Trainer Bob Baffert put the finishing touches on his $6-million, Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Classic “triple threat” on Sunday morning at Santa Anita when Improbable worked a strong six furlongs in 1:11.40 on a fast track under exercise rider Juan Ochoa.
On Saturday, Baffert's two other contenders for the 1 1/4-mile Classic worked five furlongs at the Arcadia, Calif., track in preparation for their Nov. 7 engagement at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky. G1 Kentucky Derby winner Authentic worked the distance in :59.60 and Maximum Security, the 2019 3-year-old male champion, covered five furlongs in 1:00.60 in company.
“No excuses for any of them,” Baffert said. “They're all training as good as they can possibly be doing.”
Baffert's horses will ship to Kentucky on Tuesday.
Improbable, the likely favorite in the Classic, is a 4-year-old City Zip colt coming into the world championships on a three-race Grade 1 win streak, most recently beating Maximum Security by 4 1/2 lengths in the Sept. 26 Awesome Again Stakes at Santa Anita. Before that he won the Whitney at Saratoga by two lengths over By My Standards, with even-money favorite Tom's d'Etat third after a stumbling start. He'll face both horses again in the Classic. By My Standards came out of the Whitney to win the G2 Alysheba at Churchill Downs for trainer Bret Calhoun on Sept. 4. Tom's d'Etat, whose four-race win streak was snapped in the Whitney, has not raced since the Aug. 1 contest, trainer Al Stall electing to bring the 7-year-old by Smart Strike into the Breeders' Cup as a fresh horse.
Improbable has been plagued with problems in the starting gate throughout his career, though Baffert said he is maturing and the horse has spent a lot of time schooling in the gate during training hours.
While Improbable's best races are from off the pace, Authentic, a 3-year-old by Into Mischief, and Maximum Security, a 4-year-old by New Year's Day, are free-running types who have scored most of their wins on the lead.
Where would Baffert like to see the three horses positioned in the early stages of the Classic?
“That's like a hitter asking Walker Beuhler what pitches he's going to throw him,” Baffert said, referring to the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher and Lexington, Ky., native who owns a small share of Authentic. “I can't do that.”
Baffert said his three riders – Irad Ortiz Jr. on Improbable, Luis Saez on Maximum Security and John Velazquez on Authentic – know their horses and what's best for them. “A lot's going to depend on the draw,” he added.
Entries close Monday and the draw for post positions for all 14 Breeders' Cup races will be held from 4:30-6:30 p.m. ET and can be seen live on TVG, breederscup.com or on the Breeders' Cup mobile app.
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