Family Triumphs: O’Brien Duo and Into Mischief Progeny Dominate Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Races
Next up was the one-mile John Deere Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1T), won by Balantina. This was the first Breeders’ Cup win for young trainer Donnacha O’Brien. Balantina is by turf speedster Ten Sovereigns (like a recent Tropical Racing purchase, a son of leading sire No Nay Never) from a female family cultivated for generations by the late Aga Khan IV.
The results of the FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) were no surprise to many. Ted Noffey. The son of Into Mischief (a six-time leading sire by progeny earnings, on track for a seventh title in 2025) registered his third grade 1 victory in the Juvenile, demonstrating his true dominance of his division. Next came the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1T), won by Gstaad; that victory made Donnacha O’Brien’s father, legendary Irish conditioner Aidan O’Brien, the winningest trainer in Breeders’ Cup history. Gstaad has his own family connections; his maternal half-brother Vandeek won group 1 stakes at two in France and England.
Speed and Redemption: Splendora, Shisospicy, and Bentornato Light Up Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Sprints
Three-year-olds and up were the stars on Saturday. Splendora drew clear to win the PNC Bank Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) by 4 ¾ lengths; a daughter of useful young sire Audible, a son of Into Mischief, Splendora was bred in Maryland by Stuart Grant of The Elkstone Group (who owns Camden Training Center in South Carolina). Next up was the Prevagen Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (G1T), won by Shisospicy. A three-year-old filly by 2019 champion sprinter Mitole out of a daughter of Into Mischief, Shisospicy conquered older male competitors to win the 5-furlong event.
Her win marked the first of two consecutive triumphs for trainer Jose D’Angelo, who also sent out Cygames Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1) victor Bentornato. Second in the Sprint last year, Bentornato avenged himself with a first-place finish this year. The hard-knocking Florida-bred is a son of Sunshine State stallion Valiant Minister, who won his only start. He is a good-looking son of Candy Ride who sold for $680,000 as a two-year-old. Bentornato is far and away his best runner so far.
Myth, Mastery, and Global Glory: Scylla, Ethical Diamond, and Forever Young Define Breeders’ Cup Greatness
It’s no coincidence, perhaps, that she may share a name with a man-eating beast in Greek mythology; Scylla the horse devoured her equine competition by winning the Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1). Her dam, 2014 champion older female Close Hatches, ran second in the 2013 Distaff, so this triumph came as sweet justice of sorts. Scylla boasts as her fifth dam 1982 Broodmare of the Year Best in Show, whose other female-line direct descendants include Belmont Stakes (G1)-winning half-siblings Jazil and Rags to Riches, among many others.
Ethical Diamond shone brightly in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1T). Run over 12 furlongs (1 ½ miles), the race was the first Breeders’ Cup win for trainer Willie Mullins, who won the famous steeplechase the Grand National in England. Himself a former hurdler, Ethical Diamond went off at 25-1 odds to upset two-time Turf champion Rebel’s Romance. His pedigree is an interesting blend of English, Irish, American, and German bloodlines, with Irish classic winner and handy turf sire Awsaad as his sire.
The two days’ crowning glory was the $7 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic, of course. With favored Sovereignty scratched, the race was wide-open, and it fell to Japanese stalwart Forever Young to bring home the win for the Land of the Rising Sun. Forever Young is no stranger to big purses, as he won the $20 million Saudi Cup (G1) earlier in the year and hit the board in the $12 million Dubai World Cup (G1).
Across Continents and Bloodlines: Notable Speech and Nysos Close Out Breeders’ Cup with Stellar Victories
But there was still more action yet to come. Notable Speech, a winner of the English Two Thousand Guineas (G1) last year, proved his talent across the Pond by winning this year’s FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1T) (as well as the Woodbine Mile [G1T]). He is Godolphin’s fourth Mile winner in five years; Notable Speech is a son of Godolphin’s flagship stallion Dubawi; his stakes-placed dam, Swift Rose, is a half-sister to two graded/group stakes winners.
Like the Distaff, the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1) featured a well-bred horse with a Greek name taking home the victory. Nysos just got up to win over fellow Bob Baffert trainee Citizen Bull in the Dirt Mile. A son of 2015 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and 2016 Kentucky Derby hero Nyquist, he boasts as his third dam Unbridled Elaine, who captured the 2001 Distaff.
Gezora Graces the Turf: French Star Caps Off Breeders’ Cup with Thrilling Victory for Peter Brant
Finishing off the epic day was the Maker’s Mark Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1T). Winner of the French group 1 Prix de Diane Longines earlier in the year, Gezora got up by a half-length to win this race. She races for businessman Peter Brant, whose namesake horse, Amr Zedan’s Brant, competed in the Juvenile the day before; Brant, perhaps best-known to pop culture fans as the husband of supermodel Stephanie Seymour, is no stranger to Breeders’ Cup success, as he has co-owned the likes of 2024 Classic winner (and 2025 Classic runner-up) Sierra Leone.
