Fresh off his dramatic front-running victory in last Saturday's 1 ¼-mile Kentucky Derby (G1), Authentic jumped from No. 11 to No. 4 in the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings, while top-rated Maximum Security increased his lead over Derby runner-up Tiz the Law. The 2020 Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings is a weekly poll of the top 10 horses in contention for the $7 million Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1). The 1 ¼-mile Classic, scheduled to be run on Nov. 7 at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky., is the climactic race of the Breeders' Cup World Championships.
The Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings are determined by a panel of leading Thoroughbred racing media, horseplayers and members of the Breeders' Cup Racing Directors/Secretaries Panel. Rankings will be announced each week through Oct. 13. A list of voting members can be found here.
Authentic, owned by Spendthrift Farm, MyRaceHorse Stable, Madaket Stables and Starlight Racing, gave Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert a record-tying sixth Kentucky Derby win. The 3-year-old son of Into Mischief defeated Sackatoga Stable's odds-on favorite Tiz the Law by 1 ¼ lengths in 2:00.61 under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez.
Authentic (167 votes) earned a Breeders' Cup Challenge automatic berth into the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic when he won the TVG.com Haskell Stakes (G1) at Monmouth Park on July 18. Now with five wins in six starts, Authentic is slated to run next in the “Win and You're In” Preakness Stakes (G1) at Pimlico Race Course on Oct. 3.
Gary and Mary West, Michael Tabor, Mrs. John Magnier and Derrick Smith's Maximum Security (238 votes) widened his lead to 58 points over Tiz the Law in the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings. The 4-year-old bay son of 2013 Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner New Year's Day won the inaugural Saudi Cup, the San Diego Handicap (G1) and the TVG Pacific Classic (G1) this year. Trained by Bob Baffert, Maximum Security earned 16 first-place votes this week.
Tiz the Law (180 votes) holds onto second place in the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings after suffering his first defeat this year after dominant wins in the Holy Bull (G3), Florida Derby (G1), Belmont Stakes (G1) and the Runhappy Travers (G1). The New York-bred son of Constitution could bypass the Preakness and train up to the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic.
GMB Racing's 7-year-old Tom's d'Etat (179 votes), winner of the Stephen Foster (G2) for trainer Al Stall Jr., remained in third place.
Following Authentic in fifth place is the 4-year-old Improbable (162 votes), the third Baffert-trained horse in the top five. Owned by WinStar Farm, CHC Inc., and SF Racing, Improbable captured the Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes (G1) and the “Win and You're In” Whitney (G1) at Saratoga this year.
The sixth-ranked horse is Allied Racing Stable's By My Standards (114 votes), who won his third graded stakes race of the year with an impressive score in last Saturday's 1 1/16-mile Alysheba (G2) at Churchill Downs for trainer Bret Calhoun.
W.S. Farish's 4-year-old Code of Honor (63 votes), trained by Claude R. “Shug” McGaughey III, remains in seventh place. The 4-year-old chestnut son of Noble Mission (GB) won the Westchester Stakes (G3) and was fourth in the Whitney in his last start.
Bruce Lunsford's Art Collector (53 votes), scratched from the Kentucky Derby early last week due to a minor foot issue, drops from sixth to eighth place. Trained by Tom Drury Jr., Art Collector, the Ellis Park Derby and Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G2) winner, is a candidate for the Preakness Stakes.
The final two spots in the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings are completed by the top two finishers in Saturday's Woodward (G1) at Saratoga, Global Campaign and Tacitus.
Sagamore Farm and WinStar Farm's 4-year-old Global Campaign (41 votes) enters the top 10 for the first time at No. 9 after taking the Woodward by 1 ¾ lengths for his third win in four starts this year. Trained by Stanley Hough, Global Campaign won the Monmouth Cup (G3) prior to the Woodward.
Juddmonte Farms' Tacitus (39 votes), trained by Bill Mott, drops from eighth to 10th place.
Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings – Sept. 8, 2020*
| RANK | HORSE | TOTAL VOTES | FIRST-PLACE VOTES |
| 1 | Maximum Security | 238 | 16 |
| 2 | Tiz the Law | 180 | 4 |
| 3 | Tom's d'Etat | 179 | 5 |
| 4 | Authentic | 167 | 0 |
| 5 | Improbable | 162 | 0 |
| 6 | By My Standards | 114 | 0 |
| 7 | Code of Honor | 63 | 0 |
| 8 | Art Collector | 53 | 0 |
| 9 | Global Campaign | 41 | 0 |
| 10 | Tacitus | 39 | 0 |
*Note – The Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings have no bearing on qualification or selection into the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic.
In the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Rankings, each voter rates horses on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 system in descending order.
The 2020 Longines Breeders' Cup Classic will be televised live on NBC.
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