What was your favourite Breeders’ Cup moment from the 14 races held on Friday and Saturday at Keeneland?
Future Stars Friday, for two-year-olds, had five Cup races and HUGHES (93 Beyer Speed Figure) and HAFFNER (96) were two playboys who stole the show.
Named for Olympic gold medalist hockey player Jack Hughes, the bay colt Hughes ($3.64) delivered a Championship-winning performance as the heavy favourite Saturday to score a 2 ¼-length victory in the $2 million FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (G1).
Hughes, trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, stayed perfect through five starts and likely locked up the Champion Two-year-old Male Eclipse Award title. It was Baffert’s seventh win in the Juvenile and 22nd in the Breeders’ Cup.
Under jockey Flavien Prat, Hughes (Into Mischief – K P Dreamin by Union Rags) was involved from the start of the 1 1/16-mile race at Keeneland Race Course. He handled challenges throughout the prestigious test, seized the lead in the second turn and, after turning back a looming trio of foes, opened up a comfortable advantage in the stretch. American History overcame trouble to finish second, edging Hughes’ stablemate Salahudin by a head. Hughes was sent off as the 4-5 favorite in the field of six, and reached the wire in 1:42.27 over the fast dirt.
“You know, sometimes they make it look easy, but easy ain’t easy,” Baffert said. “I was very proud of both of my horses. This horse had never been in a battle, and he really battled. He was very impressive. The fractions were pretty hot and this horse hadn’t been asked to do that, so you don’t know how they’re going to respond. I never let him do that in the morning.”
The ownership group of Front Row Club LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Stonestreet Stables LLC, Bashor Racing LLC, Albaugh Family Stables, LLC, Robert E. Masterson, Golconda Stable, Waves Edge Capital LLC and Catherine Donovan.
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Haffner scored an authoritative 1 3/4-length victory in the $1 Million Brown Advisory Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) to close out Future Stars Friday at Keeneland.
“He’s improving and still growing,” winning trainer Aidan O’Brien said. He added, “With time and as he covers more distance, he’ll get even better. He had a great draw and a good position, so that was a big help.”
It was a sweet finish to another scintillating day at the Breeders’ Cup for trainer Aidan O’Brien — who won Juvenile Fillies Turf earlier on the card with Sun Goddess (IRE). Haffner’s victory was the legendary conditioner’s second Breeders’ Cup score of the day, and the 23rd of his career — making him once again the event’s all-time leader less than an hour after Bob Baffert had equalled his mark.
Going off as the public’s third choice ($9.46), Haffner — a Kentucky-bred son of Justify out of the Zoffany (IRE) mare Earth Strike (IRE) — notched his second straight victory after taking the Royal Lodge Stakes (G2) at Newmarket in late September.
O’Brien cited that outing as one which was pivotal in Haffner’s development. “He got a mile at Newmarket and if you get a mile at Newmarket, you have to get nearly a mile and a quarter, really,” O’Brien said.
Haffner’s third dam is STORM SONG, who won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) at Woodbine in 1996.
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An informal poll confirmed that, other than SOVEREIGNTY’S stunning Classic win, the win by T O ELVIS in the Sprint was the best performance of Saturday. Turning for home in the 6 furlong dash, it would have been hard to imagine that the brilliant ENGLISHMAN, coming off a 117 Beyer Figure, was going to lose the race. Jose Ortiz had merely been shaking the reins at the colt at the top of the stretch and they were moving along smoothly.
Then, from the clouds came T O Elvis, not seen since he beat Knightsbridge and others in the Churchill Downs Stakes (G1) on Kentucky Derby day in his North American debut. The Japanese-owned, -trained and -ridden colt powered through the stretch like a wild horse and zoomed to a 1 1/4 length win in 1:08.20.
Winning trainer Daisuke Takayanagi (T O Elvis): “I was a little concerned because he was coming off a layoff, but his condition had been improving steadily. At that point, all we could do was give it our best and leave the rest to the jockey.
“We had discussed settling him off the pace if the early pace was fast, and we wanted to stick to the way he had raced in Japan.
“In the end, we trusted his finishing kick. Just like in the Churchill Downs Stakes, he gradually made his way through the field, and I think he did a great job to get the win.”
T O Elvis, a winner of seven of 10 races, is a Kentucky-bred by Volatile from the Curlin mare Stopshoppingdebbie. Breeders Jeff and Melissa Prunzik acquired the mare privately in foal to Uncle Mo and her second foal for the Lexington couple is stakes winner Generous Tipper.
T O Elvis’ s fourth dam is Alberta-bred MISS CENYAK, bred by Maffei Farms in 1977. Miss Cenyak raced for Jerre Paxton’s Northwest Farms, one of the most successful breeders in Washington state history.
