Andrew Asquith highlights some of the best chances at the Breeders' Cup from the European contingent, including Blue Bolt and Notable Speech.
Libertango
Libertango has proven herself one of the best juvenile fillies around this year, producing a striking display when defeating Sun Goddess in the Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot, and then overcoming a tough draw and trip in the Lowther Stakes at York.
Sun Goddess exacted her revenge on Libertango in the Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket last time, but she lost little in defeat, succumbing only to Timeform’s highest-rated two-year-old in training, and her strong-travelling style and turn of foot will be tailormade for this track.
Libertango has fared well with the draw and, on form, she’s hard to oppose under a change of jockey – she’s at least 6lb clear of her rivals on Timeform weight-adjusted ratings.
Sun Goddess
Sun Goddess has been kept busy this year, but she has thrived on her racing, winning her last five starts, landing a big pot in a sales race at York and then two Group 1s in her last three starts.
Her performance in the Moyglare Stakes two starts ago earned her a lofty Timeform rating of 120, the highest of this season’s two-year-olds, and she wasn’t fazed by the drop to six furlongs in the Cheveley Park Stakes last time.
She has the chance to be a rare two-year-old to earn over £1million in prize money and, even with quite a high draw in stall 9, it is hard to see any of her opposition posing many problems if this isn’t one run too far.
Blue Bolt
Blue Bolt has enjoyed a flawless year so far, winning all six of her starts, the last four of those all at the highest level, defeating the reopposing Precise in the Falmouth Stakes, Prix Rothschild and Matron Stakes.
Her latest win came in the Sun Chariot Stakes at Newmarket, up against rivals she’d also beaten this year, and she defied cramped odds as you’d expect, producing one of her most taking displays of the season.
This will be her first try over further than a mile, but this sharp track will play to her strengths moving up in trip, while there’s also stamina on the dam’s side of her pedigree which suggests this trip should be within reach. She’s carried all before her in the fillies division this year and there’s no reason to start opposing her now.
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Notable Speech
Notable Speech is one of the best milers around and he stands out a mile on Timeform weight-adjusted ratings in the Breeders Cup Mile Presented By PDF.
He won the Lockinge in good style earlier in the year and, while he once again was below par at Royal Ascot, he has done little to suggests he’s at least as good as ever by winning the City of York Stakes and a repeat win in the Woodbine Mile last time.
That race proved the perfect prep for this 12 months ago, so it’s no surprise connections have opted to go down the same route, and he is very much the one to beat in his defence – indeed, he’s at least 7lb clear on Timeform weight-adjusted ratings.
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