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Preakness Added To Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series

Officials at Breeders’ Cup Limited and The Stronach Group have announced that the Oct. 3 GI Preakness S., the final leg of this year’s reconstituted Triple Crown, has been added to the Breeders’ Cup Challenge series and will offer the winner an all-expenses-paid berth in the starting gate for the GI Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland Nov. 7. It will mark the first time that a Triple Crown races is part of the series.

Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the traditional first leg of the Triple Crown was postponed from its customary position on the first Saturday in May and was rescheduled for Sept. 5. The New York Racing Association staged the GI Belmont S. as the first of this year’s Triple Crown races June 20. Tiz the Law (Constitution) was the convincing winner of the Belmont, shortened to nine furlongs for this running.

The Preakness and Breeders’ Cup Classic will both air on NBC.

“We are delighted to join The Stronach Group and the Maryland Jockey Club in welcoming the Preakness to this year’s Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series, and that we will be able to provide the winning connections with an added incentive to run in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic,” said Drew Fleming, Breeders’ Cup President and CEO. “As a foundation race of the Triple Crown and the premier event in the proud history of Maryland racing, we look forward to working together with The Stronach Group, and our partners at NBC Sports, to promote an exciting fall season for Thoroughbred racing.”

Added Craig Fravel, Chief Executive Officer, Racing Operations, 1/ST: “The events of 2020 have for all of us been about responding to unforeseen challenges and making the best of them. Many of those challenges–including the changes to the Triple Crown–have been unwelcome, but becoming part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series is most welcome and a fitting finale to the 3-year-old season as the horses and their connections make their way to Baltimore for the last leg of the Triple Crown. We look forward to hosting the best of America’s three-year-old horses on Oct. 3 at the Preakness and to enjoying their success thereafter in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.”

“With terrific racing ahead, we’re excited that the two biggest events of the fall months will be further connected with the Preakness Stakes winner earning a coveted berth in the Breeders’ Cup Classic,” said Jon Miller, President of Programming for NBC and NBCSN.

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Preakness Stakes To Offer Automatic Starting Position In Breeders’ Cup Classic

Officials of the Breeders' Cup and The Stronach Group today announced that the winner of the 145th Preakness Stakes (G1) for 3-year-olds on Oct. 3 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore will earn an automatic starting position into the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1). The announcement marks the first time that a Triple Crown race will be a part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series.

The Breeders' Cup Challenge is an international series of stakes races whose winners receive automatic starting positions and fees paid into corresponding races of the Breeders' Cup World Championships, scheduled to be held this year on Nov. 6-7 at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky. The $7 million Longines Breeders' Cup Classic, contested at 1 ¼ miles, will be run on Saturday, Nov. 7.

Both the Preakness, run at 1 3/16 miles, and the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic, will be broadcast live on NBC.

“We are delighted to join The Stronach Group and the Maryland Jockey Club in welcoming the Preakness to this year's Breeders' Cup Challenge Series, and that we will be able to provide the winning connections with an added incentive to run in the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic,” said Drew Fleming, Breeders' Cup President and CEO. “As a foundation race of the Triple Crown, and the premier event in the proud history of Maryland racing, we look forward to working together with The Stronach Group, and our partners at NBC Sports, to promote an exciting fall season for Thoroughbred racing.”

“The events of 2020 have for all of us been about responding to unforeseen challenges and making the best of them,” said Craig Fravel, Chief Executive Officer, Racing Operations, 1/ST. “Many of those challenges including the changes to the Triple Crown have been unwelcome but becoming part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series is most welcome and a fitting finale to the three-year-old season as the horses and their connections make their way to Baltimore for the last leg of the Triple Crown. We look forward to hosting the best of America's three-year-old horses on October 3 at the Preakness and to enjoying their success thereafter in the Breeders' Cup Classic.”

“With terrific racing ahead, we're excited that the two biggest events of the fall months will be further connected with the Preakness Stakes winner earning a coveted berth in the Breeders' Cup Classic,” said Jon Miller, President of Programming for NBC and NBCSN.

Due to scheduling changes caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the Preakness date was shifted from May 16 to Oct. 3, and will be run as the third jewel of the 2020 Triple Crown. This year's Triple Crown began on June 20 with the Belmont Stakes (G1), won by Tiz the Law, at Belmont Park, and will be followed by the Kentucky Derby (G1), which will be run on Sept. 5 at Churchill Downs.

Four Preakness winners have won the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic. In 2015, American Pharoah swept the Triple Crown and the Breeders' Cup Classic at Keeneland to become racing's first “Grand Slam” winner. Preakness winners Sunday Silence (1989), Alysheba (1987) and Curlin (2007) also won the Classic. Alysheba captured the Classic in 1988.

