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All-Time Breeders’ Cup Leading Rider Smith ‘Sitting This One Out’

Mike Smith is the No. 1 jockey in Breeders' Cup history for wins (26) and purse earnings ($36,634,605). His four victories in the fall championship event's climactic race, the Breeders' Cup Classic, are only one behind Chris McCarron and Jerry Bailey for No. 1 in that category.

But when the 37th running of the Breeders' Cup World Championships is staged next Friday and Saturday at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Ky., the Hall of Fame rider will be plying his trade 2,158 miles away from there. Smith, 55, will be at Del Mar riding the second weekend of the Bing Crosby meeting which starts today.

“I'm staying. I don't have any mounts so I'm sitting this one (Breeders' Cup) out,” Smith said Friday by telephone when asked to 'Say it ain't so' about his pending 'Cup absence. Breeders' Cup records show that Smith has only missed three editions since his first assignments in 1990.

Smith has 10 more wins than runner-up John Velazquez and his Cup earnings are nearly $10 million more than No. 2 Velazquez. His Classic victories came on Skip Away (1997), Zenyatta (2009), Drosselmeyer (2011) and Arrogate (2016).

But combine the travel restrictions, situations and circumstances of a COVID-19 2020 fraught with bad fortune for some of his outstanding mounts and, for this year, Smith's 'Cup has runneth dry.

Smith was the regular rider for 3-year-old Honor A.P., the Santa Anita Derby winner, 5-year-old mare Midnight Bisou, the champion older female of 2019 and 5-year-old McKinzie, runner-up in the 2019 Breeders' Cup Classic and winner of the 2020 Triple Bend at Santa Anita. All three were retired in the past few months.

“It's kind of depressing,” Smith admits. “But I'm going to ride as much as I can at Del Mar and maybe pick up some business while the other guys are back there. Del Mar is such a short meeting, it's important to get off to a good start and hopefully I'll be able to kick it off well.”

Smith had two mounts scheduled on Saturday's opening day program, Mister Bold in the eighth race for trainer Jeff Bonde and DuJour in the ninth for Bob Baffert. He has three for Sunday, Keystone Field (second race) and Pizzazz (sixth) for Richard Mandella and Viazar (fourth) for Patrick Gallagher.

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‘He Went Perfectly’: Tagg Pleased With Tiz The Law’s Final Classic Breeze

Sackatoga Stable's Tiz the Law, who looms as one of the favorites for next Saturday's $6 million Breeders' Cup Classic (G1), completed his major preparation for the 1 1/4-mile test by working five furlongs in :59.20 and galloping out 6 furlongs in 1:12.20 under Heather Smullen over a fast track at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky.

“I saw just what I wanted. He went perfectly,” trainer Barclay Tagg said. “We wanted him to go in :59 and he went in :59.20 so it was just right.”

Tiz the Law arrived at Keeneland Oct. 18, and this morning's work was his second over the track. He worked 6 furlongs in 1:13.20 on Oct. 23.

“I thought he needs to get a good feel of this track (because) he has never run over it,” Tagg said of the early arrival. “He has to run against older horses; it is going to be a tough race.

“I have a super-duper crew and everything has gone right (with Tiz the Law). We pay attention to the horses. We carry 30 horses at the most and try to get the best out of what we got and every now and then we get a good one.”

The only Classic pre-entrant to have been at Keeneland longer than Tiz the Law is Hronis Racing's Higher Power.

Early Saturday morning, Higher Power recorded his fifth work since arriving here the first of the month from Southern California.

With Juan Leyva, assistant to trainer John Sadler, aboard, Higher Power worked five furlongs in :58.80 and galloped out 6 furlongs in 1:11.60.

“I liked the way he came back from it,” Leyva said. “He was blowing a little bit but not out of this world. His level of fitness has really progressed here.”

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Distaff: Harvest Moon, Ollie’s Candy Test Keeneland Main Track

Alice Bamford and Michael Tabor's Harvest Moon and Paul and Karen Eggert's Ollie's Candy, two pre-entrants for next Saturday's $2 million Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1), put in their final works for the 1 1/8-mile main track test at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky.

With jockey Flavien Prat aboard, Harvest Moon worked 5 furlongs in 1:01 in company shortly after the track opened for training at 6 a.m.

“Flavien was very, very happy (with the work). I got her in a minute and four-fifths,” said trainer Simon Callaghan, who arrived in Lexington Wednesday night from his Southern California base, a few days after Harvest Moon arrived. “She has settled in nicely and it looks like she handled the track well.”

Currently housed in the Calumet Farm training barn, Harvest Moon will make the short trip of less than a half-mile south on Rice Road to the Breeders' Cup barns on Tuesday.

Ollie's Candy, second here Oct. 4 in the Juddmonte Spinster (G1), worked 6 furlongs in 1:11 in company under Juan Leyva, assistant to trainer John Sadler.

“I talked with John last night and he said she needed a good work,” Levya said of Ollie's Candy, who had worked a bullet 5 furlongs in :59 Oct. 24. “It was a little quick, but she did it well.”

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Turf Sprint: Leinster Works Over ‘Deep’ Keeneland Turf Course

Amy Dunne, Brenda Miley, Westrock Stables and Jean Wilkinson's Leinster, winner of Keeneland's Shakertown (G2) and Woodford (G2) Presented by Keeneland Select in his past two starts, worked a half-mile in :49.40 over a turf course labeled good at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky., for trainer Rusty Arnold. Crystal Conning was aboard Leinster.

“It's deep out there and he doesn't like it,” Arnold said after the work, which is in preparation for the $1 million Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1). “It's not going to be deep next Saturday.”

Also working on the grass were four runners for trainer Wesley Ward.

Working 5 furlongs in company toward possible Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G2) starts were Breeze Easy's After Five (1:05) and Ranlo Investments' Golden Pal (1:05.20). Juvenile Turf (G1) pre-entrant Outadore (1:07.60), owned by Breeze Easy, and Stonestreet Stables' Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1) pre-entrant Campanelle (IRE) (1:08) worked together.

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