Taking the Breeder's Cup back to a "Championship"

[Dunbar]

I had this pretty crazy idea at 6am one morning. Instead of expanding (and diluting) the Breeder's Cup to more and more races, how about a SINGLE race that could be called a Championship. The current races wouldn't have to be discarded. The final race could be held a month after the current BC races and be promoted as a Breeder's Cup Grand Champion, or something. I'm thinking a mile-and-a-sixteenth on a poly surface. The poly would give both dirt and turf specialists a chance. I KNOW it's too long for a strict sprinter and too short for a real router, but the general public doesn't and wouldn't know that. They would see it as the SuperBowl of horseracing. The final Showdown. And a truly superior horse is likely to come out on top, even if it is not its ideal distance.

Winners of each of the current BC races would have an automatic entry into the BC Grand Championship if they wished. This year we could maybe have had Invasor vs Thor's Echo vs Ouija Board vs Miesque's Approval etc. Now THAT would have been an interesting race! I guarantee the TV ratings would dwarf the current BC telecast.

Well, it's just a pipe dream. Don't slam it too hard!

--Dunbar