Season-ending Breeders' Cup showdowns probably create more arguments than champions

The 20th Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships at Santa Anita Park on October 25 were supposed to produce champions. Instead, they most likely will produce passionate arguments.

Do the top horses who missed the Breeders' Cup deserve championships? Are Breeders' Cup no-shows--Mineshaft, Azeri, Empire Maker, and Bird Town, the respective older male, older female, three-year-old male, and three-year-old filly--champions?

Are horses who dominated their divisions but lost the Breeders' Cup still worthy of titles? Did Sightseek, Aldebaran, Storming Home (GB), and Perfect Drift accomplish enough before the Breeders' Cup to justify divisional honors?

And what about Funny Cide and Ten Most Wanted?

And who should be named Horse of the Year?

There will be no debate over undefeated Halfbridled's two-year-old filly title after her Breeders' Cup Juvenile Filly (G1) victory from the 14 post. The Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) victory by Action This Day should make him two-year-old colt champion, while either of two Breeders' Cup winners, Islington (Ire) or Six Perfections (Fr), is deserving of an Eclipse for turf filly or mare.

Bird Town, who won the Kentucky Oaks (G1) and Acorn Stakes (G1) and ran second in the Beldame (G1) and Test (G1) Stakes, should be named three-year-old filly champion. That is because Elloluv, who won the Ashland Stakes (G1) but was fourth in the Kentucky Oaks, and Lady Tak, who lost two of three meetings with Bird Town, finished second and seventh, respectively, in the Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) to 40.70-to-1 longshot Adoration.

The real fun begins with the three-year-old male title. Empire Maker and Funny Cide faced each other three times. Empire Maker beat Funny Cide in the Wood Memorial (G1) and Belmont (G1) Stakes and lost to him in the Kentucky Derby (G1). Empire Maker also won the Florida Derby (G1), but lost in his final start, the Jim Dandy Stakes (G2), to Strong Hope, who subsequently finished third in the Travers Stakes (G1).

Funny Cide won only one other race the entire year, but that was a near-record romp in the Preakness Stakes (G1). He lost to Peace Rules in the Haskell Invitational Handicap (G1), then did little to help his cause by running ninth in the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1).

Ten Most Wanted won the Illinois Derby (G2) and ran ninth in the Kentucky Derby before finishing second in the Belmont and Swaps Stakes (G2) and winning the Travers and Super Derby (G2). His eighth-place finish in the Classic did nothing to strengthen his case.

Now that we have that unresolved, what about older filly or mare? Azeri compiled four victories--three Grade 1s and one Grade 2--before finishing second in her final start in the Lady's Secret Breeders' Cup Handicap (G2) to Got Koko. Before finishing third in the Distaff, Got Koko won four of six starts. She split decisions with both Azeri and Sightseek this year. Sightseek finished second in her first three starts this year before ripping off four consecutive Grade 1 stakes wins and running a distant fourth in the Distaff.

Your move.

Storming Home finished first in his first four 2003 starts--though he was disqualified in the Arlington Million Stakes (G1)--but ran off the board in the Breeders' Cup Turf (G1) behind dead-heat winners High Chaparral (Ire) and Johar. High Chaparral's 2003 record is three wins and a third in four starts. Last year, he won the turf championship off five victories in six starts.

Not an easy choice, right?

In the older male category, Perfect Drift beat Mineshaft by a head while getting eight pounds from him in the Stephen Foster Handicap (G1) and won three Grade 2 stakes in his other dirt starts. But he finished sixth in the Breeders' Cup Classic to Pleasantly Perfect, who won one of his other three starts, the Goodward Breeders' Cup Handicap (G2).

Mineshaft missed the Breeders' Cup but dominated the whole year, winning seven of nine starts, including four Grade 1 stakes. You can argue all you want about the other titles, but the only strong feeling coming out of the Breeders' Cup was that he should be champion older male and Horse of the Year. Horses in the best position to dethrone him had their chance in the Breeders' Cup and failed.