Everyone remembers the Preakness. The way we saw the filly dismantle the boys at her will.. The way she dug in and held her ground. Well, you may not get to see her on the biggest stage of racing.

I know, it is our loss. Racing’s loss.. History’s loss… Hell, I don’t know of any winners. When you keep Rachel Alexandra out of the Breeders’ Cup, you are holding back one of the bright stars of the game.

If you make the move and decide not to run her on the “plastic” as Jess Jackson puts it, you will draw many people to scratch their heads about this move.

She will reappear at Belmont this Saturday in the Mother Goose. That is the good news. Jackson, who in all accounts is a man of the game, wants to run her against the males possibly in the Haskell and the Travers later this summer. But this weekend will be dedicated to raising awareness for Susan G. Komen for breast cancer, by giving away 10,000 bracelets.

As a fan, I would love to see her hook up on B/C Day and do battle. She is truly a sight to behold, and we are keeping her from the public. The Jacksons regret running Curlin on the synthetic. But, maybe she will take differently to the surface.  After all, she is 1 for 1 on synthetic surfaces (she won a race at Keeneland last year).  Just give it a chance. Try her out for a few works, and we will be satisfied.

I would love to see Rachel and Zenyatta put on the gloves and do battle.  This would be a race to be remembered. I sure hope they hook up, and do battle. If not on B/C Day, then on a national stage. Racing needs our grand gals, and to keep them apart will only keep us guessing.

I sure hope he reconsiders. Santa Anita is a fine oval. Plenty of runners have made the transition. Just think it over, and don’t wait too long.. The race will be here before you know it.

The Breeders’ Cup and the Oak Tree Racing Association are in negotiations about the size of Oak Tree’s financial responsibility for the shortfall at this year’s Breeders’ Cup.

The amount that Oak Tree could owe the Breeders’ Cup may be in the millions of dollars, according to sources that asked not to be named.

Sherwood Chillingworth, executive vice president of Oak Tree, would not comment on the specifics of the negotiations.

“We are still working on the numbers with the Breeders’ Cup,” Chillingworth said on December 16, “so it is too early to comment with any certainty.”

Oak Tree is a not-for-profit, non-dividend-paying group of California horse owners and breeders who have been operating a fall meet at Santa Anita, under a lease arrangement, since 1969. The 2008 Breeders’ Cup, run over two days in October, was the fourth time Oak Tree has staged the multi-million-dollar event since its inception in 1984.

Jack Robbins, president of Oak Tree, said that the association showed a profit of about $500,000 from the 2003 Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita. Oak Tree’s profits are spent on racing-related organizations, projects and charities.

A source said that Oak Tree’s guarantee to the Breeders’ Cup for 2008 was about $5 million. Apparently revenues for the two days fell far short of that, perhaps by as much as $3 million. The Breeders’ Cup’s projected revenues for 2009 will be down about $10 million compared to 2008, said Greg Avioli, president of the Breeders’ Cup . Included in the estimated downturn is a $3 million drop in revenues for the 2009 Breeders’ Cup, which also will be held at Santa Anita under the aegis of Oak Tree. The 2008 Breeders’ Cup was the first to be run over a synthetic surface instead of dirt, and 2008-09 will mark the first time that the Breeders’ Cup has been run at the same track in consecutive years.

Like Chillingworth, Robbins declined to comment in detail about the losses incurred at the 2008 Breeders’ Cup. Avioli referred questions about the shortfall to Peter Land, his marketing chief.

“Our contractual relationship with Oak Tree is confidential, so we won’t be commenting,” Land said.

Recently, citing financial considerations, the Breeders’ Cup announced that it was discontinuing the supplementary stakes program, which called for the Breeders’ Cup to pump about $5 million a year in purse money into 100 races at 40 racetracks. A few days later, the Breeders’ Cup, under pressure from breeders, recanted and said that the 2009 supplementary program would still be in place.

