Nic Doggett details where, when and how you can watch the 2025 Breeders' Cup and picks out his best bet.
When: Saturday November 1
Saturday's card has a start time of 7pm.
How Can I Watch It?
Sky Sports Racing and Racing TV will show live coverage of Saturday's Breeders' Cup.
ITV will show three races from Saturday's card including the Breeders' Cup Distaff (9.01), Breeders' Cup Turf (9.41) and Breeders' Cup Classic (10.25).
Where: Del Mar Racecourse, California
Where ‘the turf meets the surf’, there has been racing at Del Mar since the great Bing Crosby ceremoniously opened the course in 1937 and – with a capacity of over 40,000 – is the second largest racecourse in America.
Located around 20 miles from San Diego, Del Mar’s dirt track is a left-handed one-mile oval with chutes for 7-furlong and 10-furlong races, while the turf course is a seven-furlong oval with a diagonal straightaway chute for 8.5-furlong races and 9-furlong races.
It’s best to be drawn low, but a slow start from any stall position is likely to prove very costly. Horses often sweep wide and finish strongly down the middle on the dirt track.
Del Mar’s Breeders’ Cup history
Del Mar has only hosted Breeders’ Cups since 2017 but has become a regular fixture since with events also taking place there in 2021, 2024 and now this year.
Notable European success in 2017 included Mendelssohn in the Juvenile Turf, Wuheida in the Filly & Mare Turf and Talismanic in the Turf, though the highlight for the home crowd was undoubtedly Gun Runner’s win in the closing Classic.
There was further success in 2021 for Godolphin, with Modern Games winning the Juvenile Turf, Space Blues landing the Mile, and Yibir striking in the Turf, while Oisin Murphy enjoyed his own Breeders’ Cup success on the Japanese-trained Marche Lorraine in the Distaff.
Last year was Ireland’s, with Friday featuring wins for Magnum Force in the Juvenile Turf Sprint, Lake Victoria in the Juvenile Fillies Turf and Henri Matisse in the Juvenile Turf. The British-trained Starlust in the Turf Sprint and Rebel’s Romance in the Turf both scoring on Saturday added to a feeling of a European win overall.
Leading European fancies
Saturday
The Turf Sprint is a rare beast as it features a non-European runner as favourite, with Flying Five winner Arizona Blaze currently second in the betting behind the Philip D’Amato-trained Motorious who was second behind Starlust in the race 12 months ago.
The first three in the betting for the Mile are all trained in Europe, with Prix Jacques Le Marois runner-up Notable Speech clear having since prevailed at Woodbine. Charlie Appleby will bid for further Breeders’ Cup success in the closing Filly & Mare Turf and has two live chances with Cinderella’s Dream and Diamond Rain, part of a very strong European challenge.
However, the race of the night from a European point of view should be the Turf which sees Arc runner-up Minnie Hauk attempt to usurp reigning champion Rebel’s Romance, with Goliath and Amiloc leading the charge of a further seven runners trained in Europe.
What is Frankie Dettori riding?
With six rides in total over the two days, Wimbledon Hawkeye looks the pick of Dettori’s British-trained runners for all he faces some stiff opposition in the Turf. His overall form is a notch below the best, but he has a recent win in North America to his name which must count as a plus.
Things may need to pan out perfectly for Khaadem in the Sprint – as they did when he won last time under Dettori – but it would be no great surprise to see an unlikely success given his rider’s flare for the dramatic, while Dettori’s final ride comes on the Japanese-trained Argine in the Mile. She’s certainly a notch above one of Dettori’s most memorable winners Fujiyama Crest and who would bet against the rider creating another eruption from the crowd as seen at Ascot on September 28, 1996?
Nic Doggett’s best bet
Rebel’s Romance – Breeders’ Cup Turf (9.41 GMT)
We’ve seen time and time again how important this meeting is to the Godolphin setiup, and although it won’t be easy to give Minnie Hauk 7lb, REBEL’S ROMANCE is fancied to retain his Turf crown.
His form this term is much more consistent than that of Goliath (who beat him in last year’s King George), and he was short of room at a crucial stage when only third behind Calandagan in this year’s renewal.
That form has been boosted by the two ahead of him, and he has won his two starts since (including in America), so looks primed for one last hurrah and a third Breeders' Cup success. The only other horse to have achieved that feat was Goldikova.
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