Forte (outside) works in company August 19 (Susie Raisher)
Breeders’ Cup Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky.― Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable’s 3-year-old Forte maintained his top rating for the third consecutive week in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings, with White Abarrio and Geaux Rocket Ride in second and third place, respectively. 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.
Forte, expected to start in this Saturday’s Travers Stakes (G1), received 307 votes, including 18 first-place votes. C2 Racing Stable, LLC and La Milagrosa Stable, LLC’s 4-year-old White Abarrio, winner of the Whitney Stakes (G1), is in second place with 257 votes, and Pin Oak Stud LLC’s Geaux Rocket Ride, winner of the TVG.com Haskell Stakes (G1), is third with 244 votes. Mage, who won the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (G1), is fourth with 233 votes, and Blue Rose Farm’s Arcangelo, the Belmont Stakes (G1) winner, is fifth with 215 votes. Mage and Arcangelo are also expected to start in the Travers.
Lucky Seven Stable’s Rattle N Roll, runner-up in the Stephen Foster Stakes (G1), has moved into sixth place with 121 votes, followed by Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman’s Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes (G1) winner Defunded, who is seventh with 104 votes.
Jeff Drown’s 4-year-old Zandon, runner-up in the Whitney, ranks eighth with 77 votes. Godolphin’s 5-year-old Proxy, winner of the Oaklawn Handicap (G2), is ninth with 73 votes.
Joining the top 10 for the first time is Dubai World Cup (G1) winner Ushba Tesoro (JPN). Owned by Ryotokuji Kenji Holdings Co. Ltd. and trained by Noboru Takagi, the 6-year-old Ushba Tesoro is 10th with 46 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. 22, 2023*
| Rank | Horse | Votes | First-Place Votes | Previous Week |
| 1 | Forte | 307 | 18 | 1 |
| 2 | White Abarrio | 257 | 4 | 2 |
| 3 | Geaux Rocket Ride | 244 | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Mage | 233 | 1 | 4 |
| 5 | Arcangelo | 215 | 2 | 5 |
| 6 | Rattle N Roll | 121 | 3 | 7 |
| 7 | Defunded | 104 | 1 | 6 |
| 8 | Zandon | 77 | 0 | 8 |
| 9 | Proxy | 73 | 0 | 10 |
| 10 | Ushba Tesoro (JPN) | 46 | 0 | 11 |
Also receiving a first-place vote this week was King of Steel.
*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.
