The fields for the 14 races that comprise the Breeders’ Cup World Championships really begin to come into focus in summer and fall. This regular feature will offer a snapshot profile of one of the previous weekend’s standout stars, usually a Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series winner, and whether I’m buying or selling their chances to win Nov. 1-2 at Del Mar.

This week we take a closer look at Win for the Money, who on Sept. 14 won the $1 million Rogers Woodbine Mile Stakes at Woodbine, a Challenge Series “Win and You’re In” race for the FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Mile Presented by PDJF.

Accomplishments: Win for the Money picked a lucrative spot for a breakout race, finishing powerfully to win the $1 million (Canadian) Rogers Woodbine Mile to secure his first career graded stakes win … at the highest (Grade 1) level no less. The $440,059 (U.S.) winner’s share of the purse exceeded his purchase price at auction as a 2-year-old in training in 2021, when Charlotte Weber’s Live Oak Plantation bought him for $350,000.

Weber and trainer Mark Casse teamed to win the Woodbine Mile in 2017 with World Approval, who was favored in that race and went on to win the Breeders’ Cup Mile by 1 ¼ lengths in his next start.

Can history repeat itself in 2024 for Weber and Casse? Let’s take a closer look at Win for the Money, whose 13.65-1 odds in this year’s Woodbine Mile reflected a résumé not nearly as robust as that of World Approval, a five-time graded stakes winner and two-time Grade 1 winner entering the 2017 Woodbine Mile.

Race record: Win for the Money made his first seven starts on the main track, six on Woodbine’s all-weather surface and one on dirt, with solid results: two wins and two seconds. He then switched to turf in spring 2023 and ran well in three starts, finishing first twice – he was disqualified and placed second in one of them – and rallying for fifth in the Arlington Million Stakes.

He closed out 2023 with a second in the Grade 2 Autumn Stakes and a third in the Valedictory Stakes, both on the all-weather surface at Woodbine.

Win for the Money has raced exclusively on the grass in 2024, earning his first career stakes win in the Mr. Steele Stakes at Gulfstream Park in his season debut and then finishing fourth in the Grade 2 Wise Dan Stakes at Churchill Downs and second in the KY Downs Preview Mint Millions Turf Mile Stakes at Ellis Park, both featuring a very slow pace.

Win for the Money got an ideal pace setup in the Woodbine Mile and capitalized. He rated in sixth, 4 ½ lengths behind Casse stablemate Filo Di Arianna through a half-mile in :45.44, and rallied along the inside with a final quarter-mile in an eye-catching :22.84 to win by 1 ½ lengths in 1:32.11. The winning time was less than two-fifths of a second off the course record of 1:31.73 set by Olympic Runner Aug. 15, 2021.

Jockey Patrick Husbands saved a ton of ground under Win for the Money as he rallied from the inside, but the 5-year-old gelding showed he could handle a significant class test and also that he was capable of a very fast race. Now, he needs to prove he can win back-to-back races for the first time in his career.

Speed Figures: Win for the Money earned a 110 Equibase Speed Figure for the Woodbine Mile, two ticks off his career-best number which also came on the grass. He’s run between a 102 and a 110 in four races in 2024. His winning 102 Beyer Speed Figure for the Woodbine Mile matched his previous top, which was earned in the Mr. Steele Stakes.

Win for the Money’s speed figures to date are solid, but he will very likely need to improve to be a viable Breeders’ Cup Mile win contender. The average winning Equibase Speed Figure for the BC Mile over the last 10 editions has been 121, ranging from a 115 to a 128, while the average Beyer Speed Figure is a 106.2 with a range from 101 to 110.

Husbands celebrates after the win. (Michael Burns/Woodbine)

Looking Ahead: Five of the last 12 Breeders’ Cup Mile winners won the Woodbine Mile earlier that season. Additionally, Tepin won the Woodbine Mile the year after her Breeders’ Cup Mile win and Court Vision won the Woodbine Mile in 2010 and the Breeders’ Cup Mile a year later, so to say the Woodbine Mile has been a key prep race would be an understatement.

That said, Win for the Money on paper would seem to need to take another significant step forward in terms of improvement to have a shot at winning the Breeders’ Cup Mile Nov. 2 at Del Mar.

There are several very positive trends for Win for the Money. His off-the-pace running style has been especially effective in the Breeders’ Cup Mile and he has an explosive finishing kick. That :22.84 final quarter-mile would give him a serious shot even against world-class turf milers. Win for the Money will have seven weeks of rest to gear up for a what would need to be career-best effort for a trainer in Mark Casse who has won the BC Mile twice (Tepin, 2015; World Approval, 2017).

I’m optimistic that Win for the Money can – and will – run well on Nov. 2 at Del Mar if his connections decide to go on to the Breeders’ Cup Mile, but the race typically draws one of the deepest, strongest fields of the World Championships. As such, I don’t envision Win for the Money being one of the prime win contenders so I’m selling his chances for victory in the race.