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BC Contenders Arrive as Activity Ramps Up

October 27, 2025

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Del Mar was a buzz with energy waiting for the post draw to begin. (John Stettin/Past The Wire)

+ Classic and Distaff Updates

+ Japan on Parade

+ Post-position draw in the books! 

Breeders’ Cup Notes Edited 

The activity at Del Mar ramps up as Breeders’ Cup World Championships contenders continue to arrive from all over the U.S. and world. 

Arrivals got bedded down and jogged on the Del Mar track to acclimate to the facility. 

Those already there finished up with gallops and schooling in the paddock and gate. 

For where to watch the BC races this weekend this weekend click here.

Team Japan dazzled as they went out for their morning works.

Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic 

ANTIQUARIAN 
Trainer: Todd Pletcher 
Jockey: Luis Saez 
Set: Approximately 5:45 a.m. 
Monday Activity: Galloped once around the track at Del Mar under exercise rider Eddie Herrera. Pletcher said that Antiquarian and the other horses from his stable had an uneventful trip from Saratoga to Del Mar on Sunday. 
Planned Activity: Will go to the track for a routine gallop at approximately 5:45 a.m.   
The Quote: On his victory in the Jockey Club Gold Cup on Aug. 31: “I thought he ran terrific. And it was kind of a shame that his accomplishment of winning the Grade 1 was a little bit overlooked by all the issues that went on in the race. Watching it live, I wasn’t able to appreciate it because I was worried about Mindframe. But going back and watching replays of it, I thought he did exactly what we needed him to do, which was put himself in a good position and he finished up well, going a mile and a quarter. We’re obviously super pleased for him and happy that he was able to get that Grade 1.” – Todd Pletcher  

BAEZA  
Trainer: John Shirreffs  
Jockey: Hector Berrios  
Set: 6:30 a.m. 
Monday Activity: Jogged and galloped one lap around  
Planned activity: Similar routine tomorrow  
The Quote: Baeza became the third Grade 1 winner out of the Big Brown mare Puca when he won the Pennsylvania Derby last out on Sept. 20 at Parx Racing. He follows in the footsteps of Mage, the 2023 Kentucky Derby winner, and Dornoch, the 2024 Belmont Stakes winner. All three horses were bred by Grandview Equine.  

“We are thrilled to be in the race. He’s doing exceptionally well. We think he’ll run a heads-up race against possibly the toughest field in Classic history. We’ve been pinching ourselves ever since Mage won the Derby. Puca is the gift that keeps on giving, and we’re thrilled to have kept a piece of one of her good colts. Everything’s going according to plan.” – Robert Clay of Grandview Equine, co-owner and breeder 

FIERCENESS 
Trainer:  Todd Pletcher 
Jockey: John Velazquez 
Set: Approximately 5:45 a.m. 
Monday Activity: Galloped once around the track at Del Mar under exercise rider Danny Wright. Pletcher said that Fierceness and the other horses from his stable had an uneventful trip from Saratoga to Del Mar on Sunday. 
Planned Activity: Will go to the track for a routine gallop at approximately 5:45 a.m. 
The Quote: On his victory in the Pacific Classic on Aug. 30: “It was extremely worrisome, the first part. For a moment there, I thought he was going to go completely over the temporary rail there and was just thankful that he was able to get himself corrected. But, even then, I thought, ‘Wow, that’s really a lot to overcome, even in a mile and a quarter race, to get off to a start like that.’ I was pretty concerned, but you could tell that he recovered and got himself in a good position. It seemed like he was traveling really well down the backside, and Johnny (Velazquez) saw an opportunity to kind of make a move at the half-mile pole or just before, and kind of blew the race wide open when he did that. In the end, it turned out to be super-impressive performance.” – Todd Pletcher 

Forever Young gets frisky!

FOREVER YOUNG (JPN) 
Trainer: Yoshito Yahagi 
Jockey: Ryusei Sakai 
Set: 8 a.m. 
Morning Activity: One lap canter, schooled in the paddock 
Planned Activity: Breeze will be on Wednesday, Oct 29, his jockey Ryusei Sakai will ride 
The Quote: “I flew into L.A. last night, and it is the first time on him since his final domestic gallop. I got a great feeling, and he is definitely in good shape. I will ride his breeze on Wednesday.” – Ryusei Sakai 

JOURNALISM 
Trainer: Michael McCarthy 
Jockey: Jose Ortiz 
Monday Activity: Walk day following his 5f Sunday breeze in 1:01 2/5 under new jockey Jose Ortiz. Trainer Michael McCarthy said Monday that he came out of the work fine. 
Planned Activity: Will return to the track for morning exercise. Time is TBD. 
The Quote: What are the positives from running in the Pacific Classic, where he finished second to Fierceness?:“I think we learned some things that we’d like to adjust going into the Classic. We got him a mile and a quarter race over the Del Mar surface, which is obviously what he’ll have to do in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. It allowed for us to have a home game and not just play at home but be able to continue to practice at home for the nine weeks from the Pacific Classic to the Breeders’ Cup Classic and have what we envisioned. At the time, the decision was made to use the Pacific Classic as the segue to the Breeders’ Cup Classic. If Michael and my eyes aren’t deceiving us, we’ve accomplished that mission, because we’re seeing a very fresh animal.” – Aron Wellman, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners. 

