Sovereignty wins Breeders’ Cup Classic
The 43rd edition concluded at Keeneland with a clean safety record and decisive results that shaped the season's top honors.
By James Anderson ·
Sovereignty won the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky., on Saturday, securing a victory that propelled him toward a second Horse of the Year title. The 43rd running of the event concluded with an unblemished safety record across 14 races, offering a stable finale to a year that tested the traditional Triple Crown format. Sovereignty’s win marked the culmination of a difficult season for the horse, who had previously suffered a hoof abscess.
The horse’s path to the top prize was complicated by an 84-day break from competition. Trainer Bill Mott guided Sovereignty back from that layoff to win America’s richest race. The victory added to a resume that included a Grade I win at the Whitney at Saratoga. Mott, a 73-year-old Racing Hall of Famer, credited his horse during a post-race interview with NBC. He began to describe the training job as good but stopped himself to praise the horse instead, according to reporter Kenny Rice.
Jockeys and trainers displayed visible emotion throughout the weekend. Juan Hernandez celebrated his first Breeders’ Cup victory aboard Bacio. Kendrick Carmouche secured his first Cup win in nearly a decade with Deterministic. Brendan Walsh saddled his first Cup winner in Emphatic. Mark Casse saw Nitrogen win the Distaff, while Jose Ortiz rode to victory on Nitrogen and Kathynmarissa after climbing off a stretcher. Ryan Moore returned from a leg fracture sustained in 2025 to win with Benvenuto Cellini, Sun Goddess, and Haffner. Billy Loughnane, a 20-year-old from Ireland, won a fight with the scale to ride Libertango in the opening race.
The race results largely settled the North American Eclipse Award debates. Sovereignty leads in the older male on dirt category. Nitrogen is the favorite for older female on dirt. Deterministic tops the male turf division. Hughes leads 2-year-old male, Emphatic leads 2-year-old female, TO Elvis leads male sprinter, Ways and Means leads female sprinter, and Kathynmarissa leads female turf. The National Thoroughbred Racing Association media poll released Monday gave Sovereignty all 29 votes for No. 1. The remaining top 10 spots went to Nitrogen, Deterministic, TO Elvis, Knightsbridge, Kathynmarissa, Forever Young, Ways and Means, Englishman, and Golden Tempo.
The jockey and trainer purses races remain undecided. Flavien Prat leads North American jockeys with $42.3 million in earnings through Wednesday, narrowly ahead of Jose Ortiz at $41.9 million. Prat earned these purses with wins aboard Hughes, Ways and Means, and Further Ado. Brad Cox holds the top spot among trainers with $29.4 million in purses, more than $3 million ahead of Mark Casse and Chad Brown.
The Breeders’ Cup weekend occurred against a backdrop of changes in the Triple Crown series. The Belmont Stakes moved to Saratoga for 2024 through 2026 due to construction at Belmont Park. The Preakness moved to Laurel in 2026 due to construction at Pimlico. Golden Tempo and Sovereignty both skipped the Preakness to win the Belmont later in the season. Maryland racing officials announced in August that the Preakness will move from Saturday to Sunday in 2027, increasing the gap between the Derby and the Preakness to three weeks. This change leaves only 13 days between the Preakness and the Belmont.
Churchill Downs and the New York Racing Association announced a new six-race spring and summer series for 3-year-olds. The series includes the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes but excludes the Preakness. The Derby remains the public’s favorite thoroughbred event because it focuses attention on a single horse each year. The Breeders’ Cup, with 14 winners, defines the year for participants and devotees, even if it remains a harder sell to non-racing fans.
