Arcangelo dons the Travers flower blanket (Janet Napolitano)
Breeders’ Cup Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky.— Blue Rose Farm’s Arcangelo, winner of last Saturday’s Travers Stakes (G1) at Saratoga, has ascended to the top spot in the latest Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings, while the Travers runner-up, Disarm, has joined the top 10 for the first time. The Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings are a weekly rating of the top 10 horses in contention for the $6 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), which will be run Nov. 4 at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California.
Arcangelo, a 3-year-old son of 2016 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) winner Arrogate, received 318 votes, including 17 first-place votes. Trained by Jena Antonucci, Arcangelo rose from fourth place to first in Week #7 of the rankings. C2 Racing Stable, LLC and La Milagrosa Stable, LLC’s 4-year-old White Abarrio, winner of the Whitney Stakes (G1), holds onto second place with 260 votes. Pin Oak Stud LLC’s Geaux Rocket Ride, winner of the TVG.com Haskell Stakes (G1), is third with 231 votes.
Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable’s Forte, who had been No. 1 in the poll the past three weeks, dropped to fourth following his fourth-place finish as the 8-5 favorite in the Travers. Forte earned 173 votes.
Lucky Seven Stable’s Rattle N Roll, runner-up in the Stephen Foster Stakes (G1), is fifth with 130 votes, followed by Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman’s Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes (G1) winner Defunded, who is sixth with 111 votes.
Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC’s Disarm, who closed strongly to finish a length behind Arcangelo in the Travers, is in seventh place. Trained by Steve Asmussen, Disarm earned 108 votes.
Jeff Drown’s 4-year-old Zandon, runner-up in the Whitney, ranks eighth with 91 votes. Godolphin’s 5-year-old Proxy, who won the Oaklawn Handicap (G2), is ninth with 78 votes.
After trailing the seven-horse field in the Travers, Mage, who won the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (G1), drops from fourth to 10th place with 61 votes.
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. 10. A list of voting members can be found here.
In the Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings, each voter rates horses on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 system in descending order.
Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings – Aug. 29, 2023*
| Rank | Horse | Votes | First-Place Votes | Previous Week |
| 1 | Arcangelo | 318 | 17 | 5 |
| 2 | White Abarrio | 260 | 8 | 2 |
| 3 | Geaux Rocket Ride | 231 | 2 | 3 |
| 4 | Forte | 173 | 1 | 1 |
| 5 | Rattle N Roll | 130 | 2 | 6 |
| 6 | Defunded | 111 | 2 | 7 |
| 7 | Disarm | 108 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Zandon | 91 | 0 | 8 |
| 9 | Proxy | 78 | 0 | 9 |
| 10 | Mage | 61 | 0 | 4 |
Also receiving one first-place vote this week were King of Steel and Ushba Tesoro (JPN).
*Note – The Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings have no bearing on qualification or selection into the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
The 2023 Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic, which will be run at 1 1/4 miles on the main track at Santa Anita, is limited to 14 starters. The race will be broadcast live on NBC and Peacock.
