New Order

- Wednesday is the day that the Breeders’ Cup will announce the pre-entries for the eight races, as well as the order in which they will be run. The latter is a first, and Ken Kirchner, a Breeders' Cup VP, explained that the change will be made in an effort to maximize the handle.

"Occasionally we will get a couple of short fields and as you analyze the handle, you notice where a heavy favorite or short field did some damage to the progression of handle through the day."

The name of the game is "churn," that is getting bettors to put their winnings back through the window. Starting the day with a short field or heavy favorite increases the odds of having greater churn.
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"Last year, with the Juvenile and Turf each having eight horses, there was a significant decline in handle. That is what pushed over the edge to make this call." [Bloodhorse]

I think that many of us would be thrilled to have eight horse fields on a regular basis, but with 14 eligible for each race, that qualifies as a short field in this case. David Grening in the Daily Racing Form looks at the decision from another angle.

Breeders' Cup officials have an interesting decision to make regarding the scheduling of the $1 million Sprint and the star animal of the day, the undefeated Lost in the Fog. If Breeders' Cup officials opt to leave the Sprint out of the pick six - which will have a guaranteed pool of $3 million - then it will be run during the first hour of NBC's 4 1/2-hour telecast. NBC officials would most likely want the Sprint positioned later on the card in order to keep viewer interest. The Sprint has never been run later than the fourth Cup race of the day.

- I was interested to see this heading in the Racing Form today: Spite the Devil works twice in 2 days. I guess that’s a big deal nowadays, but that hasn’t always been the case, which is why Jerkins, as an old-timer, didn’t know what all the fuss is. I recall cashing tickets regularly when seeing that pattern from trainer Angel Penna, for whom back-to-back works usually prefaced a good effort. Jerkins’ Society Selection, who could present some value in the Distaff, worked seven furlongs in a quick 1:25.24, prompting him to note "She was just going to go easy......She went faster than I thought she would." [DRF] I dunno, is that good or bad?

- Oratorio’s addition to the Classic adds the extra intrigue which always results when a European horse tries the dirt for the first time over here. For the bettors, it’s a guess, nothing more, nothing less. Powerscourt is out of the Turf, as trainer Aidan O'Brien was displeased with his last work.

- Though not to the same extreme, Churchill Downs is following the lead of rival Magna with its proposal to cut racing days at Ellis Park from 41 to 29. Like Maryland, Kentucky has no slots, and the arguments are familiar. A spokesman for the horseman noted that “Bills accumulate seven days a week, and it’s a bad precedent to go to four days," while Churchill President Steve Saxton talked about an increased purse structure and noted: "Casino Aztar in Evansville is 24 hours, and the OTB that Indiana Downs opened in Evansville siphons $50,000 to $70,000 a day from our simulcast business.” [Thoroughbred Times]