2018 Breeders' Cup
| Championship Event Series race | |
| Location | Churchill Downs |
|---|---|
| Race type | Thoroughbred |
| Website | www |
| Race information | |
| Distance | See individual races |
| Surface | Turf, Dirt |
| Purse | Varies by Race; from $1 million to $6 million |
The 2018 Breeders' Cup World Championships will be the 35th edition of the premier event of the North American thoroughbred horse racing year. The 14 races, all but one of which are Grade I, will take place on November 2 and 3 at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The races will be telecast by NBC and NBC Sports. 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 event typically determines champions in many of the Eclipse Award divisions, although it will be missing the likely Horse of the Year, Triple Crown champion Justify, who was retired in July.
Contents
Breeders' Cup Challenge series
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The Breeders' Cup Challenge is a series of races that provide the winners of designated races with automatic "Win and You're In" berths in a specified division of the Breeders' Cup. A maximum of 14 horses (12 in the Turf Sprint) are allowed to start in each race. Winners of the Challenge races are given automatic entries, while other pre-entries are ranked by a points system and the judgement of a panel of experts.[1]
Pre-entries will be taken on October 22.[2]
Event preparation
In April 2016, the Breeders' Cup organization announced that Churchill Downs would host the event for the ninth time in 2018. As the home of the Kentucky Derby, Churchill Downs has the capacity to host the large crowds and betting handle expected at the event. Churchill Downs underwent a $70 million upgrade to its facilities to secure the bid, focused on improved dining and viewing spaces. Because Churchill Downs has permanent night lighting, NBC will be able to broadcast the Classic in prime time on the East Coast.[3]
One of the major changes for 2018 is that the Friday card, dubbed "Future Stars Friday", will feature five juvenile races (those restricted to two-year-old horses). This includes a new race, the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, which is the only race in the series that is not a Grade I event as it not yet eligible for graded status. The Distaff, which had previously highlighted the Friday card, will be held on Saturday.[4][5]
Friday, November 3
The sequence of the races will be announced by Churchill Downs later in October.
| Race name | Post time (Eastern) |
Sponsor | Distance/Surface | Restrictions | Purse | Winner (Bred) | Odds | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Juvenile Turf Sprint | tba | about 5 1⁄2 furlongs (Turf) | 2-year-olds | $1 million | ||||
| Juvenile Fillies Turf | tba | 1 mile (Turf) | 2-year-old fillies | $1 million | ||||
| Juvenile Turf | tba | 1 mile (Turf) | 2-year-old colts and geldings | $1 million | ||||
| Juvenile Fillies | tba | 1 1⁄16 miles | 2-year-old fillies | $2 million | ||||
| Juvenile | tba | Sentient Jet | 1 1⁄16 miles | 2-year-old colts and geldings | $2 million |
Saturday, November 4
The order of races and post times will be announced by Churchill Downs later in October.
| Race Name | Post time (Eastern) |
Sponsor | Distance/Surface | Restrictions | Purse | Winner (Bred) | Odds | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dirt Mile | tba | 1 mile | 3 yrs+ | $1 million | ||||
| Turf Sprint | tba | 5 1⁄2 furlongs (Turf) | 3 yrs+ | $1 million | ||||
| Filly & Mare Sprint | tba | 7 furlongs | 3 yrs+ fillies & mares | $1 million | ||||
| Filly & Mare Turf | tba | 1 3⁄8 miles (Turf) | 3 yrs+ fillies and mares | $2 million | ||||
| Sprint | tba | TwinSpires | 6 furlongs | 3 yrs+ | $2 million | |||
| Mile | tba | 1 mile (Turf) | 3 yrs+ | $2 million | ||||
| Distaff | tba | Longines | 1 1⁄8 miles | 3 yrs+ fillies & mares | $2 million | |||
| Turf | tba | Longines | 1 1⁄2 miles (Turf) | 3 yrs+ | $4 million | |||
| Classic | tba | 1 1⁄4 miles | 3 yrs+ | $6 million |
References
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