150-1 long shot wins key horse race in England, heads to Breeders' Cup
Aug. 1 (UPI) -- As American racing looks forward to one of the biggest events of the summer for older horses, Wednesday's Group 1 Sussex Stakes at Glorious Goodwood in England provided a dramatic reminder than anything can happen in a horse race.
Qirat, a 150-1 shot entered to be a pacemaker for hot favorite Field of Gold, didn't stop when the running started in the Sussex and became one of the longest-priced winners in the history of English and Irish Group 1 racing. Field of Gold finished fourth.
There's no favorite as hot as Field of Gold in Saturday's Grade I Whitney at Saratoga. But there's plenty of chances for surprise with a "Win and You're In" berth in the Breeders' Cup Classic at stake.
And that's just the tip of the iceberg -- an odd turn of phrase during a midsummer heatwave -- in a big weekend schedule. We'll catch up with the Sussex and the rest of Goodwood after:
Classic
Saturday's $1 million Grade I Whitney at Saratoga, a "Win and You're In" for the Breeders' Cup Classic, continues the 2024 Triple Crown rivalry involving Fierceness, Sierra Leone and Mindframe, with the addition of capable older rivals Skippylongstocking, Highland Falls and White Abarrio. Sierra Leone and Fierceness battled throughout last season, eventually finishing 1-2 in that order in the Breeders' Cup Classic.
Also: East Avenue, Chunk of Gold and McAffee are the favorites in a field of eight set for Sunday's $400,000 Grade III West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park.
Reigning Dubai World Cup winner Hit Show is a lukewarm favorite in Sunday's $200,000 West Virginia Governor's Stakes at Mountaineer Park.
Eight, including three trained by Mark Casse, are entered for Saturday's $150,000 (Canadian) Grade III Seagram Cup on the Woodbine all-weather.
Distaff
Trainer Bob Baffert holds seven of the entries for Saturday's $400,000 Grade I Clement Hirsch at Del Mar, a "Win and You're In" for the Breeders' Cup Distaff. Kopion could be the one to beat all three after three wins and a second in her last four starts, two of the wins in Grade I's.
Filly & Mare Sprint
Echo Sound enters Saturday's $500,000 Grade I Test Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at Saratoga with five wins and a second from six starts and is heavily favored to add one to the win column.
Turf
Saturday's $750,000 Grade I Saratoga Derby Invitational lacks the frequent Godolphin threat, but does have three capable foreign visitors in Hotashell, Juwelier and Tiberius Thunder. The American contingent is led by Test Score, who exits a win in the Grade I Belmont Derby.
Ellis Park hosts six Kentucky Downs "Preview" races during the weekend, offering rich purses and qualifying spots in the much more valuable races next month at the former Dueling Grounds on the Kentucky-Tennessee border.
In this division, it's Saturday's $250,000 Kentucky Downs Preview Nashville Derby and Sunday's $300,000 Kentucky Downs Preview Turf Cup.
Game Warrior and Freedom's Not Free stand out against four rivals in Sunday's $150,000 La Jolla Handicap for 3-year-olds at Del Mar.
Filly & Mare Turf
Sunday's $400,000 Grade III Pucker Up at Ellis Park has a competitive field of 11 3-year-old fillies to go 1 1/8 miles.
Turf Mile
Johannes arrives from California in fine form and rules the morning line for Saturday's $750,000 Grade I FanDuel Fourstar Dave at Saratoga, a "Win and You're In" for the Breeders' Cup Mile.
The 5-year-old son of Nyquist finished second in the 2024 Breeders' Cup Mile and has not been worse than second in eight of his last nine starts.
Also: Zulu Kingdom is the 6-5 morning-line favorite in Friday's $400,000 Grade II National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame for 3-year-olds at Saratoga; and the Ellis Park action comprises Saturday's $250,000 Kentucky Downs Preview Mint Millions Turf Mile and Sunday's $250,000 Kentucky Downs Preview Ladies Turf Mile.
