By Steve Sherack
LEXINGTON, KY – Led by unbeaten sensation Flightline (Tapit), the 39th Breeders' Cup World Championships–consisting of 14 races with purses and awards totaling more than $31 million– return to Keeneland for a third time with a two-day run beginning Friday.
Sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-70s–does it get any better than that?–are expected for the 'Future Stars Friday' program. Cave Rock (Arrogate) will put his unbeaten mark on the line for Bob Baffert in the Juvenile while Chocolate Gelato (Practical Joke) headlines a wide-open renewal of the Juvenile Fillies. There will also be a trio of Breeders' Cup grass races for 2-year-olds with Godolphin's European invader Silver Knott (GB) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) leading the way in the featured Juvenile Turf.
Some of the top storylines for Saturday's absolutely stacked program–there's currently a 40% chance of afternoon showers in the forecast–include: Flightline's quest for glory in the $6-million Classic; a showdown between Todd Pletcher-trained stablemates Malathaat (Curlin) and Nest (Curlin) in the Distaff; War Like Goddess (English Channel) taking on the boys in the Turf; the unexpected return of the talented Domestic Spending (GB) (Kingman {GB}) off a 14-month layoff in the Mile; and Golden Pal (Uncle Mo) shooting for a third win at the Championships in the Turf Sprint.
The Breeders' Cup will be televised live domestically on NBC, Peacock, USA Network, and FanDuel TV.
For wall-to-wall coverage of all 14 Championship races, click here for Friday's preview edition and click here for Saturday's preview edition.
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