2025 Breeders Cup Friday Preview & Tips – DS
2025 Breeders Cup Friday Preview
We did alright last Saturday with our 12/1 NAP Duran and 22/1 fancy Electric Mason both landing the place money with runner up finishes. This weekend we have one of Dave Stevos’ favourite (or should that be favorite) meetings of the year, his 2025 Breeders’ Cup Friday previews and tips are below.
9.45 – Juvenile Turf Sprint (Grade 1)
We are back at Del Mar for the second year running for this year’s Breeders’ Cup. First up on Friday is the Juvenile Turf Sprint and a full field of 14 will be lining up in the stalls. One of the few positive side effects of Irish and British breeders’ obsession with early speed is that horses from this side of the pond have dominated this contest in recent years.
British and Irish horses have won the last three renewals and last year, six of the first seven finishers were European trained. The one I am going to take a chance on at a big price is James Owen’s Aspect Island.
He started out running over 7f but dropping back in trip has elicited huge improvement from the son of Showcasing. He bolted up on his first try at 6f in a Yarmouth handicap on soft and he then ran a massive race on his first try at 5f in the G3 Cornwallis at Newmarket on quicker ground.
I like that this horse has experience of running around a bend and I like even more that he’s been handed a nice starting berth in stall 4. What I am not so happy about is that Frankie rides but hopefully, he proves me wrong. At 20/1, Aspect Island is the e/w pick.
2025 Breeders Cup Friday Tip: Aspect Island e/w @ 20/1
10.25 – Juvenile Fillies’ Dirt (Grade 1)
I am surprised that Explora isn’t a lot shorter than 7/2 for this race. She was extremely impressive when winning a Santa Anita G2 last time, relishing the step up to a mile. However, the one that appeals most at a bigger price has to be the Mark Glatt trained Le Wally.
First of all, she is a course winner having stayed on powerfully to get up in the dying strides to score here on debut over 5f. Secondly, she finished fast for a 1.5l third behind Explora and Bottle Of Rouge in a G1 over 7f here on her second start.
Explora did have her measure last time out at Santa Anita but she was far from disgraced in defeat and she will appreciate the return to this venue. If they go off too quick in front, she’ll hopefully be doing her best work at the finish and at odds of 25/1, the daughter of Constitution is taken to stay on late for a place.
2025 Breeders Cup Friday Tip: LA Wally e/w @ 25/1 NAP
11.05 – Juvenile Fillies’ Turf (1m Grade 1)
The European fillies usually feature prominently in the betting for this contest but the first name I look out for this race is Chad Brown. We backed Hard To Justify who won it for him in 2023 but unfortunately, he doesn’t have a runner this year.
Aidan O’Brien has won two of the last three (with favourites) and Precise is going to be a short price for him here after her dominant Newmarket win in the Fillies’ Mile. However, it won’t be plain sailing from her very wide draw in stall 13 so I am going to take a chance on one at bigger odds.
One that definitely seems overpriced from a nice draw in stall 4 is the Godolphin filly, Infinite Sky. By Not This Time, this filly got off the mark at the second attempt in a 1m Kentucky Downs maiden in September. Her trainer Brad Cox wasted no time in stepping her up in grade and she rewarded his faith with an excellent 1l second in the Grade 2 Jessamine Stakes at Keeneland.
Traffic Problems
In that race she didn’t get the clearest of runs but she finished off with a right rattle. A length in front of her was Imaginationthelady, who enjoyed a much smoother trip, and I believe that Infinite Sky would have gone very close to beating her with a clear run.
Given this filly’s patient run style, a degree of luck will be required here but given how little separated her and Imaginationthelady last time out, I’m not sure she should be 40/1 given that rival is chalked up at 14s. At the prices, Infinite Sky has to be worth chancing e/w. Hopefully she gets a clear run and there are no excuses.
2025 Breeders Cup Friday Tip: Infinite Sky e/w @ 40/1
11.45 – Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Dirt (1m Grade 1)
This race has thrown up quite a few surprise winners in recent years. Bob Baffert has won it more times than any other trainer, with Citizen Bull giving him a sixth success here last year (he also trained the second and the fourth).
This year he runs two, the unbeaten Brant who is 10/3 and the 33/1 poke Litmus Test, who has over 4l to find with his stablemate on their meeting in the G1 Futurity here back in September. However, they’ll both have to go some to beat Todd Pletcher’s unbeaten prospect Ted Noffey, who has won his two G1s by a cumulative distance of over 11 lengths.
The most appealing long shot in here is Comport. Trained by Waterford man Eddie Kenneally, he has racked up form figures of 1212 so far and he is the most experienced horse in the field. By Collected, runner up in the 2017 Classic, he hasn’t got the most illustrious of pedigrees but he has already proven himself to be a useful horse and he deserves to have a go against the big boys.
He was narrowly denied in a Churchill Downs G3 on his last outing, his first run at 1m and his first go in stakes company. A prominent racer, he has been handed a grand draw in stall 4 and Tyler Gaffalione maintains the partnership. At odds of 33/1, hopefully Comport can sneak into the frame.
2025 Breeders Cup Friday Tip: Comport e/w @ 33/1
12.25 – Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (1m Grade 1)
Aidan O’Brien has a stellar record in this race. He has won it seven times in total and the last three renewals in a row. Gstaad is his representative this year and he holds outstanding form claims, though the draw gods have not been kind to him. Last year, Henri Matisse overcame a wide draw in 12 to score so it’s not impossible to win from out wide but it does make things a little more difficult for the 6/5 jolly.
The one I’ll take a chance on at a monster price here is the twice raced maiden, Let’s Be Frank. He’s trained by Michael Maker, who won this race in 2020 with the unconsidered outsider Fire At Will. His two runners in this race since have run really nice races at huge prices, including the 66/1 poke Gaslight Dancer who was 1.5l off a place in sixth from stall 14 in 2022.
Finished Strongly
Let’s Be Frank’s two runs have come at Belmont and in both races he finished off with a right rattle after getting himself too far back. In the G2 he contested last time he flew home for a 1l third behind Bottas and Heeere’s Johnny and if can manage to travel a bit closer to the pace here, I think he could be capable of turning that form around, especially if they go a good clip from the outset.
Given how his last three runners in this race have performed, I don’t think Michael Maker would be running this son of Liam’s Map unless he thought he could be competitive. He’ll hopefully be finishing off stronger than most, at odds of 66/1 he looks well worth chancing e/w.