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Trainer AIDAN O’BRIEN has 24 career wins at the Breeders’ Cup, number one of all conditioners.
Next year’s Breeders’ Cup is at Belmont.
Recaps include files from NBC SPORTS:
Saturday’s races
Race 12: Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic
Winning Horse: Sovereignty
Winning Trainer: Bill Mott
Winning Jockey: Junior Alvarado
Purse: $7,000,000
Payout: $5.94
Race 11: Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf
Winning Horse: Benvenuto Cellini
Winning Trainer: Aiden O’Brien
Winning Jockey: Ryan Moore
Purse: $5,000,000
Payout: $8.52
Recap: The European horses continued to dominate the Breeders’ Cup turf. Moore and Benvenuto Cellini rode in the middle of the pack early, and it could have been anyone’s guess which horse would break through the gaggle of riders at the top of the final turn. But Moore found the perfect seam with about an 1/8 of a mile left, pushing Benvenuto Cellini between Diamond Necklace and longshot Map of Stars to make it seven straight wins for European-trained horses. Benvenuto Cellini is named after the Italian artist, best known for his bronze sculpture of Perseus with the Head of Medusa.
Race 10: Breeders’ Cup Distaff
Winning Horse: Nitrogen
Winning Trainer: Mark Casse
Winning Jockey: Jose Ortiz
Purse: $2,000,000
Payout: $3.58
Winning Horse: Deterministic
Winning Trainer: Miguel Clement
Winning Jockey: Kendrick Carmouche
Purse: $2,000,000
Payout: $12.10
Recap: It has been over a year after trainer Christophe Clement passed away at age 59 from a rare form of cancer (metastatic uveal melanoma). But his son, Miguel, made good on his promise to show that their family had the “best turf horse in the country” in Deterministic. Carmouche kept his horse on the inside and didn’t move Deterministic too soon. But once the five-year-old colt put the hammer down once he had the open space, building a big enough lead down the stretch to hold off the late-breaking Notable Speech. Carmouche previously said Deterministic was a “lifetime horse” and told NBC after the win that he was happy he “could prove I am just as good as the rest of these guys.”
Race 8: Breeders’ Cup Sprint
Winning Horse: T O Elvis
Winning Trainer: Daisuke Takayanagi
Winning Jockey: Ryusei Sakai
Purse: $2,000,000
Payout: $7.58
Race 7: Maker’s Mark Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf
Winning Horse: Kathynmarissa
Winning Trainer: Chad Brown
Winning Jockey: Jose Ortiz
Purse: $2,000,000
Payout: $13.24
Recap: Jockey Jose Ortiz seemed to rebound well after his fall scare Friday, posting a strong ride with Kathynmarissa in this 1 3/16-mile contest. Kathynmarissa is known for her late kick — sound familiar, Golden Tempo fans? And while she almost looked out of it as she rounded the turn, Ortiz got her clear enough down the stretch to close out the win. After the race, Ortiz told NBC he was grateful to be back on the track: “[Yesterday’s off-mount] looked worse than it ended up being.” Named after banking executives Kathy Flock and Marissa Magneson, Kathynmarissa is the daughter of 2015 Triple Crown and Breeders’ Cup Classic winner American Pharoah. Blue Bolt, the overall favourite, was never a factor and finished 9-1/4 lengths back at 11th overall.
Race 6: Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile
Winning Horse: Further Ado
Winning Trainer: Brad Cox
Winning Jockey: Flavien Prat
Purse: $1,000,000
Payout: $4.02
Recap: Well, Further Ado couldn’t have picked a better way to make an exit. The morning-line favorite, and only one of four horses in the lineup to participate in this year’s Kentucky Derby (he was the post-time favorite there), Further Ado was in an all-out battle against Owen Almighty down the stretch. Jockey Luis Saez had Owen Almighty leading by a head at one point and let his horse drift out a bit—pushing Further Ado and Prat to the outside in the hopes it would help widen the gap. But Prat held Further Ado’s ground as the horses went neck-and-neck and hit the wire together in a photo finish. The colt is now three-for-three at Keeneland, although he ironically won his previous two starts by a combined 31 lengths. He will now retire to stud at Spendthrift.