MINDFRAME 
Trainer: Todd Pletcher 
Jockey: Irad Ortiz, Jr.  
Set: Approximately 5:45 a.m. 
Monday Activity: Galloped once around the track. Pletcher said that Mindframe and the other horses from his stable had an uneventful trip from Saratoga to Del Mar on Sunday. 
Planned Activity:  Will go to the track for a routine gallop at approximately 5:45 a.m. 
The Quote:  Why did you opt to train up to the Classic after the incident in the Jockey Club Gold Cup when he lost his rider shortly after leaving the gate?: “It was sort of a tricky situation. You don’t know how much conditioning you got out of it. It was a race of some form, but it wasn’t a true race. The first question we had to answer was, do we want to consider running back in another prep before going to the Breeders’ Cup Classic? We felt like that our best chance to show up in the Classic with our best chance of winning, was to train up to it. So that’s what we decided to do.” – Todd Pletcher 

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NEVADA BEACH 
Trainer: Bob Baffert 
Jockey: Mike Smith 
Morning Activity: Jogged at 6 a.m. 
Planned Activity: Will gallop at the same time 
The Quote: “I think he will go a mile and a quarter. He will have to get the trip. That is why I have Mike Smith on him. We are going to need some magic, and he is one of the few riders who makes things happen. He makes magic happen; he has done it a lot of times for me. He will always be Big Money Mike. He always shows up; that is why has won more Breeders’ Cup races (27) than anybody else.” – Bob Baffert 

SIERRA LEONE
CONTRARY THINKING  
Trainer: Chad Brown 
Jockey: Flavien Prat  
Set: Del Mar 8:00 a.m. 
Morning activity: Both Classic horses jogged a lap with a pony clockwise around the track 
Planned activity: Gallop on Tuesday  
Quote: “Everything was smooth and it’s always great here. Del Mar is an easy place to ship into. They’re always very organized here. Luckily, the horses got here in good shape. It’s an exciting group of horses here, particularly in the Classic. We’re going to base the weekend on (Sierra Leone) and see if we can pick up some pieces in the other races. It’s a good group of seven. Village Voice is an interesting horse. She’s got a lot of upside. Program Trading is flying in today (from Kentucky), just second in a Grade 1, and we’re going to try him in the Mile. A couple of our other horses are outsiders in the Turf—Redistricting and Hill Road—and we’re going to take a shot in there and see what happens. A little lighter this year than in years past. My 2-year-olds are a bit behind. I had a lot of sick horses this summer and fall, but hopefully that will set us up for a good spring.” – Chad Brown 

SOVEREIGNTY 
Trainer: Bill Mott 
Jockey: Junior Alvarado 
Monday Activity: Worked 4f in 49 4/5 with assistant trainer Neil Poznansky up. 
Planned Activity: Mott said it’s possible he would take him to track Tuesday morning, TBA 
The Quote 1: “I don’t like to use the word maintenance work because everyone uses that, so I am not going to use that. We know the horse is talented, and we just want to keep him fit and let him do enough where he is happy and let him stretch his lungs out a little bit and have him ready for Saturday. I liked what I saw today. We’ll see if we take him out tomorrow. We don’t want to get him too high. Sometimes, just getting him out there and moving around a little is good … same as any athlete I guess.” – Bill Mott 
The Quote 2: “He went easy. He had an extended gallop and then he just stretched his legs a little down the lane. It felt like an open gallop. Before he has wanted to go off a little aggressive and then he will go and spit the bit and go about his way. Today he was very even and drugged me along and when he turned for home, he actually grabbed the bit again. He is very smart.” – Neil Poznansky 

LONGINES BREEDERS’ CUP DISTAFF 

ALICE VERITE (JPN) 
Trainer: Kazuya Nakatake 
Set: 10 a.m. 
Monday activity: Hand walking at parade ring 
Planned activity: Breeze will be on Wednesday, Oct 29, her jockey Kyle Frey will ride 

CLICQUOT
GIN GIN 
Trainer: Brendan Walsh 
Jockey: Luis Saez, Flavien Prat 
Monday activity: Flying from Kentucky to California along with Juvenile Fillies Turf contender and stablemate Imaginationthelady.  
Planned activity: Expected to arrive Monday afternoon 

DORTH VADER 
Trainer: George Weaver 
Jockey: John Velazquez 
Set: 6:15 a.m.  
Monday activity: Short galloped 6f 
Planned activity: Gallop 1 1/8m on the main track around 7 a.m.  
The Quote: “It feels phenomenal to be here. This was our objective. As a 4-year-old, she ran one race and had some issues we had to take care of. We gave her time and did everything we needed to do, but we asked, ‘do we bring her back, or do we have her move on to the breeding shed?’ We chose to bring her back, in large part with George’s [Weaver] influence, and we came with the attitude that we wanted to do three things: we wanted to win a Grade 1, which we did, we wanted to pass the million-dollar mark, which we did, and we wanted to come to the Breeders’ Cup. Those were our objectives, and we hit all of them.” – owner and breeder John Ropes 

