California Hosts This Yr’s Breeders’ Cup Basic – $5 Million Purse

The 2012 Breeders’ Cup Basic can be run on Saturday, November 3, 2012, with a put up time of roughly 7 PM Japanese Time, at lovely Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, and incorporates a staggering purse of 5 million {dollars}. The 2012 renewal would be the 29th working of a race that has come to be considered the premier 3-years-old and up horse race on dust on this planet. Solely the Dubai World Cup has a bigger purse than the Basic. 29 years is a really brief historical past for a race that’s as prestigious because the Basic, particularly when you think about that every of the Triple Crown races (The Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes) are effectively over 100 years previous. Due to the success of the Basic in such a brief time frame, it has surpassed many races which have been round for much longer in significance and high quality. The Jockey Membership Gold Cup, as an example, has been round because the days of Man o’ Conflict and was once one of many end-of-the-year races that might determine Horse of the Yr, however now it serves as one of many remaining prep races to get into the Basic; a win within the Gold Cup will get your horse into the Basic. A 5 million greenback purse and Horse of the Yr to the winner (more often than not, although not all the time) will try this, and the one purpose that the three Triple Crown races are an even bigger deal than the Basic is as a result of, very merely, the Triple Crown is an important factor in all of thoroughbred racing, the one factor that even non-racing followers learn about and can tune in to observe if there’s a likelihood it should occur. However that hasn’t occurred since 1978, and at the moment the Breeders Cup did not even exist. Since then, nonetheless, the Breeders’ Cup has grow to be a significant drive within the sport, and the Breeders’ Cup Basic has grow to be the most important race, except the years during which the Belmont Stakes had a Triple Crown winner at stake (2004 and Smarty Jones can be an important instance; the rankings for that race far surpassed the Basic that yr). The introduction of artificial racing surfaces to horse racing has added a brand new wrinkle to the Breeders’ Cup when it’s held at a observe that options it. In fact, handicappers should contemplate how a horse has fared on a quick, good, sloppy, or muddy observe, however what occurs when a horse comes into the Basic that has by no means run on artificial surfaces earlier than? That occurred in 2008 with Curlin, and he completed third. The uncertainty that artificial turf brings to the desk is simply one more reason why the Breeders’ Cup Basic is among the most fun races you’ll get to observe, yr after yr, and it’ll proceed to be for an extended, very long time.