The 2008 Breeders’ Cup, only the second to be run over two days, offered a record 14 races worth $25.5 million. Attendance at Santa Anita totaled 82,588, and overall betting surpassed $130 million. Only one other Breeders’ Cup has gone over $130 million in betting, at Churchill Downs in 2006, but that was an eight-race, one-day event, which presumably cost less to stage. Purses at Churchill were approximately $6 million less than what they were this year. Typically, most of the handle that isn’t returned to bettors is shared by the host track, the state, horsemen and off-track betting sites and hubs. In California, tracks receive about half as much from off-track bets as they do from bets placed on-track.

The Breeders’ Cup has conceded that ticket pricing and policies for the 2008 event were a mistake. At one point, the Breeders’ Cup turned over its allotment of tickets to Oak Tree because they were not able to sell them. The cheapest reserved seat in the grandstand sold for $200, which was for both days. It cost $600 to sit in four sections of the grandstand. It is commonplace for racing executives to say that their prices for top races — the Kentucky Derby, the Breeders’ Cup — are comparable to championship events in other sports, but their thinking is misguided, because in racing, unlike team sports, many fans incur betting losses after they pay to get in.

“. . . When we finalized our ticket plans and pricing in March, the economy was much stronger,” Land wrote in The Blood-Horse magazine after the Breeders’ Cup. “That being said, in retrospect, I wish we had provided more lower-priced options for fans and for horsemen, and we also should have allowed more people to choose to come on one day rather than requiring the two-day purchase.”

It is likely that the ticketing strategy will be different at Santa Anita in 2009. Early on for the 2008 Breeders’ Cup, Chillingworth battled with Breeders’ Cup officials over pricing, including the general-admission cost that entitled fans to walk-around privileges at the track. Now both the Breeders’ Cup and Oak Tree have millions of reasons to do better by the fans.

Five days after it announced it was suspending its North American Stakes program, Breeders’ Cup has apparently reversed itself and decided to fund the program for 2009, according to two members of its board.

The organization has come under intense criticism from breeders across North America, who already had contributed stallion and foal nomination fees to Breeders’ Cup, with the tacit agreement that Breeders’ Cup would help fund 100-120 stakes at about 40 racetracks across the continent, as the organization has done since its inception 25 years ago.

According to the two members who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the funding will come from about $30 million that Breeders’ Cup has in its coffers from nominations collected through the years. Breeders believe it’s their money they have contributed to Breeders’ Cup.

An investment committee of Breeders’ Cup makes the decisions on where to invest funds, and the 13-member board of directors has say over whether and how the funds will be allocated.

Breeders’ Cup senior vice president of operations Pam Blatz-Murff said on Dec. 16th, she could not confirm that the decision to not fund the stakes program for 2009 had been reversed. “As you can imagine, there has been quite a bit of discussion since the suspension, but as of now it is still suspended,” she said.

Members of the Breeders’ Cup board of members and trustees were upset that the decision to do away with the stakes program was made without consultation of the members and trustees. Prominent breeders had threatened not to nominate their foals to the program unless the decision to suspend funding of the stakes program was reversed. In addition, at least one member of the board of members and trustees had threatened to resign, if the original decision to halt funding stood.

In a Dec. 11th memo, Blatz-Murff said the organization was projecting a reduction in overall Breeders’ Cup revenue of more than $10 million next year due to the global economic downturn and a likely shortfall in nominations revenue. It goes on to state that in order to maintain the Breeders’ Cup World Championships purses at their current level of $25.5 million, television and marketing spending will be slashed by more than $5 million. In the last two years, the Championships have expanded from one day to two, and from eight races to 14.

Previously, according to the memo, Breeders’ Cup had committed to allocating funds for 2009 races, but now those allocations are suspended.

The 2008 Breeders’ Cup Stakes program featured 100 races and allocated $5 million in Breeders’ Cup funds to existing stakes across the United States and Canada. For the past 13 years, Breeders’ Cup and 40 racetracks and racing associations, have participated jointly in the program that provides additional purse money to Breeders’ Cup-nominated horses.

Total purses for the 2008 program exceeded $25 million. On the week of Dec. 7th, the Breeders’ Cup board unanimously decided to leave purses for the two-day Championships at their 2008 level of $25.5 million. Some critics suggested the funding for the broader stakes program should come out of purse cuts for the World Championships.

Two weeks have passed to reflect on Breeders’ Cup weekend, and it’s time to think about what to make of the contestants that have not retired, and will begin appearing in the entries once again.

