Ryan Moore produced a little bit of Stateside magic as he delivered Aidan O’Brien’s Benvenuto Cellini with perfection to claim the Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf at Keeneland.
It may have surprised some that the Coolmore number one had elected to ride the Irish Derby hero over stablemate and Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe third Diamond Necklace, but his decision was vindicated as the son of Frankel demonstrated a blistering turn of foot when it mattered most.
Ridden with patience in mid-division, Benvenuto Cellini – whose dam Newspaperofrecord herself dazzled at the Breeders’ Cup in 2018 – was still on the rail with plenty in front of him turning for home.
However, Moore waited for the precise moment to strike and once the gaps opened, his mount answered his urgings to power home ahead of Francis-Henri Graffard’s Map Of Stars who was another to finish well from a position in rear for second.
Aidan O’Brien, who was winning the Turf for a record-extending eighth time, also secured third with the aforementioned Diamond Necklace, while the victory gave Moore a record sixth success in the $5million feature.
Willie Mullins’s Ethical Diamond was sixth, with Irish Champion Stakes winner Hotazhell 11th for Jessica Harrington and Johanna Walsh a place further back for Joseph O’Brien.
Patience proved a virtue as 12 months later than planned, Sovereignty showcased his superiority to land the Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic.
Scratched after spiking a temperature only days before last year’s Classic, trainer Bill Mott could only watch on as Forever Young recorded a historic victory for Japan at Del Mar.
This time Sovereignty finally made it to the Classic start line and showed why last year’s Horse of the Year is every inch of a champion, tracking the pace set by stablemate Knightsbridge before Junior Alvarado moved his mount into contention rounding the home turn.
With the defending champion and Knightsbridge struggling to match the stretch acceleration shown by Sovereignty, it was left to The Puma to chase home the convincing winner, who gave Godolphin a first success in the feature event of the end-of-year world championships and Hall of Fame handler Mott a third, after Drosselmeyer in 2011 and the magnificent Cigar in 1995.