Well, it’s T-Minus 12 days until Flightline runs in the Breeder’s Cup Classic in Lexington, Kentucky on Saturday, November 4. While the final entries for the Classic won’t be drawn until Tuesday, November 2, it’s interesting to follow what’s going on “behind the scenes” getting Flightline prepared.
Flightline completed his final workout at Santa Anita Racetrack on Saturday (October 22) going 6F (3/4’s of a mile) in the dark at 6 AM. After cooling out and walking the shed row, Flightline was on his way to Ontario Airport for a FedEx flight to Lexington.
Upon arriving in Lexington, Flightline was greeted by his trainer (John Sadler) who was on a separate flight from California.
Flightline Arriving in Keeneland Video
Sadler and his talented team are like a well oiled machine in their preparations. In addition to sending the padding from Flightline’s stall, they sent a pallet of his feed and other items to create a sense of familiarity and help to maintain his routine.
The current plan is to have Flightline jog over the Keeneland track daily and have one “official” workout approximately a week before the race. At this time, it looks like the Breeder’s Cup Classic will have 7-8 starters and clearly is the race of the year. All the potential starters are Grade 1 Winners so it’s a deep, talented, and competitive field.