We asked legendary jockey Steve Cauthen for his early thoughts on the big races.

Distaff:

"Azeri has come back as good as ever and it seems like her perfect distance is a two-turn mile and a furlong. The Distaff sets up perfect for her. Storm Flag Flying and Ashado are the class fillies up against her as they have consistently run in the best races. They are both going to be difficult to beat but if Azeri can jump out and control the race as she normally does from either out in front or just off the pace, then she will be very tough to beat. She is obviously one of the best fillies or mares we have seen for a long time."

Juvenile Fillies:

"There are some solid performers in this but Sweet Catomine looks like she has continued improvement in her. If she carries through with that, she could be a standout. I don't know a great deal about Aidan O'Brien's Mona Lisa but she is by Giant's Causeway and anything that he considers bringing over to the United States would have a chance. It is always difficult to bring two year olds over but it can be done and nobody can probably do it better than him."

Mile:

"Six Perfections is obviously a very good filly and has run quite well this season. She deserves to be one of the favourites as she tries to win the race again. Nothing To Lose at this point would be one of her main dangers and has just come back from a convincing win at Keeneland. He has been training well in the build-up to the race from what I have heard. Musical Chimes is a decent filly and run some good races out in California."

Sprint:

"This is always a race that sees horses that have tried longer trips and when they have proved they don't have the stamina, they drop back to sprinting. Bobby Frankel has a couple of nice runners in Cajun Beat and Midas Eyes. They look tough sorts while Clock Stopper consistently runs well in good contests. A lot of it comes down to the draw and who gets a good break and decent position early. The race can be over as early as the first two strides in America. If you get in a bad spot you never get a shot."

Filly & Mare Turf

"There is an article in the Thoroughbred Daily News on Tuesday that says that Ed Dunlop's Ouija Board will opt for this race and that is a smart move. She has got class, no problems with stamina and as long she adapts to the warm weather, there should be no reason why she can't pull it off. This has not been a year where there has been an outstanding turf filly in America."

Juvenile:

"Roman Ruler is from the first crop of Fusaichi Pegasus and has really done nothing wrong although he was beaten once out in California. That looked like a top-class event and the two horses that fought out the finish drew clear from the rest of the field. Trainer Bob Baffert then decided to put blinkers on the horse to make him concentrate a little more and they if they do the trick then he will be the one to beat no question. Consolidator won nicely at Keeneland and you can't count him out while Proud Accolade won nicely at Belmont. They have all been taking their steps up but this will be the first time they meet for the big dance."

Turf:

"Kitten's Joy has been really impressive all year long and he has beaten everything that has been put in front of him, including older horses on one occasion. He looks a solid horse and is a three-year-old that could basically take on the world. Magistretti has done very well since moving to America and won very well at Belmont two starts ago. He comes here in good form and trainer Patrick Biancone is confident that he will run a top-class race. He is worried about Kitten's Joy but should have every chance. Powerscourt was unfortunate to lose the Arlington Million in the stewards' room but that is just one of those things. In the heat of a race like that he just drifted and impeded one of the other runners but was obviously the best horse on the day."

Classic:

"Pleasantly Perfect has done everything and won the Classic last year. He went over to Dubai which is tough for the American horses but Richard Mandella has taken his time to get him back. He won his last race at Del Mar and has been prepared again for this contest. He is obviously the one to beat again. You can never count out a horse like Funny Cide as he is such a tough competitor, which he showed in his last race. He looked like he was beaten coming into the home stretch after dropping back but fought back and won. He has been traning well and looks sure to be right there but might not be able to quite pull it off if Pleasantly Perfect is at his best - which he seems to be."

Steve Cauthen was talking to David John

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