The 2019 Breeders' Cup Challenge series consisted of 86 horse races that provided the respective winners with an automatic "Win and You're In" Berth in the

2019 Breeders' Cup The 2019 Breeders' Cup World Championships was the 36th edition of the premier event of the North American thoroughbred horse racing year. The 14 races, all but one of which were Grade I, took place on November 1 and 2 at Santa Anita Park in Arcad ...

, held on November 1 and 2. Races were chosen by the

Breeders' Cup The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Graded stakes race, Grade I Thoroughbred racing, Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was ...

organization and included key races in the various Breeders' Cup divisions from around the world. The Breeders' Cup organization paid the Breeders' Cup entry fee for the challenge race winners, provided they had been nominated as foals.

Summary

The 2019 Breeders' Cup Challenge series consisted of 86 races, 64 of which were Grade/Group One, from across 11 countries. There were 7 new races from the 2018 Series: the Gran Premio International Carlos Pellegrini (Turf), Prix Morny (Juvenile Turf Sprint), Fourstardave (Mile), Jockey Club Derby (Turf), the Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint (Turf Sprint), Cotillion (Distaff), Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp (Turf Sprint) and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (Turf). The following races were removed from the series: Doncaster Mile, Legacy Stakes, Gran Premio 25 de Mayo, Highlander, Forego, Spinaway, and Joe Hirsch Turf Classic. The International Stakes, formerly a qualifier for the Turf, became the first ever European qualifier for the Classic. On October 21, fifty of the Challenge race winners were pre-entered in one or more of the Breeders' Cup races. Shortly before entries were taken,

Magical Magical is the adjective for magic. It may also refer to: * Magical (horse) (foaled 2015), Irish Thoroughbred racehorse * "Magical" (song), released in 1985 by John Parr * '' Magical: Disney's New Nighttime Spectacular of Magical Celebrations'', ...

– a leading contender in the Turf – was retired after spiking a fever. Entries were taken on October 28. Several challenge race winners opted to enter a different division of the Breeders' Cup. For example,

Omaha Beach Omaha Beach was one of five beach landing sectors designated for the amphibious assault component of operation Overlord during the Second World War. On June 6, 1944, the Allies invaded German-occupied France with the Normandy landings. "Omaha" ...

, who qualified for the Sprint by winning the Santa Anita Sprint Championship, was instead entered in the Dirt Mile. Conversely, Catalina Cruiser and Mitole qualified for the Dirt Mile but instead were entered in the Sprint. Uni ran in the Mile instead of the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf. Elate was entered in the Classic after qualifying in the Distaff. On Friday, two automatic qualifiers won their respective division of the Breeders' Cup. On Saturday, there were another three: * Four Wheel Drive, who qualified by winning the Belmont Futurity, won the Juvenile Turf Sprint *

British Idiom British Idiom (March 23, 2017 – October 1, 2021) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Alcibiades Stakes and Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies in 2019, earning the title oChampion Two-Year-Old Filly for the year Background British Id ...

, winner of the Alcibiades, also won the Juvenile Fillies *

Iridessa Iridessa (foaled 14 January 2016) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse. As a two-year-old in 2018 she was one of the best fillies of her generation in Europe, winning the Group 1 Fillies' Mile. In the following year she was beaten in her first thr ...

, who qualified by winning the Matron Stakes, won the Filly and Mare Turf *

Blue Prize Blue Prize (foaled August 26, 2013) is a retired Argentinian Thoroughbred racehorse and the winner of the 2019 Breeders' Cup Distaff. Career Blue Prize's first race and only start as a two-year-old was on May 30, 2016, at Hipódromo Argentino d ...

won the Distaff after qualifying in the Spinster *

Bricks and Mortar Bricks and Mortar (foaled March 2, 2014) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse who was named the American Horse of the Year in 2019. After winning four of six starts at age three, he missed most of his four-year-old campaign due to illness. At ag ...

qualified by winning the Arlington Million and then won the Turf

Mitole Mitole (foaled March 23, 2015) is a retired American Thoroughbred racehorse who was foaled and raised at Hermitage Farm in Oldham County, Kentucky. He was named the American Champion Male Sprint Horse of 2019 after winning six of seven starts th ...

, who qualified for the Dirt Mile by winning the Metropolitan Handicap, won the Sprint. Uni won the Mile after qualifying in the

First Lady Stakes The First Lady Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for fillies & mares, age three and older over a distance of one mile on the turf held annually in October at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky during the fall meeting. ...

for the Filly and Mare Turf.

Challenge Series races

The following table shows the Breeders' Cup Challenge races for 2019 and the respective winners. The status column shows whether the horse was subsequently entered in the corresponding Breeders' Cup race, and whether they finished in the money.

Television coverage

For the 2019 Breeders' Cup Challenge,

NBCSN NBCSN was an American sports television channel owned by the NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It originally launched on July 1, 1995, as the Outdoor Life Network (OLN), which was dedicated to programming pri ...

will produce 11 live broadcasts, covering more than 20 of the races in North America. The races will also be live streamed. This is in addition to NBC's coverage of the American Triple Crown series and Royal Ascot, the latter of which has four Breeders' Cup Challenge races.

References

{{BreedersCup

Breeders' Cup Challenge The Breeders' Cup Challenge is a series of Thoroughbred horse races in which the winner earns an automatic spot in a specified Breeders' Cup race. The challenge races change somewhat each year. The Challenge series began in 2007 with 24 "Win and Yo ...

Breeders' Cup Challenge series Breeders' Cup

Summary

Challenge Series races

Television coverage

See also

References