeders' Cup Classic.
O'Brien said Wednesday that many of his horses still had to complete their final workouts to his satisfaction before flying to America, noting those works would "be getting strong and very hard, and when the work is finished, then we have to be happy that they will go over and they will pass all the veterinary checks and everything like that. ... And it would be unusual for them all to be cleared by our own vets to go, but hopefully most of them will."
O'Brien also suggested other considerations were in play, such as whether to take one to California for a quick return to racing competition. One of these pre-entries that needed such monitoring was Continuous, who last raced Oct. 19 when 10th in the Champions Stakes (G1) at Ascot.
O'Brien further suggested Bubbling might not make the trip to race at the Breeders' Cup, saying she had gone through what he described as a tough season.
Speaking Wednesday of Illinois, the last-out winner of the Prix Chaudenay (G2) at Longchamp, O'Brien said, "He has to go through the vet checks here on Friday just to make sure that they're happy with him because obviously your vet checks are very stringent now at the moment. And if everyone is not 100% happy—he's had a hard season, he's raced a lot—but if they weren't 100% happy that he would clear your vet panel, he wouldn't go."
O'Brien, like many other trainers, has seen some of his horses scratched after veterinarian evaluations at the Breeders' Cup in recent years. Horses scheduled to compete are under intense veterinary scrutiny to ensure racing is as safe as possible.
Reflective of this, the California sprinter The Chosen Vron was deemed unsound this past week by a veterinarian and placed on the veterinarian's list, a listing of horses that are ineligible to race, preventing him from starting in the Breeders' Cup Sprint. Trainer Eric Kruljac was frustrated by that decision, telling BloodHorse his star sprinter was "100% sound."
No reasons were given by Breeders' Cup for O'Brien's eight pre-entry withdrawals.
Even with these out, O'Brien—who trains privately for Coolmore-affiliated ownership—still has a strong Breeders' Cup hand. For example, even with Monumental out of the Juvenile Turf, O'Brien still has one of the favorites in the race with Henri Matisse.
Final entries and post positions will be determined Oct. 28.
| Horse | Track | Distance | Time | Division |
| Anisette | Santa Anita Park (Synthetic) | 4F | :48 1/5 | Filly & Mare Turf |
| Beach Bomb | Del Mar (Turf) | 4F | :50 3/5 | Filly & Mare Turf |
| Bentornato | Del Mar | 4F | :49 1/5 | Sprint |
| Cagliostro | Keeneland | 4F | :49 | Dirt Mile |
| Carl Spackler | Keeneland (Turf) | 4F | :50 2/5 | Mile |
| Chancer McPatrick | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :49.01* | Juvenile |
| Che Evasora | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:00 | Distaff |
| Chili Flag | Keeneland (Turf) | 4F | :50 2/5 | Mile |
| Citizen Bull | Santa Anita Park | 5F | :58 4/5 | Juvenile |
| Domestic Product | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :48.31* | Dirt Mile/Sprint |
| Dr. Venkman | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:00 1/5 | Sprint/Dirt Mile |
| El Encinal | Santa Anita Park | 4F | :48 4/5 | Turf |
| Federal Judge | Churchill Downs | 4F | :48 2/5 | Sprint |
| Ferocious | Keeneland | 5F | 1:01 4/5 | Juvenile |
| Gaming | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:00 1/5 | Juvenile |
| Gina Romantica | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :48.31* | Mile |
| Gold Phoenix | Santa Anita Park (Synthetic) | 5F | 1:00 2/5 | Turf |
| Hang the Moon | Santa Anita Park (Synthetic) | 5F | 1:00 2/5 | Filly & Mare Turf |
| Highland Falls | Churchill Downs | 5F | 1:00 1/5 | Classic |
| Howard Wolowitz | Del Mar | 4F | :50 1/5 | Turf Sprint |
| Iron Man Cal | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:00 1/5 | Juvenile Turf |
| Johannes | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:00 3/5 | Mile |
| Kirstenbosch | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:01 1/5 | Filly & Mare Sprint |
| Moira | Woodbine (Synthetic) | 4F | :49 | Filly & Mare Turf |
| More Than Looks | Keeneland | 4F | :49 3/5 | Mile |
| Motorious | Santa Anita Park (Synthetic) | 4F | :48 4/5 | Turf Sprint |
| Muth | Santa Anita Park | 5F | :59 | Dirt Mile |
| Nakatomi | Keeneland | 5F | 1:01 | Sprint |
| Non Compliant | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:00 1/5 | Juvenile Fillies |
| One Magic Philly | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:00 3/5 | Filly & Mare Sprint |
| Pipeline | Keeneland | 4F | :48 1/5 | Dirt Mile |
| Post Time | Del Mar | 4F | :48 3/5 | Dirt Mile |
| Pyrenees | Keeneland | 4F | :49 | Classic |
| Raging Sea | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :49.00* | Distaff |
| Rattle N Roll | Churchill Downs | 5F | :59 3/5 | Classic |
| Saudi Crown | Churchill Downs | 5F | 1:00 | Dirt Mile |
| Scipio | Del Mar (Turf) | 5F | 1:02 | Juvenile Turf |
| Scottish Lassie | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :48.61* | Juvenile Fillies |
| Sierra Leone | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :49.81* | Classic |
| Snowyte | Del Mar | 5F | :59 | Juvenile Fillies |
| Sugar Fish | Santa Anita Park | 5F | :59 4/5 | Distaff |
| Supa Speed | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:02 4/5 | Juvenile Fillies Turf |
| Tapit Trice | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :49.21* | Classic |
| There Goes Harvard | Santa Anita Park | 4F | :48 3/5 | Turf |
| Thorpedo Anna | Saratoga Training Track | 5F | 1:01.24* | Distaff |
| Thought Process | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:00 2/5 | Juvenile Fillies Turf |
| Tumbarumba | Churchill Downs | 4F | :49 1/5 | Dirt Mile |
| Vahva | Keeneland | 4F | :48 | Filly & Mare Sprint |
| Virgin Colada | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :50.11* | Juvenile Fillies Turf |
| Vodka With a Twist | Santa Anita Park | 5F | 1:00 4/5 | Juvenile Fillies |
| Ways and Means | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :48.63* | Filly & Mare Sprint |
| Zulu Kingdom | Belmont Park Training Track | 4F | :48.63* | Juvenile Turf |
* Times at Belmont Park and Saratoga are reported in hundredths of a second rather than fifths
