To a bettor, the sound of a betting machine printing tickets with his or her wagers is unmistakable. Those sounds will be nearly deafening throughout every race track and betting parlor on Friday and Saturday as the Breeders' Cup, the two-day championship of thoroughbred racing, returns to Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California.
This year's event will not only again show off the world's best horses, it will also present a great deal of wonderful betting opportunities. Last year the event brought in over $160 million worth of wagering, and with very full fields, this year one would expect numbers to be similar.
The highlight of the event will come Saturday afternoon in the Breeders' Cup Classic, as Kentucky Derby and Preakness champion California Chrome takes on unbeaten and fellow 3-year-old Shared Belief, who is owned by TV and radio personality Jim Rome. Rome, who was never a huge fan of racing until he became an owner, is seeking a third straight win in a Breeders' Cup race. (He won the Turf Sprint the past two years with the now-retired Mizdirection.) Also in the Classic field is Belmont stakes winner Tonalist.
Most of the other races on Friday and Saturday do not have any prohibitive favorites except for the Dirt Mile, where Goldencents is 6-5 in the morning line to defend his title.
Below we will look at a few of the races that present some great betting values in the two-day event, where upsets happen quite often.