Three general handicapping rules come into play:

1. When you spot an effort where horses were clearly all-out in the stretch, play against those horses next time out.
2. When you see horses that never got to strut their stuff due to circumstances beyond their control, play those horses the next time they race.
3. When you see an extreme bias, play against the winners the next time they race, and take a long look at quality runners that ran too poorly to believe that it was a true reflection of their capability.

This year’s Breeders’ Cup produced all three occurrences. Analysis of the fourteen races shows that only a handful of runners ran improved races, and most ran worse than their previous efforts.

A Pro-Ride synthetic surface affected the outcome of every Breeders’ Cup race not run on the turf. Horses won using a “slow early, late rally” running style in all races except for the slow-paced Juvenile, where the first three finishers ran 1-2-3 from start to finish. Winners Raven’s Pass, Midnight Lute, Albertus Maximus, Zenyatta, Stardom Bound, Ventura, and Muhannak each won with a style that allowed them to rally from far back entering the far turn, to win going away. While this style may be ideal on many synthetic tracks, it is not an advantageous running style for just about any regular dirt surface in North America. If any of these runners return to the races on the dirt in Florida, Louisiana, New York, or Kentucky, the late-rally style will go from an advantage to a disadvantage. Similarly, any front-runner that faded badly on the new Pro-Ride surface, has a legitimate excuse and should be considered as a contender.

Pro-Ride aside, it is a good rule of thumb that Breeders’ Cup champions will not run quite as well in their first post–Breeders’ Cup race. These runners were usually “all out” in their races, implying that their efforts are as good as they can give. Each was asked for everything in the tank, on a day when their trainers had every reason to get their horses to give their all-out best. This was probably the biggest challenge any of these horses will ever face.

It remains to be seen if Curlin will return. If he does, it stands to reason that his powerful wins in the 2007 Breeders’ Cup Classic and other top races last year, are efforts he can no longer produce in Grade One company. His strong efforts in the Triple Crown races, the Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1), and Arkansas Derby (G2), all showed similar agility and resolve. Since his triumph in Dubai, however, he has won three of five starts over various surfaces, but with decidedly lower speed figures.

Even the quality of the competition he beat was closer to Grade Three, rather than Grade One company. He may not have produced a top effort on Pro-Ride, but even if the race had been run on conventional dirt, there were reasons to expect him to run a rating closer to his more recent races, rather than the monster rating he posted in last year’s Classic. The Dubai trip had taken a lot out of many past athletes—including Cigar—and Curlin was no exception. If he runs in the Clark Handicap (G2), or returns as a five-year-old, he may not be the same horse that was once all but unbeatable.

Only the two-year-olds are likely to move forward over time. But the two juvenile champs face tougher challenges ahead. As distances get longer and they meet more seasoned foes, the wins will not come so easily. The next time they race they are going to be over-bet. Stardom Bound is clearly tops among the fillies, but Midshipman shows no such dominance over the colts. Expect the colt division to remain contentious right through the Triple Crown next year.

On the turf, the two-year-olds Bittel Road and Grand Adventure, are much more talented than their tenth- and eleventh-place finishes in the Juvenile Turf suggest. Trying to win on the Santa Anita turf course from post eleven and twelve was all but impossible. As three-year-olds, they will be major forces in turf racing. In fact, most of the juveniles can be expected to move forward from the four juvenile races, with many of the participants headed for bigger and better success down the Triple Crown trail. These great expectations apply not just to the winners—there are high hopes for many of the participants, and all of them are still maturing.

What to make of Well Armed and other Grade One winners that ran ten or twenty lengths up the track? When horses proven as win contenders at the Grade One level, run that badly on a big day, it’s forgivable if there are valid reasons for the misstep. Well Armed, for instance, had a bad trip and also couldn’t keep up with the quick mile-race pace, considering he was used to the paces of races run beyond one mile. That’s a legitimate excuse. Look to bet these types of horses when their trainers find them races to restore their confidence. Chances are that they will return to their competitive ways. The last thing the connections want is a second clobbering. The spot for their return is likely to be chosen with extra care and consideration (as opposed to simply aiming at the next high-priced stakes on the schedule). These bounce-backs are probably the best betting value you’ll get on these stakes runners.

