Breeders Cup Juvenile

Notes:
Four trainers - Todd Pletcher, Doug O Neill, Dale Romans and Bob Baffert - have two entrants each in the 30 th edition of the G1 Breeders Cup Juvenile, which not only awards 2,000,000 in purse money but also 10-4-2-1 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top four finishers. All 14 will be running without Lasix for the 1 st time as the Breeders Cup continues its race-day ban on the anti-bleeder medication for juveniles. Not surprisingly, Pletcher again has the headliner as the conditioner goes for his 3 rd 2-year-old championship in four years. His unbeaten Havana is the 5/2 morning line favorite off a victory in the G1 Hopeful S. at Saratoga. But he ll have to overcome the disadvantageous 13 post position to take top honors. We Miss Artie, winner of the G1 Dixiana Breeders Futurity over Keeneland s Polytrack will also represent Pletcher after training spectacularly over the dirt at Santa Anita. O Neill s top threat is G1 FrontRunner S. hero Bond Holder. He needed five tries to break his maiden in that stakes but did so convincingly on this surface in his 1 st start on dirt. O Neill also sends out maiden winner Rum Point, who showed little in two G1 stakes on synthetic but could improve in his dirt debut. Undefeated Cleburne tops the Romans duo, but hasn t raced since taking the G3 Iroquois S. at Churchill Downs in early September. Medal Count overcame traffic to win at Ellis Park in his initial outing but could only manage 5 th with trouble in the off-the-turf G3 Bourbon S. at Keeneland. Still, he was only 2 1/2 lengths behind at the wire and Romans has been touting this one every chance he gets. Baffert s pair of Tap It Rich and New Year s Day are also only maiden winners. The former impressed when taking his debut on 10/12 despite a slow start and rather erratic performance. New Year s Day whipped Bond Holder in his 2 nd start on 8/31 but missed training and the FrontRunner due to a fever. G1 Hopeful S. victor Strong Mandate must rebound from a non-effort in the G1 Champagne S. at Saratoga and try to secure a decent position from the extreme outside post. Smarty s Echo, a good 2 nd with early trouble in the Breeders Futurity, will need to avoid being pinned on the rail as he breaks from the 1 post. Frontrunner 2 nd -place finisher Dance With Fate failed as the favorite in that race when he relinquished the lead late to Bond Holder. Diamond Bachelor, who won the Oak Tree Juvenile Turf S. and completed the exacta in the grassy Zuma Beach S., will be making his dirt debut after his connections opted for this spot over Friday s G1 Juvenile Turf. Swynford S. winner Conquest Titan exits a non-threatening 5 th after being in tight during the Breeders Futurity. Last, but certainly not least, is recent Team Valor International purchase Mexikoma. His new connections were reportedly leaning towards Aqueduct s Nashua S. for the runaway Delaware Park maiden winner but landed in this more ambitious spot. His last race BRIS Speed Rating of 95 is 2 nd only to Havana s 98 and his 110 Late Pace Rating easily tops the field. He looks like a very live longshot from the 3 post position.