Thursday’s $500,000, Grade 2 Flower Bowl Stakes at Belmont Park is an important stop on the road to the Oct. 30-31 Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Keeneland Race Course.
Returned to its rightful place as the final Breeders’ Cup race of the 14 championship tilts Oct. 30-31 at Keeneland Race Course, the $7 million Longines Classic is both the richest race in North America and the marquee race of the two-day event.
Keeneland Race Course has been a treasured Thoroughbred Racing venue for many years —Keeneland celebrated its 90th anniversary Oct. 15, 2026 — but for the first 30-plus years of the Breeders’ Cup the Lexington track had not hosted the World Championships.
The 38th Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Del Mar lived up to expectations in many ways. The year prior, fans were prohibited from attending the Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the crowds that made it to the 2021 event at picturesque Del Mar in California were more than ready to celebrate as NBC Sports chronicled the festivities.
Sean Clancy has worn his share of hats over the years: rider, bloodstock agent, journalist, and now owner of a Breeders’ Cup contender. This former steeplechase jockey turned Eclipse Award-winning writer has parlayed his decades of experience with equine athletes into the fortuitous purchase of Adonius, a Soldier’s Call gelding trained by Rebecca Menzies.
