Gstaad rallies to victory. (Jenny Doyle/Past The Wire)
Future Stars Friday: FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf
Gives O’Brien Record 21st World Championships Victory
Breeders’ Cup Release
DEL MAR, Calif. – Derrick Smith, Mrs. John Magnier and Michael Tabor’s Gstaad (GB) ($4.40) rallied from off the pace to post a three-quarter-length victory over longshot Stark Contrast to win the 18th running of the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) at Del Mar Friday afternoon for 2-year-olds to wrap up Future Stars Friday at the 42nd World Championships.
Trained by Aidan O’Brien and ridden by Christophe Soumillon, Gstaad completed the mile on a firm turf course in 1:34.93. The victory makes O’Brien the winningest trainer in World Championships history with 21, eight of which have come in the Juvenile Turf. It is the second Breeders’ Cup victory for Soumillon.
Exiting post 14 a step slow behind the field, Gstaad was angled to the inside and into midpack as Outfielder set fractions of :22.20 and :46.52 while being tracked by Hey Nay Nay (IRE). On the far turn, Gstaad began picking off horse with a wide, sweeping move that propelled him to the front by midstretch.
Stark Contrast was a clear second, 2 ¼ lengths in front of North Coast (IRE) with Street Beast another 1 ¼ lengths back in fourth.
The victory was worth $520,000 and increased Gstaad’s earnings to $993,157 with a record 6-3-3-0. Gstaad is a son of Starspangledbanner (AUS) out of the Exceed And Excel (AUS) mare Mosa Mine (GB).
Quotes:
Winning co-owner Michael Tabor (Gstaad (GB)) – “A very good performance and Christophe did a great job from the draw. Aidan is now the most winning Breeders’ Cup trainer. He’s simply a superb trainer, his work ethic is incredible. You have to love what you do to be successful. Tomorrow we’ve got Minnie Hauk (IRE) so hopefully we’ll have a winner or two.”
Winning jockey Christophe Soumillion (Gstaad (GB)) – “I heard it asked why I hadn’t won a Breeders’ Cup in 20 years, but it’s like winning a British classic, you’ve got to have a proper horse.
“I was loaded last, and when the guy who put me in the gate went backwards, he got a bit scared and turned his head and they opened the gates. I think if I had been loaded before the last, I think he would have jumped nearly in front because he’s got that much speed. I was quite happy to be able to get him in, because doing 3 or 4-deep on the first corner is not a big advantage. I was trying to ride like Ryan (Moore) did last year with Henri Matiesse (IRE), it works well because I was 2 ½ deep on the back straight the pace was strong, and I just tried to make a little move to get a little closer to have an option so I could choose where we would come into the turn. Finally, we came into the last turn, he was cruising, and I knew he was doing everything well. When I came into the straight,t I knew it was game over.”
Second-place trainer Michael McCarthy (Stark Contrast) – “I thought it was a big performance. The winner got the jump on us. We kind of got jammed up a little bit there coming through the quarter pole. The horse ran fantastic. I did expect a big performance from him.”
Second-place jockey Kazushi Kimura (Stark Contrast) – “He’s been maintained really well by Michael (McCarthy) and everything worked out smooth. He showed tactical speed from the gate, and he was comfortable right behind the front runners. and he’s a versatile horse. Before the top of the lane, I was trying to push to the outside, but they kept me contained, so I decided to jump inside. He finished upgraded very strong, unfortunate, the number 14 was already closing quickly.”
Third-place trainer Joseph O’Brien (North Coast (IRE)) – “Huge run. Very proud of him. Dylan gave him a great ride. He looked to be traveling easy. Very proud of how he finished. He’ll go home and point to next season.”
Third-place jockey Dylan McMonagle (North Coast (IRE)) – “A great run. The winner is obviously a very good horse so to take third was great. He’ll be a lovely horse for next year.”
Fourth-place jockey Luan Machado (Street Beast) – “That’s (the stalking position) exactly where the whole team expected to be. The horse did battle and gave me all he had. They’re all happy with it. It’s very hard competition out there. They were very proud of the horse.”
