Eclipse Award winner Fierceness from the U.S. and international stars City
Of Troy and Forever Young will meet at the summit of racing Saturday after being
drawn into the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar.

They are part of Monday’s draw to fill the fields for nine
championship races that will be run Saturday. Entries also were taken for the
five Breeders’ Cup races for 2-year-olds that will be run Friday.

The draw will be streamed live on the Breeders’ Cup website starting Monday at 7 p.m. EDT.

Race 4, Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, 1 mile

In his Grade 1 races this year, 4-year-old National Treasure
won the Pegasus World Cup Invitational and the Met Mile, but he lost the Saudi
Cup, Whitney and California Crown. All the defeats were in races longer than a
mile. Trainer Bob Baffert decided then to try again in the Dirt Mile, which
National Treasure lost nearly 12 months ago by a neck to eventual horse of the
year Cody’s Wish. Three-year-old Seize the Grey comes in with triumphs in the
Preakness and Pennsylvania Derby (G1) for 89-year-old trainer D. Wayne Lukas,
who has a record 20 Breeders’ Cup victories.

Race 5, Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, 5 furlongs, turf

Cogburn brings championship credentials to Del Mar, having
won all his starts this year in the Turf Sprint (G1) at Churchill Downs, the
Jaipur (G1) at Saratoga and the Turf Sprint (G2) at Kentucky Downs. The
5-year-old Not This Time horse is 7: 6-0-0 on turf and undefeated in five
starts going shorter than six furlongs. Bradsell, a 4-year-old from Europe, got
a late start this year but is 4: 3-1-0, all at five furlongs. The wins included
the Nunthorpe (G1) and Flying Five (G1). The loss came last month in the Prix
de l’Abbaye (G1), his only time trying very-soft turf.

Race 6, Breeders’ Cup Distaff, 1 1/8 miles

This race lost a lot of starch when reigning division
champion Idiomatic, who won this race last year at Santa Anita, was retired
with a minor but poorly timed knee injury. Thorpedo Anna, a lock to be the
champion 3-year-old filly, will be the heavy favorite. She is 6: 5-1-0 this
year including Grade 1 wins in the Kentucky Oaks, Acorn, Coaching Club American
Oaks and Cotillion. She also had a thrilling, second-place finish to Dornoch when
she faced seven colts in the Travers (G1).

Race 7, Breeders’ Cup Turf, 1 1/2 miles, turf

Godolphin trainer Charlie Appleby brings 2022 winner Rebel’s
Romance back to this race on the strength of a 5: 4-0-1 season. The 6-year-old
Dubawi gelding has won four Group 1 stakes in as many nations including the
Dubai Sheema Classic in the Middle East, the Champions and Chater Cup in Hong
Kong, the King George in England and the Preis von Europa in Germany.

Race 8, Breeder’s Cup Classic, 1 1/4 miles

Three-year-olds are expected to dominate the betting and
perhaps the outcome of America’s richest race. Ireland-based City Of Troy will
be backed heavily even though he never has raced on dirt. The Justify colt
owned by Coolmore and trained by Aidan O’Brien has Group 1 victories this year
in the Epsom Derby, Eclipse and International stakes. The mercurial Fierceness,
who won last year’s Juvenile, has Grade 1 wins in the Florida Derby and Travers
but also fizzed out to 15th place in the Kentucky Derby. Forever Young comes
from Japan with a 7: 6-0-1 record with the lone loss being by two noses in the
Kentucky Derby.

Race 9, Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf, 1 3/8 miles,
turf

Emily Upjohn has slugged it out at the top level in Europe,
but the 5-year-old Sea the Stars mare has not won since the 2023 Coronation Cup
(G1). Last out she finished third in the Prix Vermeille (G1), losing by 1 1/4
lengths. Friendly Soul, her 3-year-old stablemate in the John and Thady Gosden
barn, most recently finished first in the Prix de l’Opéra (G1) to run her
winning streak to three. Cinderella’s Dream, the top U.S. hope, really is from
Europe. Appleby sent the Godolphin homebred 3-year-old to New York this summer for
victories in the Belmont Oaks (G1) and Saratoga Oaks (G2).

Race 10, Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, 7
furlongs

Ways and Means, a 3-year-old Practical Joke filly owned by
Seth Klarman, has won her last three races for trainer Chad Brown. The last two
victories came in the seven-furlong Test (G1) and against older rivals in the 6
1/2-furlong Gallant Bloom (G2). Trainer Steve Asmussen has had Society, a Peter
Blum homebred, training up to this race from a win in the seven-furlong
Ballerina Handicap (G1) on Aug. 24 at Saratoga. The 5-year-old Gun Runner mare
finished a troubled fourth in last year’s Filly & Mare Sprint.

Race 11, Breeders’ Cup Mile, 1 mile, turf

Notable Speech, a Godolphin homebred trained by Appleby, is
a 3-year-old Dubawi colt who won the England 2,000 Guineas (G1) and Sussex (G1)
but who lost on soft ground last out in the Prix du Moulin de Longchamp (G1).
Carl Spackler, a 4-year-old Lope De Vega colt trained by Brown for e5 Racing,
brings in a three-racing winning streak. He followed his victory in the Kelso
(G3) with wins in the Fourstardave Handicap (G1) at Saratoga and in the Turf
Mile (G1) at Keeneland.

Race 12, Breeders’ Cup Sprint, 6 furlongs

A five-length score for Cox in the Phoenix (G2) this month
at Keeneland gave 4-year-old gelding Federal Judge his second win in as many
tries at six furlongs. Three-year-old Raging Torrent has won his last three
races for trainer Doug O’Neill, including the Pat O’Brien (G2) last out Aug. 24
at Del Mar. That was the same day Mullikin won the Forego (G1) by 5 3/4 lengths
for trainer Rodolphe Brisset, bringing his winning streak to four.