Triple Crown king Pharoah seeks Breeders' Cup Classic career finish

American Pharoah, US racing's first Triple Crown winner in 37 years, will try to expand his legacy on Saturday when he closes out his career in the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic at Keeneland in Kentucky.

"This one is for Pharoah," trainer Bob Baffert said Thursday, echoing comments by owner Ahmed Zayat -- who could easily have stopped running the horse after his sweep of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes.

"Winning the Derby, we wanted for the Zayats," admitted Zayat. "The Triple Crown, I wanted that for the fans and for the sport.

"I want him to win Saturday's unbelievable race for Pharoah, to go out in a way that people will always remember him as a brilliant and kind horse."

The 1 1/4-mile Classic, which caps the two-day, 13-race Breeders' Cup extravaganza worth $26 million, is widely seen as Pharoah's to lose -- especially after super mare Beholder was scratched on Thursday because of illness.

He'll be up against older horses for the first time in a grade one race, while the three-year-olds challenging him include familiar foes Frosted and Keen Ice -- who dealt American Pharoah his only defeat of the year at the Travers Stakes at Saratoga in August -- as well as European raider Gleneagles -- the Aidan O'Brien-trained 2,000 Guineas winner in England and Ireland.

The question for Gleneagles, who will break from the fifth post with jockey Ryan Moore aboard, is how he will handle the Keeneland dirt track, which he jogged on for the first time on Thursday with Joseph O'Brien in the saddle.

"It is impossible to tell how he will handle the dirt, but what I would say is when he stretched his legs this morning he was in very good form and moving well," Joseph O'Brien said. "I think we will know after a couple of furlongs. If he's travelling and happy, he is in with a shout."

Frosted, trained by Kiaran McLaughlin, was third in the Travers, pushing American Pharoah early before Keen Ice passed them both.

While McLaughlin likes what he's seeing from Frosted, he was cautious about his prospects of beating American Pharoah, whose early speed gives him an advantage.

"It will be hard," he said. "I'm sure it will be hard, but it's horse racing," McLaughlin said.

- Old-fashioned thoroughbred -

A victory on Saturday would demonstrate what Baffert says is American Pharoah's greatest quality, his ability to hold his form over time.

"They used to call horses like him 'hickory,'" Baffert said. "He's an old-fashioned thoroughbred. Other horses get dull. He never has.

"Other horses have windows of excellence, like a month or two. He has stayed consistent, solid. He's shipped all over the country and stayed sharp."

In a rainy week in Lexington, Baffert has been cautious with his superstar, walking him on Wednesday and galloping him on the training track on Thursday.

"It looked like he was pretty aggressive and was full of himself," Baffert said. "What we saw today was very encouraging. he was tough."

Baffert said he continues to see the benefits of the 60-day break from racing American Pharoah has enjoyed since the Travers.

"He's at his peak, he's happy and he's doing really well," Baffert said. "He's going to come out of there running."
Source: AFP