Turf Sprint
At Ellis Park, it's Saturday's $250,000 Kentucky Downs Preview Mint Ladies Turf Sprint and Sunday's $250,000 Kentucky Downs Preview Turf Sprint. Bring Theband Home is 3-5 on the morning line for Sunday's $300,000 Grade II Troy Stakes at Saratoga.
Juvenile
Obliteration and Ewing, two speedballs off to great career starts, are the favorites in Saturday's $200,000 Grade II Saratoga Special. Saturday's $100,000 Tyro on the Monmouth Park turf is a jump ball with 10 lining up to try their luck.
Juvenile Fillies
Tremont Stakes winner Mythical, undefeated after two starts, is the 4-5 morning-line pick in Sunday's $175,000 Grade III Adirondack at Saratoga.
Around the world, around the clock
England
Wednesday's Group 1 Visit Qatar Sussex Stakes at Goodwood, a "Win and You're In" for the Breeders' Cup Mile, made history for sure -- but not in the way owner Juddmonte hoped.
The global powerhouse breeding and racing operation had two runners in the race -- 1-3 favorite Field of Gold, who was drawing tentative comparisons to Frankel after winning the 2,000 Guineas and St James's Palace Stakes, and Qirat, the 150-1 chance expected to be a "rabbit" for the favorite.
Coolmore had a similar team in the well-regarded Henri Matisse and pace factor Serengetti.
Serengetti missed the break and had to hustle up to engage Qirat for the early lead. The two loped along, given plenty of room by the body of the field, including Field of Gold and Henri Matisse. Serengetti chucked it in midway down the stretch, but Qirat never really asked for much to that point and kept right on rolling for jockey Richard Kingscote, helding off Rosallion by a neck.
The upset reportedly was the biggest in the modern history of Group 1 racing in England and Ireland. Henri Matisse made a promising late bid to finish third and Field of Gold was a flat fourth.
Also Wednesday, Lady Iman, with Ryan Moore up for trainer Gyr Lyons, won the Group 3 HKJC World Pool Molecomb Stakes for 2-year-olds, earning a "Win and You're In" bid to the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint on Halloween. The Starman filly has four wins and a second.
A sudden summer storm dropped more than 1 inch of rain on Goodwood on Thursday afternoon, sending racegoers scurrying through puddles seeking cover and forcing officials to resort to a flag-drop start rather than chance the starting gate for the Group 1 Qatar Nassau Stakes for fillies and mares.
None of that seemed to matter to another of Coolmore's stars, Whirl, who got the drop on her rivals as the flag dropped and never looked back, slogging through the suddenly sodden ground to a 5-length victory.
The win also earned a "Win and You're In" berth in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf and a guaranteed spot in January's Grade II Pegasus World Cup Filly & Mare Turf. It was her third win of the season alongside a second to Minnie Hauk in the Oaks. Trainer Aidan O'Brien said her options are legion.
Tuesday's feature, the Group 1 Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup, came down to an intramural battle, with Scandinavia overhauling pacesetting favorite Illinois in the final strides to hand the Coolmore lads a 1-2 finish in the 2-mile test.
The joy was tempered by a fatal injury to popular stayer Trushan, who was pulled up by jockey Hollie Doyle with a fractured pastern.
On the Continent
The features are the Group 1 Prix Rothschild for fillies and mares at Deauville and the Group 1 Henkel-Preis der Diana or German Oaks at Dusseldorf, both Sunday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox Sports
an hour ago
- Fox Sports
Leagues Cup Semifinals: Messi Back for All-MLS Final Four?
