The Breeders’ Cup World Championships is a major year-end highlight for horse racing fans in Canada and brings together leading Thoroughbreds from around the world. This guide provides Canadian readers with an overview of the races, their history, major records, and the latest information about the event.
With the exception of the Triple Crown, the Breeders’ Cup races are among the most popular horse racing events in North America. The series was first held in 1984 as a single day of races involving different classes of Thoroughbreds, surfaces, and distances. A second day of competition was introduced in 2007 to accommodate an expanded championship programme.
The Breeders’ Cup has 14 Grade I races and is run over two days each year (usually in late October or early November). The 43rd running of the Breeders’ Cup will be held at Keeneland Race Course on Friday, October 30 and Saturday, October 31, 2026; it features over $34 million in prizes and awards, competitive fields from around the globe, and races that often affect who is named champion at the end of the year.
Canadian viewers can participate in this event as an international event rather than just a US-based event. As long as you are old enough to legally gamble, if you decide to place a bet on this event, please review your respective provincial/territorial laws for gambling before doing so and please be responsible in your gambling.
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There are 14 races that make up the Breeders’ Cup. Five championships for two-year-olds form the Friday programme. All purse amounts listed below are official US-dollar figures rather than Canadian-dollar conversions.
- $2 million Juvenile for colts and geldings over 1 1/16 miles on dirt
- $2 million Juvenile Fillies for fillies over 1 1/16 miles on dirt
- $1 million Juvenile Fillies Turf for fillies over one mile on turf
- $1 million Juvenile Turf for colts and geldings over one mile on turf
- $1 million Juvenile Turf Sprint for either sex over 5 ½ furlongs on turf. The race now holds Grade 1 status.
The Saturday races are all for horses aged three and older:
- $7 million Classic, run over 1 ¼ miles on dirt
- $5 million Turf, run over 1 ½ miles on grass
- $2 million Distaff, run over 1 1/8 miles on dirt for fillies and mares
- $2 million Mile, run over one mile on turf
- $2 million Sprint, run over six furlongs on dirt
- $2 million Filly and Mare Turf, run over 1 3/16 miles at Keeneland in 2026
- $1 million Dirt Mile, run over one mile on the main track
- $1 million Turf Sprint, run over 5 ½ furlongs at Keeneland in 2026
- $1 million Filly and Mare Sprint, run over seven furlongs on dirt
The Breeders’ Cup began in 1984 at Hollywood Park. It was the brainchild of John Gaines, who envisioned a championship meeting that would bring together the world’s best horses across several divisions. The original programme consisted of seven races, but the event has undergone numerous changes as new divisions were created and the international importance of the championships increased.
Breeders’ Cup in Canada
The Breeders’ Cup is a travelling event that moves between major North American racing venues. Since the inaugural meeting at Hollywood Park, it has been held at Aqueduct, Santa Anita Park, Churchill Downs, Gulfstream Park, Belmont Park, Woodbine, Arlington Park, Lone Star Park, Monmouth Park, Keeneland, and Del Mar.
Santa Anita has hosted the championships 11 times, more than any other venue through the end of 2025. Woodbine staged the event in 1996, becoming the first and so far only Canadian racecourse to host the Breeders’ Cup. Del Mar hosted consecutive editions in 2024 and 2025, while Keeneland will stage the meeting for the fourth time in 2026 after previously hosting in 2015, 2020, and 2022.
Because the host venue changes, distances in races such as the Turf Sprint and Filly and Mare Turf can vary slightly according to the course configuration. Canadian racing fans should therefore check the official conditions for the specific host track rather than relying on information from an earlier edition.
Breeders’ Cup Picks
Predictions surrounding the Breeders’ Cup are often uncertain because the races attract deep international fields. Horses arrive from different racing jurisdictions, compete on unfamiliar surfaces, and sometimes encounter a pace or track configuration that differs from their usual conditions.
The biggest upset in Breeders’ Cup history occurred in the 1993 Classic, when Arcangues won at odds of 133-1. The French-trained horse, ridden by Jerry Bailey, passed Bertrando and Best Pal in the stretch at Santa Anita and became one of the most unexpected champions in the event’s history.
Court Vision produced another major surprise when he won the 2011 Breeders’ Cup Mile at approximately 64-1, narrowly defeating Turallure. Three-time Mile winner Goldikova, attempting to win the race for a fourth consecutive year, finished third.
Spain was around 55-1 when she defeated Beautiful Pleasure and Riboletta in the 2000 Distaff. She came close to defending the title one year later but was beaten by a head in the 2001 edition.
