A field of eight horses are scheduled to run in this year’s Grade 1, $1 million FanDuel Racing Pacific Classic Stakes, a “Win and You’re In” race for the Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic.
Two of them have posted graded stakes wins in 2024: Dr. Venkman and Il Miracolo. Dr. Venkman was victorious in the San Diego Handicap at Del Mar four weeks ago, while Il Miracolo is a winner of more than three-quarters of a million dollars in his career, including a runner-up finish in the Grade 3 Philip H. Iselin Stakes two weeks ago. None Above the Law won the Bertrando Stakes in June, a race restricted to California-bred horses, and he is stepping up in class. Full Serrano won a group stakes in his native Argentina at this 1 ¼-mile trip and most recently won on Aug. 3 in his North American debut. Four horses in the race are winless in 2024: Katonah, Mixto, Reincarnate, and There Goes Harvard. Among that group the best effort in a similar race belongs to Reincarnate, who finished second in the Hollywood Gold Cup in May. UPDATE: On Friday, Aug. 30, trainer Bob Baffert told reporter Steve Andersen of Daily Racing Form that his multiple Grade 1-winning mare Adare Manor was withdrawn from the Pacific Classic after developing a muscle cramp following a routine workout. She had originally been entered in the race and was made the 9-5 morning-line favorite.
Top Contenders to Win:
While Adare Manor was a deserved morning-line favorite before being withdrawn, East Coast shipper Il Miracolo was my pick to upset the Grade 1 winner. Il Miracolo ran faster when second in the Philip H. Iselin Stakes two weeks ago than Adare Manor has ever run, earning a 122 Equibase Speed Figure. That doesn’t appear to be a fluke, as Il Miracolo battled head and head with another horse for the lead through the first three-quarters of a mile and on faster-than-average fractions. Although he was beaten by 1 1/2 lengths at the end, Il Miracolo was 15 lengths in front of the third-place horse. Getting the rail for this year’s Pacific Classic, Il Miracolo appears to have the tactical speed to race in second in the early stages behind probable early leader Full Serrano, who sizzled early on the lead throughout when winning at a mile four weeks ago. In the Grade 3 Ghostzapper Stakes in March, Il Miracolo raced in third, then second, before winning by a neck. That’s the type of trip, and result, we might look forward to in this race under Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith.
Full Serrano may appear overmatched on paper, having just won a first-level allowance race on Aug. 3 with a 93 speed figure. However, he does have an edge in experience at the distance, having run this 1 ¼-mile distance twice in his native Argentina. Both of those races were on turf, but he won one in a 10-horse field by 2 ½ lengths and missed in the other by a nose. That effort earned a 99 speed figure and he earned a 104 figure winning last fall in a dirt route. His workouts since winning recently have been exceptional and suggest he’s in tip-top shape. There’s no denying trainer John Sadler enters top-caliber horses in this race, having won four of the last six editions of the race, including with Flightline in 2022.
The other Pacific Classic entrants (with best Equibase Speed Figure in a similar race): Dr. Venkman (108), Katonah (107), Mixto (108), None Above the Law (106), Reincarnate (109) and There Goes Harvard (107).
Win Contenders in preference, handicapper’s probability order:
Il Miracolo
Full Serrano
Pick 3
6-10-9
6-10-9
$154
Daily Double
10-9
10-9
$231
Superfecta
9-6-4-3
9-6-4-3
$407
Trifecta
9-6-4
9-6-4
$905
Pick 3
6-10-9
6-10-9
$154
Daily Double
10-9
10-9
$231
Superfecta
9-6-4-3
9-6-4-3
$407
Trifecta
9-6-4
9-6-4
$905