The 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic is set for Saturday, when 14 of the fastest dirt horses in the world will converge on Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, just north of San Diego. This will be the third time Del Mar has hosted the Breeders’ Cup after previously welcoming it in 2017 and 2021. Four foreign horses are in the 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic field, as are 2024 Kentucky Derby participants Sierra Leone and Fierceness. Several older entries, including 6-year-old Señor Buscador, are also among the 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic horses. The latest 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic weather forecast is calling for partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid-60s.
Post time is 5:41 p.m. ET, and Forever Young drew the inside rail position during this week’s 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic post draw. The latest 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic odds list City of Troy as the 5-2 favorite, followed by Fierceness (3-1), Forever Young (6-1) and Next (8-1). You’ll want to see what SportsLine’s Gene Menez has to say before entering any 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic picks or horse racing predictions of your own, considering his stellar track record.
A former reporter and editor at Sports Illustrated, Menez covered an array of sports, including horse racing, for the magazine and its website for almost 14 years. Between 2010 and 2012, he served as SI’s handicapper for the Triple Crown races and correctly predicted Super Saver to win the Kentucky Derby in 2010.
In 2015, while writing for Sports on Earth, Menez accurately gave out the Kentucky Derby superfecta (American Pharoah, Firing Line, Dortmund and Frosted), which paid $1,268.20 for $2. Then in 2017, he tweeted out his Kentucky Derby picks, including Always Dreaming to win, and hit the Pick 4, which paid almost $6,900 on a $1 bet.
In a span of seven races last year for SportsLine, he cashed the winner of the Lecomte Stakes, the exacta in the Southwest Stakes, the winner of the Holy Bull Stakes, the winner of the Sam F. Davis Stakes and the trifecta in the Jenny Wiley Stakes. In May, Menez gave out 18-1 Mystik Dan as a live longshot in the Kentucky Derby. In June, he nailed Trikari to win the Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes, and last month he hit the exacta in the Franklin-Simpson Stakes. Anybody following his seen huge returns.
Now, with the Breeders’ Cup Classic 2024 approaching, Menez is sharing his picks and predictions over at SportsLine. Go here to see them.
Top 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic predictions
One of Menez’s surprising 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic picks: He is completely fading City of Troy, even though he is the 5-2 favorite. He has won six of seven career races in Europe, but he’ll face a pair of challenges at Del Mar. He’s running on dirt for the first time in his career and also drew post No. 3, creating risk that he’ll get boxed in early.
There’s history in his breeding that suggests he’ll run well on the dirt, but Menez doesn’t like the value on such an unknown commodity. “While his sire, 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify, has shown he can produce runners on all surfaces, City of Troy’s dam’s side is all grass. There is no way to know how he will handle the dirt,” Menez told SportsLine. He plans to leave him out of all exactas and trifectas when making 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic bets. See which horses to pick here.
Another surprise: Menez is high on Arthur’s Ride, even though he’s a 15-1 longshot. A four-time career winner, Arthur’s Ride saw his stock soar after his victory at the Whitney Stakes back in early August. However, a fifth-place run at the Jockey Club Gold Cup a month later contributed to his higher 15-1 odds on Saturday.
Menez still likes the upside and can’t pass up the longer odds, given trainer Bill Mott’s involvement. “I trust Mott pointing a horse to the Breeders’ Cup. The Hall of Fame trainer has won 15 Breeders’ Cup races, including three last year.” See which horses to pick here.
How to make 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic picks, bets
Menez’s top pick is a horse who “should be able to save ground.” He also is high on a double-digit longshot who is “ready to roll.” He is including these horses in his wagers, and so should you. He’s only sharing them over at SportsLine.
Who wins the Breeders’ Cup Classic 2024, and which longshot is a must-back? Check out the latest 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Menez’s picks for the 2024 Breeders’ Cup Classic, all from the expert who was high on this year’s longshot Kentucky Derby winner, and find out.
