Early betting on Arc and Breeders Cup.

Some serious horses on this list. Rachel, Well Armed and Mind That Bird!!!

Coral open betting on Arc and Breeders' Cup


CORAL have opened betting on two major highlights of the international calendar, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and the Breeders' Cup Classic.

Derby favourite Fame And Glory is joined by the Sir Michael Stoute-trained pair of Conduit and Tartan Bearer as 10-1 co-favourites for the Arc.

America's two superstar females head the market for the Classic, with the unbeaten Zenyatta their 6-1 favourite, two points shorter than Preakness winner Rachel Alexandra.

Zenyatta is due to make her seasonal debut on Saturday in the Grade 2 Milady Handicap at Hollywood Park.

Prix De l'Arc De Triomphe

Coral: 10 Conduit, Fame And Glory, Tartan Bearer, 12 Sea The Stars, Vision D'Etat, 16 Aizavoski, Black Bear Island, Cutlass Bay, Frozen Fire, Gan Amhras, Magadan, Soldier Of Fortune, Stacelita, Youmzain, 20 bar

Breeders' Cup Classic

Coral: 6 Zenyatta, 8 Rachel Alexandra, 10 Gladiatorus, Well Armed, 12 Quality Road, 14 Mine That Bird, Pioneerof The Nile, Sea The Stars, 16 Dunkirk, Einstein, Rip Van Winkle, Tiago, 20 bar

I wonder if that has ever happened before? Two fillies/mares at the top of the board for the Classic!

Wouldn't mind seeing Gladiatorus and Well Armed take them on; should make quite a race.

Watch the 2000 guineas again ....Rip van winkle could be the one to follow imo...

Gladiatorus still world's top active racehorse


DUBAI Duty Free winner Gladiatorus remains the world's leading active racehorse according to the latest edition of the World Thoroughbred Rankings.

This list, in effect a top 50 of the world's racehorses, is compiled by the panel of handicappers and racing secretaries affiliated to the IFHA (International Federation of Horseracing Authorities).

Dubai World Cup winner Well Armed remains the top dirt performer with a mark of 124, with Preakness one-two Rachel Alexandra and Mine That Bird both rated 121.

Among the classic generation in Europe, Sea The Stars leads the way after his victory in the Stan James 2,000 Guineas, for which he has been awarded a mark of 121.

A stirring battle between Hong Kong sprinter Sacred Kingdom and emerging Singapore star Rocket Man in the KrisFlyer Sprint has catapulted the pair to the top of the sprinting rankings on marks of 122 and 121 respectively.

Rocket Man is likely to be given the opportunity to show his skills on the international stage at the Melbourne spring carnival.

The next edition of the World Thoroughbred Rankings will be published on June 24, 2009.

World Thoroughbred Rankings Top 20

1 Gladiatorus (UAE) Dubai Duty Free 127 T

2 Good Ba Ba (HK) HK Mile 124 T

Well Armed (USA) Dubai World Cup 124 D

4 Eagle Mountain (SA) HK Cup 122 T

Sacred Kingdom (HK) KrisFlyer Sprint 122T

Screen Hero (Jap) Japan Cup 122 T

7 Deep Sky (Jap) Japan Cup 121 T

Mine That Bird (USA) Kentucky Derby 121 D

Paco Boy (GB) Bet365 Mile 121 T

Pocket Power (SA) J&B Met 121 T

Rachel Alexandra (USA) Kentucky Oaks 121 D

Rocket Man (Sing) KrisFlyer Sprint 121 T

Sea The Stars (Ire) 2,000 Guineas 121T

14 Einstein (USA) Santa Anita Hcap 120 AW

Gloria De Campeao (Fr) SIA Cup 120 T

J J The Jet Plane (SA) Al Quoz Sprint 120 T

Matsurida Gogh (Jap) Japan Cup 120 T

Overdose (Hun) Premio Aloisi 120 T

Presvis (GB) QEII Cup 120 T

Scenic Blast (Aus) Newmarket Hcap 120 T

Viva Pataca (HK) HK Cup Trial 120 T

Great to see the Pocket at number 7, I'd love to see the Pocket take on the worlds best in Dubai next year.

Hibby, Im with you. I've been thinking about the Rip for the Derby for a while now. I think the Rip was very underdone for the Guiness and ran a blinder from off the pace, having to switch for a run in the last furlong.

I still have a few reservations though. It's up for debate whether he gets the Derby distance based on his breeding and he hasn't had an ideal prep with injuries and training setbacks.

In saying that he has been running on nicely in all of his runs and should make significant improvement from the Guiness run. I would have liked to see another prep run before the Derby.

I also wouldn't count Black Bear Island out of the reckoning. For me BBI beat a quality field in the Dante and is more certain to get the distance.

I think a swinger bet with the Rip and BBI might be the way to play...

Zenyatta in action at last years Breeders cup

Zenyatta making her re-appearance last night,still to get anywhere near the bottom of this filly...

10 out of 10 in more ways than one.

txs Hibby.

Breeders' Cup winner Zenyatta maintained her unbeaten record as she returned to action with a comfortable victory in the Milady Handicap at Hollywood Park on Saturday.

Off the track since her win in the Ladies' Classic last October, John Shirreffs' charge came from last to first in the straight to beat stablemate Life Is Sweet by a length and three-quarters.

The five-year-old is now unbeaten in 10 starts but Shirreffs was also full of praise for his runner up.

He told www.thoroughbredtimes.com : "(Zenyatta) is just special. Nine for nine, that streak is always in the back of your mind.

"We knew she had to start somewhere and that first race back you want to make it as easy as possible, but that wasn't possible. We had to deal with Life Is Sweet and believe me, she is a great running filly."

Zenyatta makes it perfect ten in Milady Handicap


Report: USA, Saturday

Hollywood Park: Milady Handicap (Grade 2) 1m½f, all-weather, 3yo+, f+m

ZENYATTA (John Shirreffs/Mike Smith) took her unbeaten record to a perfect ten with a two length victory over her stablemate Life Is Sweet (Garrett Gomez) in the Milady.

Sent off the 11-5 favourite, Zenyatta was having her first start since winning the Breeders' Cup Ladies Classic at Santa Anita seven months ago.

Life Is Sweet was seen as the lone rival in the field of six who could challenge Zenyatta, but when the real running began itwas clear she, too, was not up to the task.

"Garrett [Gomez] and I were playing some serious jockey games out there," said Smith. "It was all clean and fair. She's so handy that when I eased up on the pedal she backed up for me, came around, and it was over.

"I'm numb. I'm looking for some emotion right now but I'm just numb. She's just amazing. Physically, I think she's better than she was last year."

Smith is also looking forward to a possible clash between Zenyatta and Preakness Stakes winner Rachel Alexandra later this season.

He said: "As far as Rachel Alexandra, she's such a great filly and I don't want to ruin what she did. But Zenyatta isZenyatta. When the match comes up down the road it's going to be exciting for racing."

Trainer Shirreffs said: "We knew she had to start somewhere and that first race back you want to make it as easy as possible, but that wasn't possible. We had to deal with Life Is Sweet and, believe me, she is a great-running filly.

Shirreffs then issued an ominous warning to Zenyatta's future rivals adding: "She has a devastating move, she covers so much ground and gets rolling. This puts her right back where she was at the end of last year."