Travers Win Moves Fierceness to No. 1 in Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings

Racing
2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic, Fierceness, City of Troy
Fierceness (blue and orange colors) holds off Thorpedo Anna and Sierra Leone to win the DraftKings Travers Stakes Aug. 24 at Saratoga Race Course. (Adam Coglianese/NYRA)

Each week a panel of media members, horseplayers, and Breeders’ Cup World Championships officials release a poll tabulating their votes ranking the top contenders for the 2024 Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic. The results are a weekly rating of the top 10 horses in contention and are determined by each voter ranking their top 10 horses with points assigned on a descending 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.

Week Five of the 2024 Breeders' Cup Classic rankings is led by Fierceness after his win in the DraftKings Travers Stakes Aug. 24 at Saratoga Race Course, which could prove to be one of the most important races on the calendar leading up to the Breeders' Cup Classic.

The rankings will be updated each week. The results of the latest poll are below.


Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings for Aug. 27, 2024

Fierceness. (Gary Johnson/Eclipse Sportswire)

1. Fierceness (21 first-place votes)

Owner: Repole Stable

Trainer: Todd Pletcher

Jockey: John Velazquez

2024 record: 5 starts – 3 wins – 0 seconds – 1 third

Last race: 1st, DraftKings Travers Stakes, Aug. 24 at Saratoga Race Course

Next race: Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic, Nov. 2 at Del Mar


Arthur's Ride. (Dom Napolitano/NYRA)

2. Arthur's Ride (5 first-place votes)

Owner: Glassman Racing

Trainer: Bill Mott

Jockey: Junior Alvarado

2024 record: 4 starts – 3 wins – 0 seconds – 0 thirds

Last race: 1st, Whitney Stakes, Aug. 3 at Saratoga Race Course

Next race: Jockey Club Gold Cup, Sept. 1 at Saratoga Race Course


City of Troy. (Andrew Parker/Eclipse Sportswire)

3. City of Troy  (8 first-place votes)

Owners: Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor, and Derrick Smith

Trainer: Aidan O'Brien

Jockey: Ryan Moore

2024 record: 4 starts – 3 wins – 0 seconds – 0 thirds

Last race: 1st, Juddmonte International Stakes, Aug. 21 at York Racecourse

Next race: Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic, Nov. 2 at Del Mar


Forever Young. (Shamela Hanley/Eclipse Sportswire)

4. Forever Young (2 first-place votes)

Owner: Susumo Fujita

Trainer: Yoshito Yahagi

Jockey: Ryusei Sakai

2024 record: 3 starts – 2 wins – 0 seconds – 1 third

Last race: 3rdKentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve, May 4 at Churchill Downs

Next race: TBD


Sierra Leone. (Candice Chavez/Eclipse Sportswire)

5. Sierra Leone

Owners: Peter Brant, Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Westerberg, and Brooke Smith

Trainer: Chad Brown

Jockey: Flavien Prat 

2024 record: 6 starts – 2 wins – 2 seconds – 2 thirds

Last race: 3rd, DraftKings Travers Stakes, Aug. 24 at Saratoga Race Course

Next race: Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic, Nov. 2 at Del Mar


Dornoch. (Scott Serio/Eclipse Sportswire)

6. Dornoch 

Owners: West Paces Racing, R. A. Hill Stable, Belmar Racing And Breeding, Two Eight Racing, and Pine Racing Stables

Trainer: Danny Gargan

Jockey: Luis Saez

2024 record: 6 starts – 3 wins – 0 seconds – 0 thirds

Last race: 4th, DraftKings Travers Stakes, Aug. 24 at Saratoga Race Course

Next race: Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic, Nov. 2 at Del Mar


Senor Buscador. (Adam Coglianese/NYRA)

7. Senor Buscador (1 first-place vote)

Owners: Sheikh Sharaf Mohammed Al Hariri and Joe Peacock Jr. 

Trainer: Todd Fincher

Jockey: Joe Talamo

2024 record: 4 starts – 1 win – 1 second – 1 third

Last race: 4th, Pat O’ Brien Stakes, Aug. 24 at at Del Mar

Next race: California Crown Stakes, Sept. 28 at at Santa Anita


National Treasure. (Adam Coglianese)

8. National Treasure (1 first-place vote)

Owners: SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, and Catherine Donovan

Trainer:  Bob Baffert

Jockey: Flavien Prat

2024 record: 4 starts – 2 wins – 0 seconds – 0 thirds

Last race: 6th, Whitney Stakes, Aug. 3 at Saratoga Race Course

Next race: TBD


Ushba Tesoro. (Kaz Ishida/Eclipe Sportswire)

9. Ushba Tesoro (1 first-place vote)

Owners: Ryotokuji Kenji Holdings Co. Ltd.

Trainer: Noboru Takagi

Jockey: Yuga Kawada

2024 record: 2 starts – 0 wins – 2 seconds – 0 thirds

Last race: 2nd, Dubai World Cup Sponsored by Emirates Airline, March 30 at Meydan Racecourse

Next race: TBD


Derma Sotogake. (Shamela Hanley/Eclipse Sportswire)

10 (tie). Derma Sotogake (1 first-place vote)

Owner: Hiroyuki Asanuma

Trainer: Hidetaka Otonashi

Jockey: Christophe Lemaire

2024 record: 2 starts – 0 win – 0 seconds – 0 thirds

Last race: 6th, Dubai World Cup sponsored by Emirates Airline, March 30 at Meydan Racecourse

Next race: TBD


Say cheese Thorpedo Anna. (Gary Johnson/Eclipse Sportswire)

10 (tie). Thorpedo Anna

Owner: Brookdale Racing, Mark Edwards, Judy B. Hicks, and Magdelena Racing (Sherri McPeek)

Trainer: Ken McPeek

Jockey: Brian Hernandez Jr.

2024 record: 5 starts – 4 wins – 1 second – 0 thirds

Last race: 2nd, DraftKings Travers Stakes, Aug. 24 at Saratoga Race Course

Next race: Cotillion Stakes, Sept. 21 at Parx Racing


6 Beginner Betting Tools

  1. Start simple with an easy guide for how to bet on horse racing.
  2. Not sure what that word means? Horse racing terminology is a language of its own. Allow us translate for you.
  3. What the heck is a speed figure? This beginner’s guide to speed figures has everything you need to know.
  4. Betting on horse racing can be intimidating. Team ABR put together some Dos and Don’ts for the new fan getting started betting on racing.
  5. We all make mistakes when it comes to betting on horse racing, here are eight lessons learned from experience.
  6. Figure out how much each bet will cost in advance with our Gambling Calculator, presented by NYRA Bets.

newsletter sign-up

Stay up-to-date with the best from America's Best Racing!

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Instagram TikTok YouTube
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Instagram TikTok YouTube