Requirements to Play the Post Breeders’ Cup analysis:

1. Any front runner that faded badly on the new Pro-Ride surface has a legitimate excuse.
2. It is a good rule of thumb that Breeders’ Cup champions will not run quite as well in their first post–Breeders’ Cup race. These runners were usually “all out” in their Breeders’ Cup races, and are likely to bounce or at least slightly regress.
3. Top quality horses that ran completely up the track are likely to return in spots where they can restore their confidence. A trainer of a talented runner will want to avoid another debacle at all costs.
4. Juveniles can be expected to improve from the four juvenile races, with many of the participants headed for bigger and better success down the Triple Crown trail—not just the winners.

If you had to pick just one thing, one, about this years Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita, what would it be? I know, that is a tricky question. But one worth pondering…

You could tell me how the day kicked off with Muhannak and Patrick Smullen paying $26.20, and proving the Europeans were for real.

It could be watching Richard Migliore ride Desert Code smoke them on a runner runner who paid $75 to win the Turf Sprint.

Albertus Maximus and Garrett Gomez getting one of two wins on the card. This rider left the past, with all of his troubles, in the sunset and his magic in the saddle.

Midshipmen and Go-Go getting their picture taken again. What a run indeed!

Donativum and “Flying Frankie Dettori” spanking them in the Juvenile Turf.

Could it be Conduit proving the Euros love California in the Turf?

The $5 million dollar question would be what happened to Curlin. He looked so good at the top of the lane, and the calvary just kept coming. Don’t knock this guy. He could run on broken glass. When Steve Assmussen spoke during the draw, he didn’t have that glimmer in his eyes. I think Curlin was as tuned as a fine instrument should be. I think the trainer is as good as gold. I just think the synthetics don’t fit. Or maybe, just maybe, he didn’t like it on this one day.

But the moment of the day that stuck with me was Goldikova.

Goldikova (IRE) was ridden by Olivier Peslier, and trained by Freddie Head. You remember him don’t you? He rode a runner by the name of Miesque. When they still mention the runners name, players can still see that masterful ride. He became the first trainer to ride and train a BC winner.

On this day, the fillies were not suppose to beat the boys. They ran the day before. But Goldikova had the magic. She came in from Long Champ in France and ran against Zarkava. This was a runner who retired earlier, but gave us a glimpse of what Europe had to offer.

While stalking off the pace of Whatsthescript, Daytona, and Kip Deville, Goldikova lacked room down the lane. I was getting mad and about ready to do the ticket tearing dance, and all of a sudden a glimmer of daylight that you could throw a playing card into opened up. She jumped it, and the clouds parted for her. She was on her way to the wire, and into history.

The foreigners won five on the day, and they love coming out to California. For these two days it wasn’t for the surf, but for the money. I enjoyed watching her ply her trade. She beat the boys. She beat them on their turf at their game. That was my moment. Which one was yours?

Watching the Breeders’ Cup this year was worth the trip. I usually hunker down after making all of my wagers in front of my TV and catch all of the action. I love the interviews, human interest stories and the coverage. This year was different for me.

I liken this year to watching someone eat a steak, or having a sizzling beauty brought to your table with all of the extras that make it a meal to remember. I am sure glad to have had the opportunity to sit at the big table.

The weather was picture perfect. You couldn’t have asked for a better day. The crowd was a little smaller than I expected, but the track was ready for anything that came through the doors. The back drop of the San Gabriel’s, the history of the track and the competition set to go post-ward could make a bulldog break a chain. In race fan terms, I was excited as hell……

On day one if you could ask for more than watching two wonder runners, you may have been asking for a lot. The ladies did not disappoint…

In the 2-year-old Bessemer Trust Juvenile Fillies, a grey blur by the name of Stardom Bound was just that. Mike Smith was aboard one of his three wins for the day, and made a move on the turn like wind blowing through the trees. She made it look as if they were all tied to a pole when she danced right on by 5-wide and opened up on the field at will. Remember her name, you will hear from her in the future.

