McKinzie Retains Top Spot In Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings

Coming off a very quiet week in the Classic Division, the latest Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings remain virtually the same as the results from last week’s poll. Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman’s 4-year-old McKinzie leads the Top Ten, with the next six positions staying intact from Sept. 3.

The 4-year-old McKinzie (276 votes), winner of both the Alysheba Stakes (G2) and the Whitney (G1) for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, holds a commanding lead over Godophin’s 5-year-old two-time Dubai World Cup (G1) winner Thunder Snow (IRE) (174 votes), who is in second-place. Thunder Snow is followed by Centennial Farm’s 4-year-old Preservationist (166 votes) in third.

The two highest rated 3-year-olds in the Classic Rankings are next, with William S. Farish’s Code of Honor (162 votes), winner of the Runhappy Travers Stakes (G1), in fourth place and Gary and Mary West’s TVG.com Haskell Invitational (G1) winner Maximum Security (140 votes) in fifth.

Trained by Jason Servis, Maximum Security, disqualified from first place for interference in the Kentucky Derby (G1), worked three furlongs handily in 40.55 last Friday (Sept. 6) at Parx in preparation of the Pennsylvania Derby (G1) on Sept. 21, which will be televised live on NBC as a part of the “Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series: Win and You’re In – Presented by America’s Best Racing.”

WinStar Farm and Head of Plains Partners’ 5-year-old Yoshida (JPN) (111 votes) is in sixth place, followed by TVG Pacific Classic (G1) winner Higher Power (79 votes) in seventh.

Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable’s 4-year-old Vino Rosso (74 votes) is now in eighth place, garnering five more votes than Robert LaPenta, Madaket Stables, Siena Farm and Twin Creeks Racing Stables’ 4-year-old Catholic Boy (69 votes) in ninth. Vino Rosso and Catholic Boy were tied in eighth place last week.

Gary and Mary West’s Game Winner (59 votes), who won last year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) and was voted Champion 2-year-old Male, retains the 10th place spot this week.

The Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings, a weekly rating of the top 10 horses in contention for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) at Santa Anita Park, Nov. 2, are determined by a panel of leading Thoroughbred racing media, horseplayers and members of the Breeders’ Cup Racing Directors/Secretaries Panel. Rankings are announced each week through Oct. 15 and can be found on the Breeders’ Cup website along with the list of voting members.

In the Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings, each voter ranks horses by assigning their allotted votes on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 system in descending order.

Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings Top 10 – Sept. 10, 2019 *

The post McKinzie Retains Top Spot In Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.