Leagues Cup Leagues Cup Semifinals: Messi Back for All-MLS Final Four? Updated Aug. 21, 2025 5:52 p.m. ET share facebook x reddit link For the third year running, the Leagues Cup final will be an all-MLS affair. Will it also once again feature Lionel Messi? Despite a revamped format that was supposed to benefit Liga MX entrants, American teams dominated their counterparts from south of the border in Wednesday's quarterfinals, creating a Final Four featuring all MLS teams. Messi, who led Inter Miami to the title of the 2023 edition, sat out Wednesday's game against Mexican titans Tigres with an injury, but his former Barcelona running buddy Luis Suárez stepped up by scoring both goals in the GOAT's absence in the 2-1 win. Both Orlando City and the Seattle Sounders needed penalties to book their semifinals spot. Orlando – the sole MLS squad not to host their quarterfinal — outlasted Toluca, winners of Mexico's 2025 Clausura title in May. After a scoreless 90 minutes in Carson, California, longtime Peru national team goalkeeper Pedro Gallese was Orlando's hero in the shootout, stopping two Toluca spot-kicks and then scoring the clinching goal from 12 yards. ADVERTISEMENT Seattle survived against Puebla on PKs despite playing the final quarter-hour with 10 men after winger Danny Musovski was shown a straight red card for bumping Costa Rican referee Juan Gabriel Calderon while protesting a caution. Finally, the defending MLS Cup champion LA Galaxy topped Pachuca 2-1 in Wednesday's nightcap at Dignity Heath Sports Park, with former Germany international Marco Reus scoring one goal and setting up the other for the hosts, who have now won more games — four — in this Leagues Cup than they have during the first nine months of the 2025 regular season. They're now two more victories away from another trophy. Semifinals Inter Miami vs. Orlando City Sunshine State bragging rights will be on the line when the Herons host Óscar Pareja's side. Orlando, the 16th and lowest seed heading into the tournament's knockout stage, has already exceeded expectations by getting to this stage. All the pressure will be on Miami, who Messi led to the 2023 Leagues Cup crown before even making his MLS regular season debut. Adding to the intrigue, the Lions have taken both competitive meetings so far in 2025, outscoring Miami 7-1 in those games — including a 4-1 drubbing in MLS action on Aug. 10. Miami's power trio – Rodrigo De Paul, Lionel Messi, and Luis Suarez – are aiming for a trip to the final. (Photo by Chris Arjoon/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) For Miami, the obvious question is whether Messi will be able to suit up next week. The 38-year-old Argentina captain initially strained a muscle in his right leg in Inter's second first-round encounter, missing Miami's next two outings. He returned in typically spectacular fashion last weekend, but was then a surprising late scratch from coach Javier Mascherano's lineup versus Tigres. Having Messi available would be a huge boost for Mascherano & Co., even if it means holding the World Cup-winner out of Saturday's regular season match at D.C. United. LA Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders With three wins and just 16 points from their first 26 league games, the Galaxy own the worst record in the 30-team MLS. But the champs have been a different group in the Leagues Cup, and that run continued on Wednesday. Pachuca marked the fourth-straight Liga MX opponent that Greg Vanney's squad has vanquished, joining Tijuana, Cruz Azul and Santos Laguna. Three of those wins were in regulation, with the Galaxy out-scoring those four foes 9-4 on aggregate. Marco Reus and the LA Galaxy can make up for an abysmal year by aiming to win the Leagues Cup. (Photo by Liza Rosales/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images) Will they be able to fare as well against a challenger from their own league? The Sounders and Galaxy have faced off just once in 2025, and the outcome wasn't pretty for the Angelenos as Seattle routed the hosts 4-0 in Carson earlier this month. One silver lining for LA is that Musovski, who scored twice for the visitors that day, is suspended for the rematch. Doug McIntyre is a soccer reporter for FOX Sports who has covered United States men's and women's national teams at FIFA World Cups on five continents. Follow him @ ByDougMcIntyre . What did you think of this story? share
Fox News
2 hours ago
- Fox News
The NFL is Cracking Down on Violent and Sexually Suggestive Gestures