Being on hand to see Zenyatta was incredible. She came in undefeated, and left the track that way. Once again, Mike Smith made the fans glad they were on hand. She scorched The Breeders’ Cup Ladies Classic like nobody’s business. The way she glided over the 1 1/8 made you wonder just how good could she be?

Day one was suppose to be an appetizer. It was intended to be the Oaks to the Derby. But on this day, we may have seen just a little more. More than we could have expected. It was one day, but it will be discussed for a long time.

Horse of the Year Curlin (Smart Strike), who finished fourth as the defending champion in Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), and the other Breeders’ Cup horses trained by Steve Asmussen, came out of their races in good order. They will leave Santa Anita early Monday morning for a flight to Louisville, Kentucky, where they are scheduled to arrive at approximately 11 a.m. (EDT).

Asmussen said that he does not know whether Curlin will be retired to stud duty or continue in training.

“Nothing has been mentioned to this point about what is next for him, other than those travel arrangements,” he said.

Late Sunday morning, Asmussen was scheduled to call Curlin’s majority owner Jess Jackson.

“I’ll talk with Mr. Jackson about the condition in which he came out of the race, confirm with him his schedule of leaving and when he arrives in Kentucky,” Asmussen said. “I think that will be the extent of it. I’ll touch base once he’s in Kentucky about his condition upon arrival. The conversations will go from there.”

Asmussen said he would not speculate on what decision Jackson has made about the four-year-old colt.

“I am not privy to and have not had the conversations about the questions that are obviously fixing to be asked,” Asmussen said.

Curlin walked, bathed and jogged on the road near Asmussen’s barn Sunday morning.

Asmussen smiled when it was suggested that Curlin may repeat as Horse of the Year even after his fourth-place finish to Raven’s Pass (Elusive Quality) in the Classic.

“With Curlin, nothing is a consolation. We’re just proud of who he is,” Asmussen said. “He’s the first North American-based horse over $10 million and he’s just had a remarkable run.

“Just like taking him out and jogging him on the road this morning, he’s that good, he’s that horse. To do what he does and come back the way that he is, is extremely special in this day and age. He’s been a throwback from the beginning and he’s still that horse. He’s extremely durable mentally and physically, a very special horse. Our affections for him are not going to waver.”

Asmussen said it didn’t take him long to realize that Curlin did not appear to be comfortable running over the Pro-Ride synthetic surface.

“Watching the race first time by, I was very concerned,” he said. “It kind of looked like the Man o’ War S. [G1], where he finished second in his only attempt on turf. He was off the bridle. Very concerned.”

“I think he had to struggle to get where he was, the first time by,” Asmussen said. “When he went under the wire the first time, he was further back and (jockey) Robby (Albarado) was nudging him forward. He works harder to go over it than he works to go over the dirt.

“Initially, I was disappointed that he didn’t win. Just not selfishly, but simply concerned how the horse feels and how the people with him do from that point.”

Asmussen did not make any apologies about the performance.

“No excuses necessary, none required. That’s what makes racing great,” he said. “No disrespect for a Breeders’ Cup winner. He (Raven’s Pass) beat a talented field and he deserves the congratulations that go with it. It was an outstanding job with an outstanding horse.”

Richard Dutrow Jr., the controversial trainer of Kentucky Derby and Preakness champion Big Brown, spent much of the summer firing verbal jabs at Curlin. He is not about to stop, not after his rival finished a disappointing fourth in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Saturday, to raise questions about his legacy and whether he can repeat as Horse of the Year.

As Dutrow sees it, strong arguments can be made for Big Brown, Curlin and unbeaten filly Zenyatta when the time comes to vote for Horse of the Year. “I think we have as good a chance as those two,” he said.

Jess Jackson, Curlin’s owner, contends that his 4-year-old had nothing left to prove, even in his bid to repeat in the Classic. “He’s already a champion,” he said. “I don’t think this loss diminishes his chance to be Horse of the Year at all.

“Big Brown ought to be the top 3-year-old, but we went to every race, and that’s the spirit of the sport.”

Injury-plagued Big Brown, eased in the Belmont Stakes in a failed bid for the Triple Crown that devastated racing fans, was retired after he was hurt in a workout a few weeks ago before his eagerly anticipated showdown with Curlin at the 25th Breeders’ Cup.

