The prestige of Triple Crown races is unparalleled. But does that mean the glory of horse racing is limited to only the month of May? Well, the Breeders’ Cup would beg to differ. With a bigger purse than any event in North America, the annual thoroughbred racing event brings back the best horses of the season for the last bragging rights.

But even if we leave out the Grand Slam of thoroughbred racing, what are we left with? Well, enough spoils for horse racing to still be relevant and thriving. Yes, graded races like Travers, Haskell, Pennsylvania Derby, Del Mar Futurity, Pacific Classic, and Rebels Stakes—and we can go on and on and on—are legacy races in their own right. Sometimes, the fields these G1 races have are stupendous. And something like that has led a Breeders’ Cup Classic winner to avoid the 2025 Pacific Classic.

The breaking news came from horse racing correspondent J.J. Hysell on August 20. From his X handle, he shared, “Change of plans: White Abarrio won’t ship for Pacific Classic and instead will target the Jockey Club Gold Cup.” This was part of a retweet to freelance horse racing writer  Tim Wilkin’s update on the same day. It all but confirms that White Abarrio, the 2023 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner, will race at Saratoga on Sunday, July 31, instead of the Pacific Classic at Del Mar a day before.

Both races have the same purse: $1,000,000. Both of them are run at 1 ¼ miles (10 furlongs), and both of them are open to horses 3 years and above, exclusively. Well, in such a scenario, the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup Stakes becomes a much safer bet. Why? Because then, trainer Saffie A. Joseph won’t have to see his 6-year-old colt go up against Journalism and Nysos at the Pacific Classic.

For those who don’t know the threat that Journalism carries, the 2025 Preakness Stakes winner has placed in every race he has run. The three-year-old colt has won six of the last eight races; in the two races he didn’t win, he came second behind champion Sovereignty in the other two Triple Crown races. Good luck going up against him.

Well, that’s what Nysos is likely to do at the Del Mar. Because the four-year-old comes with his own credentials. Contrastingly, the Gold Cup Stakes has a little less formidable field. Although the 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic Champion Sierra Leone may feature at the Saratoga race.

So, we can expect some edge-of-the-seat thrilling contests between the posts come the final weekend of August. In fact, the Pacific Classic would offer a glimpse of what to expect at the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Pacific Classic a prelude to Breeders’ Cup Classic for Nysos

It’s a G1 race at Del Mar. By which we mean Bob Baffert would already be a favorite for the winner’s circle. Armed with 4-year-old Nysos, Baffert will try to trump Journalism, who has thwarted his winning chances time and again. The Nyquist-sired colt has 4 wins in 5 races, with a close second by a neck at the G1 Churchill Downs Stakes on May 3.

But what makes this race more intriguing is that it would be a mini Breeders’ Cup Classic before the actual November 1st race. “The main thing is to have him ready for the Breeders’ Cup,” Bob Baffert had said in June. His season has been subpar, salvaged only by his better showing at Del Mar. And the Breeders’ Cup being at Del Mar gives him some hope that his lucky charm racetrack will help him get back to the top.

But the Breeders’ Cup would be a different challenge. Because it’s not just Journalism he would go up against. It’s Sovereignty, Sierra Leone, White Abarrio, and Gosger. To say it is a stacked field would be an understatement. That is trial by fire for Bob Baffert.