Print Close Published August 21, 2025 The NFL wants players to have fun within the rules. That's why the league will be emphasizing sportsmanship and cracking down on violent and sexually suggestive gestures this season. "Unsportsmanlike gestures like simulating or either shooting a gun or brandishing a gun, or inappropriate gestures like a throat slash, or unfortunate sexual gestures, those were up 133% so that is a point of emphasis," NFL officiating rules analyst Walt Anderson said Thursday. "The officials have made it a point of emphasis to the clubs. It's just one of those areas that the league wants to work actively on. There are plenty of ways for players to be able to celebrate, and they come up with some very unique and often entertaining ways so we want them to focus on those and not the inappropriate areas." In April, the NFL expanded prohibited acts to include banning the "nose wipe" gesture that league executive Troy Vincent said is affiliated with gangs. The unsportsmanlike conduct rule now states: "any violent gesture, which shall include but not be limited to a throat slash, simulating firing or brandishing a gun, or using the 'nose wipe' gesture, or an act that is sexually suggestive or offensive. "There's no place in the game to be standing over your opponent," Vincent said in a video that's sent to teams. "There's no place in the game to have violent gestures. That's not the game of football. We just have to play by the rules, respect your opponent, respect your teammates and play the game in between the whistles." Reporting by The Associated Press. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account , and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! Print Close URL
Fox News
2 hours ago
- Fox News
Joel Klatt Unpacks the Big Ten's Reported Game-Changing CFP Expansion Proposal
At first blush, the Big Ten's reported idea of proposing that the College Football Playoff move to 24 or 28 teams might sound shocking. But for those who value the idea of the four power conferences being on equal footing, perhaps the idea is worth another look. FOX Sports' Joel Klatt explained how a possible 24-team CFP is much more likely to be discussed than a 28-team CFP proposal. "The model that is being talked about with any seriousness is a 24-team model," Klatt said on his podcast, "The Joel Klatt Show." "With a 24-team model, you can at least, in theory, make more sense of it. They're talking about eight teams having a bye and then having the other 16 teams play each other to whittle it down to 16 and going from there. That's fine. "Regardless of what you think of that, I will say, it's an attempt of putting a net over all four constituents. What you're saying is, 'It can be selection-based, but there's going to be a significant amount of automatic spots.' And you don't have to say, 'Big 12 and ACC, you're less than us,' because there's enough to go around. So, as surprising as it seems, I think that's why we got it floated out there." While the exact format of the Big Ten's potential 24-team proposal isn't known yet, the 28-team model would have the Big Ten and the SEC receiving seven automatic bids each, while the ACC and the Big 12 would each receive five automatic bids. Two Group of 5 teams would also get automatic bids, and there would be two more spots for at-large bids, per a report from ESPN. Both possible rumored 24- and 28-team formats would also come with conference championship game weekend being eradicated. If that's the case, Klatt pointed out how the 24-team model could be similar to one of the ideas being floated about for a possible expansion to 16 teams. "The 24-team model is not all that different, in theory, than what the Big Ten already suggested with a 16-team model and attached to the play-in games on conference championship game weekend," Klatt said. "If you had play-in games in order to get to the 16, you would have about 24 teams [battling for those 16 spots]." [Read more: How 2024-25 CFP Would've Looked Under Proposed Expansion Formats] The latest expansion rumor comes after months of debate on how to expand the CFP field from 2026-32 ahead of the Dec. 1 deadline. While the first year of the 12-team CFP in 2024 was largely viewed as a success, some college football leaders have pushed the idea of expanding it to 16 teams. However, there have been disagreements about how many automatic bids each conference should get. If the powers that be opted to expand the CFP beyond 12 teams, Klatt wants them to keep three objectives in mind. "If you're going to change anything about college football, it should really achieve those things: we should be increasing value, increasing fanbase and excitement and stabilizing the sport," he said. "The 12-team playoff, with its flaws, did that." [Read more: Tony Petitti Seeks More Meaningful Games In CFP Expansion: 'Bigger Is Better'] Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti, who Klatt pointed out is one of the two people with the most control over CFP expansion (SEC commissioner Greg Sankey being the other), told "The Joel Klatt Show" in June that he's seeking a more access-based model for CFP expansion. "I want more teams to feel like they're chasing that opportunity to compete for a national championship," Pettiti said. "Teams can get hot late in the season. The fact they lose a game early shouldn't disqualify them. To play more meaningful conference games as late as possible." Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily.
