2005 Breeders' Cup

Last updated
2005 Breeders' Cup
Championship Event Series race
2005 Breeders Cup Logo.png
Location Belmont Park
Race typeThoroughbred
Website www.breederscup.com
Race information
DistanceSee individual races
SurfaceTurf, Dirt
TrackLeft-handed
PurseVaries by race; Between $1,000,000 – $4 million

The 2005 Breeders' Cup World Championships was the 22nd edition of the premier event of the North American thoroughbred horse racing year. The eight races, all of which were Grade I, took place on October 29 at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York and were telecast by NBC. The Breeders' Cup is generally regarded as the end of the North America racing season, although a few Grade I events take place in later November and December. The results of the races were highly influential in that year's Eclipse Award voting.

Contents

The highlight of the event was Saint Liam's victory in the Classic, wrapping up a campaign that earned him Horse of the Year honors.

Lead-up

In 2005, Belmont Park celebrated its 100th anniversary and hosted the Breeders' Cup for the fourth time. [1] At the time, Belmont Park was part of a regular rotation of the event between racetracks on the East Coast, West Coast (Hollywood Park or Santa Anita), Kentucky (Churchill Downs) and Florida (Gulfstream Park) with smaller venues also used on occasion. Despite the success of the 2005 event, Belmont Park has not played host since that time. [2]

Most of the races had a strong morning-line favorite, led by four horses who were unbeaten in 2005 and some returning champions: [3] [4]

Lost in the Fog before the Sprint Lost in the Fog.jpg
Lost in the Fog before the Sprint

However, the Classic was considered wide open, in part because of the injury or retirement of several stars including dual Classic winner Afleet Alex and the 2004 Horse of the Year Ghostzapper. In their absence, Saint Liam was slightly favored over Rock Hard Ten and Borrego in a full field of 14. [3]

Results

A crowd of 54,289 attended the event and bet $14.6 million on-track, then the largest handle in Belmont Park history. [6] Only two favorites won and they had been considered the most vulnerable according to the morning line odds: Folklore and Saint Liam. Saint Liam's job was made easier by the late scratch of 2nd favorite Rock Hard Ten. [7] He had however drawn an outside post position, which was a particular disadvantage as the Classic started on the clubhouse turn due to the dimensions of Belmont Park. Saint Liam broke poorly but jockey Jerry Bailey got him to settle before starting his move on the far turn. Saint Liam dueled with Flower Alley down the stretch, then drew away in the last 100 yards. "You shouldn't dismiss the fact that the post this horse had breaking," said Bailey. "He took the worst of it today, and still was very authoritative in winning." [8]

The most disappointing performance was by Lost in the Fog, who would finish unplaced after starting his career with 10 straight wins. It is possible that he was already suffering the effects of the cancer that was diagnosed in August of the next year. [9] In the Filly & Mare Turf, Ouija Board made a late run but could not catch front-running Intercontinental. [5] Ashado was defeated by 30-1 longshot Pleasant Home, who made an explosive move from last to first and won by 9+1⁄4 lengths, [10] the largest margin of victory at the 2005 Breeders' Cup. [7]

Stevie Wonderboy posted a slight upset in the Juvenile, and the impressive performance combined with an earlier win in the Del Mar Futurity earned him Champion Two-Year-Old honors. It was the first win at the Breeders' Cup for owner Merv Griffin, trainer Doug O'Neill and jockey Garrett Gomez. [11] Stevie Wonderboy became the early favorite for the 2006 Kentucky Derby but suffered a condylar fracture while in training for the race. [12]

Shirocco became the first German-bred horse to win a Breeders' Cup race when he topped an "all-European trifecta" over Ace and Azamour in the Turf. Jockey Christophe Soumillon said, "(Shirocco) likes soft ground and a good pace to run at and with the pacemaker in there, we got both today. When I got to the turn, I just wanted to let him go and not try to pull him back to mix up his action. We got two (lengths) in front and when he saw the wire, he just flew home." [13]

