Accelerate winner of the 2018 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) is the morning line favorite for the $9 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational.(Photo credit: Breeders’ Cup Ltd, Alex Evers/Eclipse Sportswire/CSM).
A field of 12 led by Accelerate was entered for Saturday’s $9 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) at Gulfstream Park.
The co-feature on the card is the first running of the $7 million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1) which drew a field of 10. There are seven supporting stakes on an outstanding card at Gulfstream Park.
Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) champion Accelerate is the 9-5 morning line favorite. The John Sadler trainee will break from the five post with Joel Rosario in the irons.
The race will be the last of his career. The six-year-old will be heading to stud duty after the Pegasus.
“We’re going to be a little bit sad, but happy that he has a great book of mares at Lane’s End in Kentucky,” Sadler said. “It’s a pretty good scenario. We’re just looking at it as an opening of a second career for him.”
His 2018 campaign will make him the Eclipse Award winner for Top Older Horse, and he is in the running along with Triple Crown winner Justify for Horse of the Year honors.
Classic is the Key Pegasus Prep
The first two winners of the Pegasus—Arrogate in 2017 and Gun Runner last year were Breeders’ Cup Classic winners.
Accelerate will face off against the only horse to beat him in 2018, City of Light who is the second choice on the morning line at 5-2. He will from the three post with Javier Castellano aboard.
The Michael McCarthy trainee beat Accelerate by a neck at Oaklawn Park last April in the Oaklawn Handicap (G1). Accelerate got the best of him in the Gold Cup at Santa Anita (G1) in May.
City of Light capped off his four-year-old campaign by wiring the field in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1).
Yoshida Back on Grass for Pegasus Turf
The Bill Mott trained Yoshida is the 5-2 morning line favorite for the Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational. He came with a mild bid to finish fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, beaten 1 ¾ lengths. The son of Heart’s Cry won the Woodward (G1) at Saratoga in September in his first career start on dirt.
He won the 2017 Hill Prince (G3) and the 2018 Old Forrester Turf Classic (G1) on grass.
“It’s probably debatable whether his dirt races are better than his turf races, and they may well be, but he’s a horse that won very nicely for us in the spring last year on the turf,” Mott said. “He’s run with good company, and we weighed our options here and thought that maybe the turf was the spot to go this time.”
Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1) runner up Catapult is the 7-2 second choice on the morning line. The Sadler trainee won the Del Mar Mile Handicap (G2) in his previous outing.
I will have my full card report for Pegasus Day on Saturday.
Pegasus World Cup Post Positions and Morning Line:
- Bravazo (12-1), Luis Saez
- Something Awesome (20-1), Edgar Prado
- City of Light (5-2), Javier Castellano
- Seeking the Soul (12-1), John Velazquez;
- Accelerate (9-5), Joel Rosario
- Tom’s d’Etat (20-1), Shaun Bridgmohan
- True Timber (30-1), Joe Bravo
- Gunnevera (8-1), Irad Ortiz Jr.
- Kukulkan (30-1), Frankie Dettori
- Audible (10-1), Flavien Prat
- Imperative (30-1), Tyler Gaffalione
- Patternrecognition (10-1), Jose Ortiz
Pegasus World Cup Turf Post Positions and Morning Line:
- Magic Wand (9-2), Wayne Lordan
- Yoshida (5-2), Jose Ortiz
- Channel Maker (12-1), Javier Castellano
- Aerolithe (8-1), Florent Geroux
- Next Shares (15-1), Tyler Gaffalione
- Fahan Mura (30-1), Edwin Maldonado
- Bricks and Mortar (5-1), Irad Ortiz Jr.
- Delta Prince (15-1), Frankie Dettori
- Catapult (7-2), Joel Rosario
- Dubby Dubbie (30-1), Luca Panici
