BY BROCK SHERIDAN

Eight Florida-breds went to the starting gates on Friday and Saturday for the 2025 Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club with Leon King Stable Corp. and Julia C. and Michael Iavarone’s Bentornato becoming the 31st Thoroughbred foaled in the Sunshine State to capture a Breeders’ Cup race when he took the $2 million Sprint.

 

The accomplished octet brings the total number of Florida-bred starters in the 42-year history of the Breeders’ Cup to 403, more than any other state or country outside Kentucky (2,911) and Ireland (491) while leading Great Britain (300), California (139), Canada (133), France (101) and New York (97).

Florida-breds have now banked $48,023,538 in Breeders’ Cup earnings with average earnings per Breeders Cup start of $121,579.

After finishing second in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Sprint, Bentornato became the 60th Florida-bred with more than one Breeders’ Cup start. Among those, 12 have started in at least three Breeders’ Cup races with Patricia Generazio’s homebred Pure Sensation and F. W. Hooper’s homebred Precisionist making four Breeders’ Cup appearances each. Mr. Amore Stables homebred Firenze Fire has five.

Firenze Fire is on a shortlist with five others at five Breeders’ Cup starts each with Better Talk Now, California Flag, Kona Gold, Obviously (Ire) and Perfect Drift. Channel Maker is the lone Thoroughbred with six Breeders’ Cup races under his belt. 

Bentornato became the sixth Florida-bred winner of the Breeders’ Cup Sprint—joining Eillo (1984), Precisionist (1985), Smile (1986), Cherokee Run (1994) and Big Drama in 2010.

Florida-breds have won the Distaff five times starting with Hollywood Wildcat in 1993, One Dreamer (1994), Jewel Princess (1996), Beautiful Pleasure (1999) and Ginger Punch (2007); and the Juvenile Fillies five times with Twilight Ridge (1985), Brave Raj (1986), Meadow Star (1990), Awesome Feather (2010) and Caledonia Road in 2017.

Three Florida-breds have won the Breeders’ Cup Classic in Unbridled in 1990, Skip Away (1997) and Mucho Macho Man in 2013; and three have won the Juvenile including Tasso in 1985, Gilded Time (1992) and Brocco in 1993. Florida-breds have also won the Mile three times including Cozzene in 1985 and half-brothers Miesque’s Approval in 2006 and World Approval in 2017.

The Breeders’ Cup Turf has twice been taken by Florida-breds: Prized in 1989 and Little Mike in 2012; as has the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint with Dubai Majesty in 2010 and Musical Romance in 2011.

Golden Pal is the only Florida-bred with two Breeders’ Cup tallies, winning the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint and in 2021 the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint.

Bentornato now ranks fourth on list of Florida-bred Breeders’ Cup money earners with $1,380,000 from a win and a second in two starts behind Mucho Macho Man with $3,650,000 (2-1-1-0), Skip Away $2,288,000 (3-1-0-0) and Little Mike with $1,620,000 (2-1-0-0). Fifteen Florida-breds have at least $1 million in career Breeders’ Cup earnings.

With his victory on Bentornato, Irad Ortiz Jr. joins Mike Smith and Gary Stevens as the only riders with three Breeders’ Cup wins on Florida-breds. His 12 mounts on Florida-breds in Breeders’ Cup races ranks sixth behind John Velazquez (24), Gary Stevens and Javier Castellano with 14 each and Mike Smith and Edgar Prado with 13 each.

Mark Casse, who this year saddled Bring Theband Home in the Turf Sprint, now sits alone in second among trainers with Florida-bred Breeders’ Cup starters. He has 12 to Todd Pletcher’s 14.

Charlotte Weber’s Live Oak Plantation extends her lead among owners of Florida-bred starters in Breeders’ Cup races with Bring Theband Home and Ultimate Love this year, bringing her total to 14. This year she joins Arthur I. Appleton atop the list of breeders of Florida-bred starters in Breeders’ Cup races at 15 apiece.

Return to the November 5 issue of Wire to Wire