Runhappy Travers Winner Gains Slight Advantage over Tom’s d’Etat and Maximum Security
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Following his dominant win in last Saturday’s Runhappy Travers Stakes (G1) at Saratoga, Sackatoga Stable’s 3-year-old Tiz the Law is the new No. 1 in the 2020 Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings, a weekly poll of the top 10 horses in contention for the $7 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), which is scheduled to be held at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington on Nov. 7.
The 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. 13. A list of voting members can be found here.
Trained by Barclay Tagg, Tiz the Law (265 votes) remained undefeated in four starts this year, rolling to a 5 ½-length victory in the Travers under jockey Manny Franco. Tiz the Law, a New York-bred son of Constitution, will be pointed next to the Kentucky Derby (G1) on Sept. 5 at Churchill Downs, which is the second jewel in this year’s restructured Triple Crown. Tiz the Law, who earned 11 first-place votes in this week’s poll, won the Belmont Stakes (G1) on June 20 prior to his Travers score.
GMB Racing’s Tom’s d’Etat (262 votes), was tied for first with the 4-year-old Maximum Security in last week’s Classic Rankings, but drops to second place. Trained by Al Stall Jr., the 7-year-old Tom’s d’Etat, winner of the Stephen Foster Stakes (G2), is five points ahead of third-place Maximum Security (257 votes). Owned by Gary and Mary West, Michael Tabor, Mrs. John Magner and Derrick Smith, Maximum Security won the San Diego Handicap (G2) at Del Mar on July 25 for trainer Bob Baffert. Maximum Security received 10 first-place votes from the panel this week.
A second Baffert-trained runner, WinStar Farm, CHC Inc. and SF Racing’s Improbable (201 votes), drops from third to fourth place this week. The 4-year-old chestnut son of City Zip earned a “Win and You’re In” automatic starting position into the Breeders’ Cup Classic following his 2-length victory in the Whitney (G1) at Saratoga on Aug. 1.
Allied Racing Stable’s 4-year-old By My Standards (124 votes), second in the Whitney, retains fifth place in the rankings. Trained by Bret Calhoun, By My Standards won the New Orleans Handicap (G2) and the Oaklawn Handicap (G2.
W.S. Farish’s 4-year-old Code of Honor (110 votes) remains in sixth place. Trained by Claude R. “Shug” McGaughey III, Code of Honor, who won the Westchester Stakes (G3) at Belmont Park in June, finished fourth in the Whitney.
Bruce Lunsford’s 3-year-old Art Collector (93 votes) jumped from 10th to seventh place this week following his front-running victory in last Sunday’s Ellis Park Derby as the odds-on favorite. A bay son of Bernardini, trained by Tom Drury Jr., Art Collector remains unbeaten this year in four starts, including the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G2) at Keeneland on July 11.
Juddmonte Farms’ 4-year-old Tacitus (90 votes) stays in eighth place in the Classic Rankings for the fourth consecutive week. Trained by Bill Mott, Tacitus swept to an 8 ¾-length victory in the Suburban Stakes (G2) at Belmont Park on July 4. He is expected to run next in the Woodward (G1) at Saratoga on Sept. 5.
Bloom Racing, Madaket Stables and Allen Racing’s 5-year-old mare Midnight Bisou (81 votes), who was defeated as the odds-on favorite in Saratoga’s Personal Ensign (G1) on Aug. 1., drops from seventh to ninth place this week.
The 4-year-old Vekoma (74 votes), trained by George Weaver, drops one spot this week to 10th place. Owned by R.A Hill Stable and Gatsas Stables, Vekoma is unbeaten in three starts this year, including two wins in Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series races: the Runhappy Carter Handicap (G1), for the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1), and the Runhappy Metropolitan Handicap (G1), for the Big Ass Fans Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1).
Note – The Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings have no bearing on qualification or selection into the Breeders’ Cup Classic. 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.
The 2020 Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic, which will be run at 1 ¼ miles on the main track at Keeneland, will be televised live on NBC.
ABOUT BREEDERS’ CUP
The Breeders’ Cup administers the Breeders’ Cup World Championships, Thoroughbred horse racing’s year-end Championships, as well as the Breeders’ Cup Challenge qualifying series, which provides automatic starting positions into the Championships races. The Breeders’ Cup is also a founding member of the Thoroughbred Safety Coalition, an organization composed of industry leaders committed to advancing safety measures in Thoroughbred racing and improving the well-being of equine and human athletes.
The 2020 Breeders’ Cup World Championships, consisting of 14 Championship races, is scheduled to be held on November 6-7 at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky and features a total of $35 million in purses and awards.
The event will be televised live by the NBC Sports Group. Breeders’ Cup press releases appear on the Breeders’ Cup website, breederscup.com. You can also follow the Breeders’ Cup on social media.
Breeders’ Cup Press Release
Photo: Tiz the Law, with Manny Franco up, Credit:
