The following is a list of the ten horses that paid the most to win in the history of Breeders Cup races. The ten horses listed here are from all the Breeders Cup races run from 1984 to 2013.
You cannot readily find this information on the Internet as it is not on either the Daily Racing Form or Equibase websites. To get this information I had to go through all of the Breeders Cup race results.
The Breeders Cup is an annual series of races for the best horses in horse racing that takes places in late October or early November. The Breeders Cup races are run at a variety of distances on both turf and dirt surfaces, and most of the Breeders Cup races have purses of $1 million or more.
I am a big horse racing fan and am happy to say that I bet on and cashed a huge win ticket on one of the horses on this list. As a big horse racing fan, the Breeders Cup is the highlight of every horse racing year.
I’ve actually listed 11 horses here because the 11th horse paid a huge price to win in a Breeders Cup race with a pretty small field.
Ten Horses That Paid the Most to Win in Breeders Cup Racing History
1. Arcangues in 1993 Breeders Cup Classic – $269.20
The record for the highest win price in Breeders Cup history belongs to a horse named Arcangues, who paid a whopping $269.20 for each $2 bet on him to win in the 1993 Breeders Cup Classic.
Arcangues was a French bred horse out of the stallion named Sagace. His trainer was Andre Fabre, and he was ridden to victory by jockey Jerry Bailey. The Breeders Cup Classic was worth $1.56 million to Arcangues and his connections, and the win accounted for the lions share of his career earnings of $1.981 million.
2. Court Vision in 2011 Breeders Cup Mile – $131.60
The second highest win price in a Breeders Cup race came in 2011 when Court Vision won the Breeders Cup Mile race and paid $131.60 for each $2 bet on him. Court Vision was trained by Dale Romans and ridden to victory by Robby Albarado.
3. Spain in 2000 Breeders Cup Distaff – $113.80
The third highest win price came in 2000, when Spain won the Breeders Cup Distaff and paid $113.80. Spain was trained by D. Wayne Lukas and ridden to victory by Victor Espinoza.
4. Lashkari in 1984 Breeders Cup Turf – $108.80
The fourth highest win price in Breeders Cup history came in 1984 when Lashkari won the Breeders Cup Turf race and paid $108.80. Lashkari was trained by Frenchmen Alain de Royer-Dupre and ridden to victory by jockey Yves Saint-Martin.
5. One Dreamer in 1994 Breeders Cup Distaff – $96.20
The gray mare One Dreamer paid the fifth highest win price when she wired the 1994 Breeders Cup Distaff field and paid $96.20. One Dreamer was trained by Thomas Proctor and ridden to victory by Gary Stevens.
6. Caressing in 2000 Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies – $96.00
Caressing paid $96.00 to win when she won the 2000 Breeders Cup Juvenile fillies race for trainer David Vance and jockey John Velazquez. I am happy to say that I bet $5 across the board on Caressing and was very happy when she won.
Horse racing can also make you feel terrible even when you win sometimes, though, as I also boxed Caressing, Platinum Tiara, and She’s a Devil Due in the exacta. Platinum Tiara ran second and I won the $940.60 exacta, which was great, but She’s a Devil Due ran third to complete a $18,355.80 trifecta, and I did not bet the trifecta.
7. Shared Account in 2010 Filly & Mare Turf – $94.00
Shared Account paid $94.00 to win when she won the 2010 Filly & Mare Turf race for trainer Graham Motion and jockey Edgar Prado.
8. Valponi in 2002 Breeders Cup Classic – $89.00
Valponi paid $89.00 when he won the Breeders Cup Classic in 2002 for trainer Phil Johnson and jockey Jose Santos.
9. Miss Alleged in 1991 Breeders Cup Turf – $86.20
Miss Alleged paid $86.20 when she won the 1991 Breeders Cup Turf race for French trainer Pascal Bary and jockey Eric Ligrix.
Miss Alleged would have paid even more in the race but she was part of the field entry in 1991, and coupled with two other horses. As an uncoupled filly running against a field dominated by male horses, she would likely have been even bigger odds in the race than she was as part of the field.
10. Afleet Again in 2011 in Breeders Cup Marathon – $85.20
Afleet Again paid $85.20 when he won the mile and a half Breeders Cup Marathon race in 2011 for trainer Robert Reid, Jr., and jockey Cornelio Velasquez.
11. Adoration in 2003 Breeders Cup Distaff – $83.40
Adoration paid $83.40 when she wired the field and won the 2003 Breeders Cup Distaff for trainer David Hofmans and jockey Patrick Valenzuela. That was an amazing price considering there were only seven horses in the race.