As part of the benefits of the Challenge series, the Breeders' Cup will pay the $150,000 in entry fees for the Preakness winner to start in the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic, which is limited to 14 starters. Breeders' Cup also will provide a travel allowance of $10,000 for all North American starters based outside of Kentucky to compete in the World Championships. The Preakness winner must already be nominated to the Breeders' Cup program or it must be nominated by the Championships' pre-entry deadline of Oct. 26 to receive the rewards.

There are six horses who have thus far earned automatic starting positions into this year's Longines Breeders' Cup Classic through the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Mozu Ascot, winner of the February Stakes (G1) at Tokyo Racecourse on Feb. 23; Tom's d'Etat, who took the Stephen Foster Stakes (G2) at Churchill Downs on June 27; Authentic, winner of the TVG.com Haskell Stakes (G1) at Monmouth Park on July 18; Improbable, who won the Whitney (G1) at Saratoga Race Course on Aug. 1; Ghaiyyath (IRE), winner of the Juddmonte International Stakes (G1) at York on Aug. 19 in Great Britain and Maximum Security, who won the TVG Pacific Classic (G1) at Del Mar on Aug. 22.

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FanDuel Named Title Sponsor Of Breeders’ Cup Mile, Includes Charity Partners In Race Names

Officials of Breeders' Cup and FanDuel Group today announced that FanDuel, America's premier gaming destination, will become the title sponsor of the $2 million Breeders' Cup Mile (G1) at this year's Breeders' Cup World Championships. In addition, two of FanDuel Group's major charity partners will be incorporated into its naming rights for this year's event — the FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile presented by PDJF and the TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance.

The Breeders' Cup, one of Thoroughbred racing's most prestigious international events, consisting of 14 races and purses and awards totaling $35 million, is scheduled to be held on Nov. 6-7 at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky. The World Championships will be televised live on NBC and NBCSN.

For several years, FanDuel subsidiary TVG, America's Horse Racing network, has partnered with the Jockeys' Guild's Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF), on initiatives including an annual telethon, and with the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, to raise awareness and funding for both organizations.

“We are excited that FanDuel will become the title sponsor of the Breeders' Cup Mile and thank them for their commitment to the World Championships,” said Breeders' Cup President and CEO Drew Fleming. “Since announcing our multi-year agreement last year, we have enjoyed an outstanding relationship with FanDuel and TVG as they have expanded and strengthened their support of the Breeders' Cup and Thoroughbred racing.”

“Building off an amazing start last year, FanDuel and TVG are looking forward to this year's Breeders' Cup and to working together to create new fans for horse racing,” said Kip Levin, CEO of TVG. “We appreciate Breeders' Cup's and NBC Sports' cooperation in including our charity partners into the race names for this year. Both the PDJF and Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance do so much to help provide care and resources for our athletes and we wanted to share the spotlight with them on two of our sport's biggest days.”

In 2019, Breeders' Cup and FanDuel announced a comprehensive multi-year sponsorship agreement making TVG and FanDuel the official Wagering Partners of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. TVG will retain its title sponsorship of the $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1), which also was announced last year.

The collaboration also established TVG and FanDuel official partner status for four of its business units: Advanced-Deposit Wagering (TVG) as well as sports betting, daily fantasy sports and online casino, all of which operate under the FanDuel brand.

TVG and FanDuel will continue to receive official sponsor designation, commercial units and other promotional rights as part of NBC Sports' coverage of the Breeders' Cup World Championships and also will be the Presenting Partner of NBCSN's “Betting the Breeders' Cup” show, which will air multiple times during Breeders' Cup week and include complete handicapping and analysis of the World Championships. In another component of the partnership, FanDuel Group will promote the Breeders' Cup World Championships to its databases of Daily Fantasy and sports betting customers.

In January, FanDuel introduced FanDuel Racing, an advanced-deposit wagering service aimed at novice race fans, and began promoting it across its DFS platform. Prior to that, FanDuel had developed and introduced daily fantasy sports applications for horse racing.

The $2 million FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile presented by PDJF is a Grade 1 race for 3-year-olds and older, which will be run at 1 mile on the Keeneland turf course on Saturday, Nov. 7. The Mile annually draws top flight international competition. This year, horses from South Africa, France, Great Britain, Japan and the U.S. already have qualified automatically for the FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile by winning races in the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series.

The $2 million TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance is a Grade 1 race for 2-year-olds, which will be run at 1 1/16 miles on the Keeneland main track as part of Breeders' Cup's Future Stars Friday program.

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