When trainer John Shirreffs was asked if there is a case to be made for his filly Zenyatta, his response could not have been more emphatic: “Absolutely. With her being undefeated in three Grade I’s before the Ladies’ Classic, she’s really proven herself.”

Zenyatta improved to 7-for-7 this season with a dazzling last-to-first move Friday in the Ladies’ Classic. She is unbeaten in nine career starts, with all but one of those successes occurring on a synthetic surface.

The tall and imposing Zenyatta can count ex-jockey Gary Stevens among her fans. “She could win on broken glass, it doesn’t matter,” he said.

Curlin’s ability to respond to his first test on Pro-Ride was a question leading up to the Classic. Jackson debated long and hard whether to run. He insisted afterward that he was not making excuses for a loss but said, “This track was for turf runners or runners who had been on it before.”

Curlin’s only blemish in six previous starts this season was a runner-up finish to Red Rocks in his only turf try at Belmont Park in July.

He traveled halfway around the world and routed his competition by 7¾ lengths in the $6 million Dubai World Cup at the end of March, then held his form when he rolled by 4¼ lengths in the Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs in mid-June. He earned consecutive wins in the Woodward and the Jockey Club Gold Cup to become the first North American horse to roll into the $10 million dollar club.

There are many ways to look at this year’s Breeders’ Cup World Championships from a business and sporting standpoint, and not all examinations are going to lead to the same conclusion.

The most important question is whether or not the 2008 Breeders’ Cup was a success or failure. Was the decision to hold the Cup at a racetrack with a synthetic surface a wise move? Has the expansion of the world championships from eight races in one day to 14 races in two days helped or diluted the event?

How is success or failure of the Breeders’ Cup measured? Is it attendance, pari-mutuel handle, revenue, TV ratings, racing results, international participation?

It’s difficult to measure some of these factors because the circumstances of the Breeders’ Cup have changed so much between 2008 and previous years, rendering it an apples to oranges comparison. Making those comparisons even more challenging are the current economic conditions that have hit all levels of society this year, from Wall Street bankers to blue-collar workers. Virtually every industry is feeling a severe impact.

Handle dropped virtually across the board on Saturday’s races this year, with the day’s total handle declining by 7%, from $115.7 million in 2007 to $107.6 million in 2008. It was the lowest handle on a Saturday Breeders’ Cup since 1999, when $100.3 million was bet on the races from Gulfstream Park.

Santa Anita’s on-track handle of $11.8 million was down almost 10% from the $12.7 million wagered on-track at Monmouth Park in 2007 and a steep decline of 33% from the 2006 Saturday Breeders’ Cup at Churchill Downs, when $18.3 million was bet on-track during the one-day event.

Saturday’s on-track business was the lowest for a Breeders’ Cup since 1997, when $11.2 million was wagered at Hollywood Park. The last time the Breeders’ Cup was held at Santa Anita, in 2003, one-day on-track handle totaled $16.3 million. This year’s two-day on-track handle was $18.7 million.

The economic climate has not been good for racing in 2008. Most major race meetings have experienced double-digit declines in business. For the Breeders’ Cup to increase handle from 2007 is an accomplishment, though not a major one, when considering both the additional races and superior weather conditions.

It is difficult to say that there has not been a dilution of the event based on the early evidence. Do the positive benefits outweigh any negatives? I think it’s too early to tell.

Attendance was up this year from 2007, but that should have been a no-brainer following the poor weather at Monmouth Park. Breeders’ Cup officials got greedy with ticket prices and, to their credit, have admitted as much. The increase in prices was outrageous, especially for the Friday program, and it is hoped they will be scaled back considerably next year. TV ratings have not yet been reported, but it’s hard to imagine they will be up from 2007.

The racing was spectacular on both days – and safe. More than a few people commented at the conclusion of the Breeders’ Cup that no one died or suffered any serious injuries, a sad commentary on the bumpy road the sport has been traveling in recent years. The Pro-Ride synthetic track was fast and safe, though it appeared to compromise some horses who had only raced on conventional dirt tracks and help those horses with synthetic track or turf experience.