Race 5: Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint
Winning Horse: Bacio
Winning Trainer: Wesley Ward
Winning Jockey: Juan Hernandez
Purse: $1,000,000
Payout: $6.36
Recap: The three-year-old colt delivered a chef’s kiss of a performance to help Hernandez lock up his first Breeders’ Cup race. Bacio, which means “kiss” in Italian, had won four straight and five of six races coming into Saturday and remains undefeated in 2026 (4-0). Bacio was in control for most of the race, but Hernandez knew when to pick up the pace after the final turn. He put distance between him and the rest of the pack—a pack that simply ran out of track. One of the over 1,600 owners through the My Racehorse fractional ownership platform is 65-year-old Will Ross, who said before Saturday that Bacio is an inspiration as he battles cancer. Ross: “I don’t have a lot of positives in my life right now and I’m in a lot of pain. Anything I can do to have fun, that’s really important to me.”
Race 4: Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint
Winning Horse: Ways and Means
Winning Trainer: Chad Brown
Winning Jockey: Flavien Prat
Purse: $1,000,000
Payout: $4.14
Recap: Ways and Means won her first race outside of the state of New York and helped extend Brown’s record to four wins in the Sprint and his 20th Breeders win overall. Explora tried to block out the five-year-old around the final turn, but Prat deftly held off any challenges in the closing furlong as Ways and Means flew to a convincing win.
Friday’s races
Race 10: Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf
Winning Horse: Haffner
Winning Trainer: Aiden O’Brien
Winning Jockey: Ryan Moore
Purse: $1,000,000
Payout: $9.46
Race 9: Breeders’ Cup Juvenile
Winning Horse: Hughes
Winning Trainer: Bob Baffert
Winning Jockey: Flavien Prat
Purse: $2,000,000
Payout: $3.64
Race 8: John Deere Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf
Winning Horse: Sun Goddess
Winning Trainer: Aidan O’Brien
Winning Jockey: Ryan Moore
Purse: $1,000,000
Payout: $3.70
Recap: Aiden O’Brien is running out of superlatives to describe Sun Goddess. Having already won twice as much prize money (nearly $1.3 million) as the next closest horse in the field heading into this race, she has now won six straight and again edged out Green Empress. All four of Green Empress’ losses have come against Sun Goddess. O’Brien also extended his streak—his 193 Breeders’ Cup starters are most by a trainer and his 22 Breeders’ Cup victories is tied with Bob Baffert.
Sun Goddess (9) (IRE) ridden by Ryan Moore wins the John Deere Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (Grade 1) on Future Stars Friday at the Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky on October 30, 2026. (Tere Poplin/Eclipse Sportswire/Breeders’ Cup)
Race 7: Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies
Winning Horse: Emphatic
Winning Trainer: Brendan Walsh
Winning Jockey: Tyler Gaffalione
Purse: $2,000,000
Payout: $7.92
Recap: Walsh said Emphatic—the only filly in the field to win over the track and the 1 & 1/16th distance—was getting quicker by the day. Well, after this race, Emphatic has solidified her status as the division leader on the road to the Kentucky Oaks. Holding a huge lead coming down the stretch, the filly held off a late charge from runner-up Miss Monica to win by 4-1/2 lengths. The victory ends Walsh’s drought after going 0-for-13 at the Breeders’ Cup heading into Friday’s racing.
Race 6: Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint
Winning Horse: Libertango
Winning Trainer: George Boughey
Winning Jockey: Billy Loughnane
Purse: $1,000,000
Payout: $5.74
Recap: In an oddity, jockey Billy Loughnane was named the rider on Libertango not long before the first Breeders’ Cup race of the day, replacing Flavien Prat who was named. Loughnane told NBC that it came down to the wire to reach the required 117 pounds, with the help from a good dose of sauna time. “It’s been awful. I rode her out yesterday knowing someone else [Prat] was going to ride her today. … It was literally 45 minutes ago I was able to get [the weight] off.” It is the first Breeders’ Cup victory for Boughey and Loughnane.
Breeders’ Cup Attendance and Handle
2026: Keeneland — 81,604; $167,930,278
2025: Del Mar — 65,232; $180,036,799
2024: Del Mar — 67,418; $179,218,631
2023: Santa Anita Park — 109,624; $176,281,989
2022: Keeneland — 85,824; $189,060,373
2021: Del Mar — 47,089; $182,908,409
2020: Keeneland — No attendance reported due to COVID-19; $160,472,893
2019: Santa Anita Park — 109,054; $174,628,986
2018: Churchill Downs — 112,672; $157,445,841
2017: Del Mar — 70,420; $166,077,486
2016: Santa Anita — 118,484; $156,861,811
2015: Keeneland — 94,652; $149,869,035
2014: Santa Anita — 98,319; $151,158,813
2013: Santa Anita — 94,628; $160,704,877
2012: Santa Anita — 89,742; $144,272,332
2011: Churchill Downs — 105,820; $161,512,867
2010: Churchill Downs — 114,353; $173,857,697
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