Several jockeys and trainers achieved notable results at the event. Jerry Bailey earned his fifteenth Breeders' Cup win on Saint Liam in the Classic – then a record. [8] Garrett Gomez won both the Juvenile on Stevie Wonderboy and Mile on Artie Schiller, earning him the Shoemaker Award for outstanding performance by a jockey at the Breeders' Cup. Edgar Prado had also been under consideration for the award after scoring two wins of his own. Both Prado and Gomez had been winless at the Breeders' Cup prior to 2005. [14] Trainer D. Wayne Lukas scored a record 18th victory with Folklore in the Juvenile Fillies. Trainer Rick Dutrow, who had served a 60-day suspension earlier in the year, trained two winners – Saint Liam in the Classic and Silver Train in the Sprint. [6]

The races were telecast live by NBC, [15] while Sirius Satellite Radio produced an 8-hour radio broadcast hosted by track announcer Dave Johnson. [16]

In the 2005 Eclipse Award voting, four Breeders' Cup winners went on to be named the champion in their divisions (Stevie Wonderboy, Folklore, Saint Liam and Intercontinental), with Saint Liam also being named Horse of the Year. [17]

Race namePost timeSponsorDistance/SurfaceRestrictionsPurseWinner (Bred)Final OddsMargin
Juvenile Fillies 1:22 PMAlberto VO51+1⁄16 miles2-year-old fillies$1 million Folklore 2.351+1⁄4 lengths
Juvenile 2:01 PMBessemer Trust1+1⁄16 miles2-year-old
colts and geldings		$1.5 million Stevie Wonderboy 4.501+1⁄4 lengths
Filly & Mare Turf 2:40 PMEmirates Airline1+1⁄4 miles (Turf)3 yrs+ fillies & mares$1 million Intercontinental (GB)15.101+1⁄4 lengths
Sprint 3:15 PMTVG6 furlongs3 yrs+$1 million Silver Train 11.90Head
Mile 3:51 PMNetJets1 mile (Turf)3 yrs+$1.5 million Artie Schiller 5.603⁄4 lengths
Distaff 4:32 PMEmirates Airline1+1⁄8 miles3 yrs+ fillies & mares$2 million Pleasant Home 30.759+1⁄4 lengths
Turf 5:02 PMJohn Deere1+1⁄2 miles (Turf)3 yrs+$2 million Shirocco (GER)8.801+3⁄4 lengths
Classic 5:42 PMpowered by Dodge1+1⁄4 miles3 yrs+$4 million Saint Liam 2.401 length

Source: Equibase [7]

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References

  1. ↑ Fountaine, Ed (24 June 2003). "BELMONT GETS 2005 BREEDERS'". New York Post. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  2. ↑ "'Disappointing And Frustrating,' New York Frozen Out Of Breeders' Cup Since 2005". www.paulickreport.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  3. 1 2 "4 Unbeaten Horses Favored In Breeders' Cup Races". The Washington Post. 27 October 2005. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  4. ↑ Beyer, Andrew (28 October 2005). "Looking for a Margin to Make a Profit". The Washington Post. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  5. 1 2 "Ouija Board". Ed Dunlop. 6 May 2014. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  6. 1 2 Scheinman, John (30 October 2005). "Saint Liam Proves This Is His Year". The Washington Post. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  7. 1 2 3 "Charts for the 2005 Breeders' Cup". Equibase.com. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  8. 1 2 Drape, Joe (30 October 2005). "Saint Liam Stands Out in Victory at Classic". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  9. ↑ Shulman, Lenny. "Champion Lost in the Fog Euthanized". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  10. ↑ Biles, Deirdre. "Pleasant Home Upsets Ashado in the Distaff". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  11. ↑ "Eclipse Award: Stevie Wonderboy, 2-Year-Old Male". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  12. ↑ "Stevie Wonderboy Doing Great After Surgery". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  13. ↑ Hammonds, Evan. "Shirocco Shines in BC Turf Blowout". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
  14. ↑ "Gomez Receives Shoemaker Award for Breeders' Cup Success". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  15. ↑ Haskin, Steve. "Breeders' Cup Retrospective: What Might Have Been". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  16. ↑ "Sirius Satellite Radio To Air Live Breeders' Cup Coverage". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  17. ↑ "Eclipse Awards: Complete List of Winners and Voting". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
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