Synthetic surfaces have increased the difficulty of handicapping, and running the traditional Breeders’ Cup dirt races on the Pro-Ride track may have led some big players to downsize their bets. The Classic, according to Crist’s figures, handled $24.3 million in bets this year, down from $30.1 million at Monmouth Park last year and $37.7 million at Churchill Downs in 2006.

The dominance of European horses was widely embraced by Breeders’ Cup officials, including president Greg Avioli, who sees international participation as the last, best hope for further growth in pari-mutuel handle. The success of Raven’s Pass and four other European-based winners on Saturday’s program will ensure enthusiastic participation from European horsemen when the races return to Santa Anita in 2009, but there is no guarantee that’s going to mean greater interest among horseplayers outside of North America. There is a conceivable backlash among American breeders who provide the financial foundation of the Breeders’ Cup program through foal and stallion nominations. Some of them view this as an American event, and they would be happier if the considerable purse money stayed in this country. On the other hand, those breeders who want to reach an international audience with their sale yearlings may cheer the success of European-based runners.

The Breeders’ Cup will conduct a post-mortem on the event to determine what worked and what didn’t. Many have said the Oak Tree Racing Association and Santa Anita did a terrific job from a logistical standpoint, and there may not be a more telegenic racing facility in America in late October than the “Great Race Place.” There were many people critical of the decision to hold the event at Santa Anita in consecutive years, but those critics surely are fewer in number following this year’s Breeders’ Cup.

The biggest shake-up in the 25-year history of the Breeders’ Cup is about to hit the American racing establishment when the bugler gets it rolling at Santa Anita on Friday.

This will be a Cup no one has seen before – 14 races spread over two days, with purses stretching to $25.5 million; making it the richest turf festival in the world.  And that’s just the beginning.

All the non-turf races will be run for the first time over a synthetic track concoction called Pro-Ride instead of America’s traditional dirt surface; a switch that could have Cup founder John Gaines spinning in his grave.

The first five races will go on Friday, reserved exclusively for fillies and mares. Call it Ladies’ Day. The other nine races, climaxing with the $5 million Classic, will be run Saturday.

No one envisioned such radical departures from the original concept of the Cup – a one-day, seven-race $10 million spectacular to crown a group of champions.

And that signals yet another major upheaval in Breeders’ Cup history. The old guard who created the Cup, nursed it through its growing pains and rotated it at tracks all round the country, are out.

Young gunslingers have taken over, headed by Greg Avioli, the 44-year-old president and CEO, and Peter Land, the 47-year-old chief marketing officer. Between them, they have turned the old Cup on its head.

Where the original old boy founders were horse-driven, the new hotshots are market driven. Their goal: to lift the Breeders’ Cup out of its narrow industry groove (with negligible TV ratings) and boom it into a national sports colossus like the World Series, the Super Bowl, the Kentucky Derby, the Masters golf and the tennis championships.

The task is formidable, but the market is everything. That’s why they have made the unprecedented decision to run back-to-back Cups at Santa Anita. Tap into the big Los Angeles sports and celebrity market.

Santa Anita is also a breathtaking setting with the San Gabriels as a backdrop while the weather is reliably sunny, 80-degree Southern California bliss – a far cry from the eight inches of rain that drowned last year’s Cup at Monmouth Park in New Jersey.

The new-look Cup is not universally welcomed. Fourteen races seem unwieldy.

“They’re watering it down a bit,” trainer Bobby Frankel said. “But they’re giving a lot more people chances to make money.”

Running all the female races on the first day looks sexist, Friday is not a major sports day, and the synthetic surface negates all the dirt history of the past 24 years.

Yet the new team might be on to something. This Cup has drawn a record 35 horses from abroad, 10 of them from Aidan O’Brien, the Irish training whiz. The best we could muster are seven each from Frankel and John Sadler.

They have introduced a 1 1/2-mile dirt marathon race, which might encourage breeders to produce horses sound in limb and wind instead of an assembly line of speedy cripples. Long overdue, they have introduced the also-eligible concept.

Most of us resist change but the hard reality is that the Breeders’ Cup, although a fabulous event for insiders, has failed to crash through the barriers and engage the general public.

Avioli and Land are attempting to change all that.

They will not do it all this week, but with a bit of luck, they could be on the way.