DRY POWDER 
Trainer: Chad Summers 
Monday activity: Galloped on the main track 
Planned activity: Gallop at time to be determined  
The Quote: “I’m over here with Emily [Ellingwood], who was getting on White Abarrio when he won the Breeders’ Cup Classic, and my groom, Felix, has [been here]. They have that experience where they’ve gotten the blanket before, and me and Mr. [Al] Gold would like to join them. It’s the World Series of horse racing and it would mean a lot to us. We’re not here just to enjoy the waves of San Diego.” – trainer Chad Summers 

GUN SONG 
Trainer: Mark Hennig 
Jockey: Tyler Gaffalione 
Monday Activity: Jogged morning after arrival from Belmont Park 
Planned Activity: Gallop at 8 a.m. 
The Quote: On naming Tyler Gaffalione to ride Gun Song for the first time: “He is a good fit for her. He can ride anything. He is not a one-dimensional rider, and she is not a one-dimensional horse.” – Mark Hennig 

MAJESTIC OOPS 
Trainer: Dan Ward 
Jockey: TBD 
Monday Activity: Walked the shedrow after arriving from New Jersey yesterday 
Planned Activity: Will jog once around the track. Will gallop Wednesday 
The Quote: “She arrived safely and is doing good.” – Dan Ward, who is driving to Hot Springs, Arkansas, today and is expected to arrive in California tomorrow afternoon. 

NITROGEN 
Trainer: Mark Casse 
Jockey: TBD 
Set: 6:30 am 
Monday Activity: Galloped once around 
Planned Activity: Will gallop the same 
The Quote: “She had good energy this morning.” – assistant trainer Shane Tripp 

SCOTTISH LASSIE  
Trainer: Jorge Abreu 
Set: None 
Morning Activity: Tack-walked the shedrow  
Planned Activity: Will jog around 7 a.m.  
The Quote: Scottish Lassie put in her final work for the Longines Distaff on Saturday at Belmont Park, breezing 5f in 1:01 under the guidance of Hall of Fame rider Joel Rosario. 
“She’s doing good. She left a little feed last night, so I only walked her today, but she’ll go to the track tomorrow. We’ll give her one lap around. Her last breeze was beautiful and (Joel) Rosario was pretty pleased with her. She went 48 flat, 1:01, 1:24 – that’s more than enough. The week before, she did a lot with Manny (Franco), but she did it so easy. If she’s not ready now, she’s not ever going to be ready.” – Trainer Jorge Abreu  

REGALED 
Trainer: Whit Beckman 
Jockey: Joe Ramos 
Set: 8 a.m. 
Morning Activity: Galloped 1 3/8m under Josue Rodriguez 
Planned Activity: Similar to Monday 
The Quote: First impression of Regaled after she joined barn in June following digital sale: “She is a different horse now. It took her a little while to develop for us. We took her to Saratoga and put blinkers on her for a work and that seemed to wake her up. We took her back to Kentucky for the Groupie Doll (at Ellis Park in which she was second to Impel) and she has moved forward after every race.” – T.C. Stevens, assistant to Whit Beckman 

SARAWAK RIM (ARG) 
Trainer: Ignacio Correas IV 
Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr. 
Set: 7:45 a.m. 
Morning Activity: Worked 4f in 48 4/5 on her own under Geovanny Vences 
The Quote: Ignacio Correas IV has said Sarawak Rim has impressed him with every work since she joined the barn in July. Was he impressed Monday morning? “Oh yes. It was a beauty; perfectly done. I don’t know about anybody else, but it looked great to me.” 

SCYLLA 
Trainer: Bill Mott 
Jockey: Junior Alvarado 
Morning Activity: Worked 4f in 46 3/5 with Neil Poznansky up at 8 a.m. 
Planned Activity: Will walk the shedrow 
The Quote: “People might worry it’s too fast for her. It is fast, but she can do that. Neil thought she was doing it within herself. She was carrying him along; he didn’t ask her. He said he took another hold on her as she turned for home. If she had gone 49, I would have been pleased. We had the blinkers on her today, and I think she had her game face on when she went to the track. A lot of times galloping, she will mess with us a little bit, but she knows when it’s workday. She has put in works like that before so it’s not totally unusual. With her, it’s a sign she is doing good.” – Bill Mott 

SEISMIC BEAUTY 
Trainer: Bob Baffert 
Jockey: Juan Hernandez 
Monday Activity: Jogged at 6 a.m. after arriving from Santa Anita 
Planned Activity: Will gallop at the same time 
The Quote: Any concern about the layoff? She has not run since winning the Clement L. Hirsch Stakes (G1) at Del Mar Aug. 2. “No, not at all. She is a big mare, and she is very aggressive and easy to train. I don’t have to do a lot with her. She ran well at Del Mar, and I wanted to give her time off and freshen her up a little bit. We have taken our time with her, and we have been real patient with her. I want to run her fresh.” – Bob Baffert 

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