Trainer Bob Baffert has won the Breeders' Cup Classic a record four times, his most recent victory coming in 2020 with Authentic. Baffert's only horse in the 2024 Breeders' Cup Classic field is Newgate, a 20-1 longshot in the 2024 Breeders' Cup Classic odds. Newgate won the Santa Anita Handicap earlier this year and is coming off a third-place finish in the California Classic Stakes. Given Baffert's history of success in this race, should you back Newgate as a massive longshot with your 2024 Breeders' Cup Classic best bets? The latest 2024 Breeders' Cup Classic weather is calling for partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid-60s.
City of Troy is the 5-2 Breeders' Cup Classic favorite as the European superstar gets set for his first race on dirt, while Fierceness is next on the horse racing odds board at 3-1. Other 2024 Breeders' Cup Classic contenders include Forever Young (6-1), Next (8-1) and Sierra Leone (12-1). 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. The three-year-old son of Triple Crown winner Justify has won six of seven career races in Europe, including four Grade 1 finishes. However, the expert questions how well the Aidan O'Brien trainee will run on his first race on a different surface, especially from the No. 3 post.
"There is no way to know how he will handle the dirt or the kickback he could take from this inside post, and O'Brien's history is littered with turf horses who have attempted dirt and failed," Menez told SportsLine. "The 5-2 price is way too short on a horse who is a question mark on the surface." See which horses to pick here.
Another surprise: Menez is high on Arthur's Ride, even though he's a 15-1 longshot. The 4-year-old colt from Florida has gained valuable experience at some of the top racetracks in the country, including Churchill Downs, Gulfstream Park and Saratoga. He has four wins in his last six races, with his top victory coming in the Grade 1 Whitney Stakes in August.
Arthur's Ride finished a disappointing fifth in the 2024 Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) in September, which is why he is available at these odds this weekend. If you took that finish away, he would be considered a top contender coming off an impressive win in the Whitney Stakes. Backing a longshot is all about finding a horse with a high ceiling, and Arthur's Ride certainly meets that criteria after posting three straight speed figures of at least 100. 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.
2024 Breeders' Cup Classic horses, odds
| Horse | Odds | Picks |
|---|---|---|
| City of Troy | 5-2 | SEE PICKS |
| Fierceness | 3-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Forever Young | 6-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Next | 8-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Sierra Leone | 12-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Ushba Tesoro | 12-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Arthur's Ride | 15-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Derma Sotogake | 20-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Highland Falls | 20-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Newgate | 20-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Mixto | 30-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Senor Buscador | 30-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Pyrenees | 30-1 | SEE PICKS |
| Tapit Trice | 30-1 | SEE PICKS |