The Breeders Cup always has been intended to take the breath away. Ron Santo Jersey .In the beginning, it was the money, more purse money than American racing ever had seen before. As it evolved, it was the competition, international in scope, dizzy with intensity. At one point, it became the action and how astounding it was to see just how much people wanted to bet, upward of $150 million over a two-day show.Now, in a social environment so completely attuned to the cult of personality, the Breeders Cup is all about the stars. Its not enough just to brag about going to the Breeders Cup. There have been 32 of them. The novelty has worn off. Now, the question is, Who did you see? And if the answer is, I saw Zenyatta, or Wise Dan, or Goldikova, or American Pharoah, then youve got their attention.This year, the main attraction is California Chrome, a horse of such universal appeal that even the opposition saves room to root.You cant help it, said trainer Jimmy Jerkens, who will try to beat California Chrome with the longshots Effinex and Shaman Ghost in the $6 million Breeders Cup Classic. Hes just such a neat horse, and a great story.No question, when California Chrome shows up, he tends to suck all the air out of the room. The 1-1/4 miles on dirt is right up his alley, and his six races this year -- from the winter in Dubai to his final rehearsal at Santa Anita -- have unfolded as if hewing to a script already chiseled in stone.However, by the time California Chrome takes the track late Saturday afternoon against Travers winner Arrogate, Met Mile winner Frosted, Jockey Club Gold Cup winner Hoppertunity, and Santa Anita Handicap winner Melatonin, the story of the 2016 Breeders Cup already may have been written by the half-dozen world-class fillies and mares who have made this party something to remember.Never before has the Santa Anita Park backstretch been home to such depth of female talent. A stroll through the stables is like walking a wing of the Louvre, with masterpiece after masterpiece staring down from the walls.Fridays $2 million Distaff has been predicted to be the best race ever run in the U.S. on a weekday that wasnt a holiday. No one really did the research, but it sounds about right for an event that attracted champions Songbird, Beholder, and Stellar Wind as well as the multiple Grade 1 winners Curalina, Im a Chatterbox, and Forever Unbridled.Songbird and Beholder each have one foot in the Hall of Fame, while Stellar Wind spent the last three months defying the conventional thinking that there could be yet another filly of similar caliber on the West Coast. Yes, the Distaff should be run on a Saturday on network TV alongside the Classic -- especially this Distaff -- but thats an argument well save for another day. Anyway, Zenyatta won the same event on a Friday, so at least this years winner will be in good company.If the true test of a great filly or mare is her ability to defeat males at the highest levels, then the three on the marquee for Saturday have passed with flying colors.Found is the durable daughter of Galileo who runs for Coolmore and trainer Aidan OBrien. She upset Golden Horn in the Breeders Cup Turf at Keeneland last year, the same Golden Horn who was acclaimed European Horse of the Year, and she is back to defend her title on Saturday, with a purse of $4 million on the line.Found is also making her 10th start of the season and her third in the last five weeks, after winning the Arc de Triomphe on the first Sunday in October and finishing second to likely European Horse of the Year Almanzor in the Champion Stakes on Oct. 15. By finishing first, second, or third in the Turf, Found will pass Zenyattas $7.3 million as the all-time leading earner among females with at least one start in North America. It is assumed, however, that they didnt send her to California to finish second or third.If Found gets points for her international adventurism, save some credit for Miss Temple City and the Graham Motion crew. They have on their hands a long, full-figured filly who has stood the gaff of trips abroad in each of the last two years for dates at Royal Ascot.She was a competitive fourth in both tries -- no shame in that -- while back home in the States, Miss Temple City manhandled males in both the Makers 46 Mile and the Shadwell Turf Mile at Keeneland. Among her victims in the Shadwell were Ironicus, Tourist, What a View, and stablemate Ring Weekend, all of them trying her again on Saturday in the $2 million Breeders Cup Mile.Fillies and mares do not win the Mile all the time, it just seems like it. Royal Heroine was first out of the box in 1984, followed by Miesque (1987-88), Ridgewood Pearl (1995), Six Perfections (2003), and the era of Goldikova (2008-10).Then came Tepin, whose performance in the 2015 Mile at Keeneland capped a championship season that began in relative obscurity, with an allowance-race win at Gulfstream Park coming after a seven-month layoff.That was then. Now Tepin reigns as a bona fide American hero, the winner of the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot last June and the Woodbine Mile in her return to competition in September. Earlier this week, trainer Mark Casse stood admiring the mare in the corner stall of her temporary Santa Anita barn as she dropped in her straw, scratched an itch, and then jumped up to playfully charge her webbing.Guess she shipped okay, he deadpanned. This was Tepin. All she ever does is ship okay.You know, this is really a deep Breeders Cup across the board, but especially with the mares, Casse said. And a lot of that is because people have kept these good ones in training. Beholder is 6, Tepin is 5. They could have been bred by now.Casse broke his personal Breeders Cup drought by winning two of the 13 races last year with Tepin and Catch a Glimpse, who runs on Saturday in the Filly and Mare Turf.Weve got seven running in Breeders Cup races, and I think four of them have a legitimate shot, Casse said. Someone asked me if Id be happy if I could only win one. It didnt take me long to answer. Of course, I would. Who wouldnt? Avisail Garcia White Sox Jersey . -- Washington Redskins tight end Fred Davis was charged Thursday with driving while intoxicated, a day after he was suspended for an NFL substance-abuse policy violation. Jose Quintana White Sox Jersey . -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team. http://www.baseballwhitesoxofficial.com/hoodie/ . According to a report from the Vancouver Province, the Lions are expected to replace former DC Rich Stubler with defensive backs coach Mark Washington. IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Seton Hall no longer has star Isaiah Whitehead to lean on.The Pirates have depth and balance though -- and that was enough for them to pass their first road test of 2016-17.Myles Powell scored 26 points off the bench, Desi Rodriguez had 25 and Seton Hall beat Iowa 91-83 on Thursday night.Khadeen Carrington added 20 points for the Pirates (3-0), who shot 51 percent from the floor with eight 3s and outscored the Hawkeyes 50-24 in the paint.Our team will be much more balanced this year, said Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard after Whitehead left for the NBA.Powell buried a 3 and followed by a layup to put Seton Hall up 82-74 with 3:15 to go -- and then drilled another long 3 to make it a 10-point game a minute later. Rodriguez followed with a 3 that sent the fans to the exits.Iowa made a few late 3s to make it close before falling for the first time in 2016-17.Senior Peter Jok had 30 points and 11 rebounds for his first career double-double, and freshman Tyler Cook scored a career-high 24 points for the Hawkeyes (2-1).I would have liked to have seen us play better defense over the duration, especially in the second half. We tried defenses, we changed defenses; press, we went to zone. We just didnt perform to the level thats necessary, Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said.BIG PICTURESeton Hall: The Pirates should be a factor in the Big East. They started five upperclassmen who were unfazed by their first road game -- although a 9 p.m. ET tip-off time on a week night kept the crowd down a bit. Seton Hall forced Iowa to commit 17 turnovers.Iowa: Win or lose, a matchup against a tough, veteran team halfway through November was exactly what the Hawkeyes needed. Adam Dunn White Sox Jersey. McCaffery is still trying to find a rotation that can win in the Big Ten, using 11 players in the first half alone. But it looks like Jok has found a more than capable sidekick in Cook, who can seemingly do everything but knock down free throws.NOT-SO FREE THROWSCook was a mess at the free-throw line, going just 5 of 12. But neither team could covert its freebies, as Seton Hall was 17 of 31 and Iowa was 19 of 32.SMOKE SHOWIowa brought out two sets of pyrotechnics during its player introductions. The smoke lingered in the air for roughly half of the first half. But Iowas other new wrinkles, including a new court, lighting and a massive new scoreboard over center court, has vastly improved the game-day experience at Carver-Hawkeye Arena -- which had begun to show its age until recent renovations.HE SAID ITTheres not a time where he shoots the ball where I think its not going in. He plays with a lot of confidence. He plays like I think all kids should play, just having fun, Willard said of Powell.UP NEXTSeton Halls schedule doesnt let up much. The Pirates play Florida next Thursday and, if they win, likely Gonzaga on Thanksgiving.Iowa gets another cupcake in Texas-Rio Grande Valley on Sunday. But the Hawkeyes will face No. 8 Virginia next Friday in Florida.---More college basketball at www.collegebasketball.ap.org Cheap NFL JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaCheap Jerseys From ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys AuthenticWholesale Jerseys ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaNFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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