One Dreamer caused a Distaff upset at approximately 47-1 in 1994. Storm the Court won the 2019 Juvenile at 45-1, defeating 28-1 runner-up Anneau d’Or after several more strongly supported horses finished outside the leading positions.
Volponi captured the 2002 Classic at odds of more than 43-1. His opponents included War Emblem, Medaglia d’Oro, and European Group 1 winner Hawk Wing.
The inaugural Classic in 1984 was won by 31-1 outsider Wild Again after a dramatic contest with Gate Dancer and Slew O’Gold. The finish remains one of the most memorable moments in Breeders’ Cup history.
Other notable longshot winners include Sheikh Albadou, Alphabet Soup, Cash Run, Adoration, Lashkari, Shared Account, and Ethical Diamond. The latter won the 2025 Breeders’ Cup Turf at 27-1, defeating two-time Turf winner Rebel’s Romance.
Mike Smith remains the most successful Breeders’ Cup jockey, with 27 victories. John Velazquez has recorded 21 wins, while Irad Ortiz Jr. added three more victories in 2025 and received the Bill Shoemaker Award as the leading jockey of that year’s championships.
Aidan O’Brien and Bob Baffert share the all-time training record with 21 Breeders’ Cup wins each following the 2025 meeting. D. Wayne Lukas recorded 20 victories, while Chad Brown remains close behind with 19.
Possibly the most famous horse to win at the Breeders’ Cup was Zenyatta. She captured the 2008 Distaff, then defeated male rivals in the 2009 Classic. Trained by John Shirreffs, she remained unbeaten through her first 19 races.
Zenyatta attempted to defend the Classic in 2010 in the 20th and final start of her career. She produced another powerful late run but finished narrowly behind Blame, ending her career with 19 victories from 20 starts.
Breeders’ Cup Classic Odds
Historical results show that the Classic can be won by established favourites, improving three-year-olds, or international runners. Recent winners include White Abarrio in 2023, Sierra Leone in 2024, and Japan-based Forever Young in 2025.
Forever Young became the first horse trained outside North America to win the Classic since Arcangues in 1993. He defeated defending champion Sierra Leone by half a length at Del Mar and became the first Japanese-trained winner of the race.
Tiznow remains the only horse to have won the Breeders’ Cup Classic twice. The California-bred captured the 2000 edition at Churchill Downs and defended his title at Belmont Park in 2001.
Both victories came against leading European challengers. Tiznow defeated Giant’s Causeway in 2000 and then narrowly held off Sakhee one year later in one of the most emotional renewals of the Classic.
For Canadian racing followers, the Classic remains the central race of the Saturday programme, but the other championships cover a wide variety of surfaces, distances, ages, and divisions. Official fields and post positions are published during championship week after the entries have been finalised.
Breeders’ Cup Contenders
The identity of the leading 2026 contenders will continue to develop throughout the racing season. Horses can secure automatic qualification through designated Breeders’ Cup Challenge races, while other runners are assessed through divisional points, graded-race form, and the official selection process.
The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile has produced only two horses that went on to win the Kentucky Derby the following spring: Street Sense, who completed the double in 2006 and 2007, and Nyquist, who won the Juvenile in 2015 and the Derby in 2016.
Several horses have won two different Breeders’ Cup races. They include Zenyatta, Beholder, Secret Circle, Stephanie’s Kitten, Golden Pal, Knicks Go, and Modern Games.
Goldikova and Beholder remain the only horses to have won three Breeders’ Cup races. Goldikova won three consecutive Miles from 2008 to 2010, while Beholder captured the 2012 Juvenile Fillies and the Distaff in 2013 and 2016.
Breeders’ Cup Betting
An increasing amount of information is provided about the official race as the championships draw closer. The due date for entries for the 2026 event is October 19; the race order, with post times scheduled to be announced on October 21, and final entries completed the following week.
What is referred to as Future Stars Friday includes five races for two-year-olds and takes place on the Friday of the event. Saturday consists of nine championships for older horses — the major dirt, turf, sprint, and route divisional championships.
In addition to the official Breeders' Cup World Championship races, there are undercard races, which are run by Keeneland. Generally, these races have the same type of event, either stakes or high-end allowance, as the championship races; however, they are different from the 14 Breeders' Cup World Championship races.
The format, start times, field size, and conditions of the races may change prior to the event. To find out the latest information on these events, refer to the official race schedule rather than the date(s) and post positions for the previous year(s).
The Breeders' Cup World Championships will be held on October 30 and 31, 2026 at Keeneland Race Course; this will be the fourth time the event has been held at Keeneland and will be the 43rd running of the championships since their inception in 1984.