It’s Not the Heat, or Is It? : Breeders’ Cup: European horses didn’t fare well in humid conditions at Gulfstream three years ago.

In London on Thursday, temperatures ranged from 37 to 52 degrees.

At Gulfstream Park, where the ninth Breeders’ Cup will be run Saturday, the thermometer peaked at 86 and wasn’t expected to fall below 67. The humidity in early afternoon, about 48 hours before the seven-race, $10-million card will be presented, was 93%.

For the 20 European horses running Saturday, adjusting to the drastic change in climate is as much of a problem as running faster than their American opponents. Their trainers tend to downplay the heat, but the fact remains that the Europeans came up empty in the seven races at Gulfstream in 1989, despite having the favorite in the Mile and the second betting choice in the Turf.

The next two years, the Europeans were spectacular, winning twice at Belmont Park and collecting three first-place checks at Churchill Downs.

Temperatures at Belmont and Churchill were in the 40s, weather similar to what the European horses had experienced before being flown to the United States.

At Gulfstream in 1989, the temperatures approached a humid 80 degrees, the hottest it has been for a Breeders’ Cup. Zilzal, undefeated in five races in England, had lathered up before some of his races over there, but here he was a complete mess.

Allowed to leave the claustrophobic paddock early, Zilzal didn’t exercise during the post parade and balked at entering the gate, delaying the start a few minutes. Leaving the gate in sections, the even-money favorite was never a factor and finished sixth.

Besides the heat, Europeans also have a strike against them because they are used to running clockwise at home, there is virtually no dirt racing abroad and they must go through quarantine, interrupting their training, for about 36 hours while blood samples are analyzed.

The last time the Breeders’ Cup was held at Gulfstream, foreign horses were quarantined in a metal Quonset hut. It was like Death Valley East. This time, they have been quarantined in more commodious surroundings, and British trainers are following the example of their American counterparts, who are also concerned about the heat. Neil Drysdale, who will try to win the Classic with the California horse, A.P. Indy, invested in some electric fans, and Darrell Vienna, another Californian, also has installed fans for his Juvenile hopefuls, Gilded Time and Sudden Hush.

European horsemen have always felt that they would be competitive in the Mile and the Turf, the two Breeders’ Cup grass races, and in 1990, at Belmont Park, a subtle thing occurred when Ibn Bey, a 6-year-old English horse who had never raced on dirt, almost won the Classic, coming within a length of beating Unbridled.

Earlier that day, Dayjur would have won the Breeders’ Cup Sprint in his first dirt start if he hadn’t jumped shadows in the final 40 yards.

Those second-place performances were a harbinger of what happened at Churchill Downs last year. Two of the Europeans’ three victories were on dirt: Sheikh Albadou winning the Sprint by three lengths and Arazi the Juvenile by five.

Stoked by these results, which brought the Europeans’ victory total to 10, they are now at Gulfstream with their boldest invasion yet. They have brought horses to run in every race, including three in the Classic. American egos will break like Humpty-Dumpty if the English and French duplicate their success, heat and all.

The invasion is headed by Rodrigo de Triano, who is the 6-1 co-third choice in the Classic; Selkirk and Arazi, who are 1-2 on the morning line in the Mile; and Sheikh Albadou, who is trying to repeat in the Sprint.

This time around, Sheikh Albadou has run a prep race on dirt in the U.S. A month ago, he ran second to Rubiano, the best American sprinter, in the Vosburgh Stakes at Belmont Park. Rubiano will go off favored in a six-furlong race that is 220 yards shorter than the Vosburgh.

“I think we have a big chance to win again,” said Alex Scott, a 32-year-old trainer who studied theology at Cambridge University. “His two runs on the dirt have gone well, and we have drawn a good post (No. 7 in a 14-horse field). Rubiano is the horse to beat. He’s a tough little runner, he’s on top of his game right now and he has Miss (Julie) Krone (riding).”

Sheikh Albadou was flown back to England after the Vosburgh and arrived at Gulfstream several days ago.

“He has gone through this traveling without being too fussed,” Scott said. “Perhaps seven furlongs is Rubiano’s distance and six furlongs will be ours.”

Selkirk is trained by Ian Balding, a Cambridge man about two decades before Scott. Balding has never had a Breeders’ Cup starter. In 1971, he saddled Mill Reef for American Paul Mellon and won the Epsom Derby.

Selkirk is one of 18 European horses who were on a charter flight that was rocked by severe turbulence about two hours before it was to land in Miami last Monday. One horse, scheduled to run in a non-Breeders’ Cup stake this weekend, lost a tooth and suffered a cut forehead. But according to Scott, reports of the plane dropping 500 feet in seconds might have been exaggerated.

“One groom didn’t even report the incident to his trainer,” Scott said. “Most of the horses are all right. I would think there would have been more bumps and bruises if they had actually dropped 500 feet. I think our press arrived here a day early, and they needed something to fill their papers.”

Francois Boutin, one of the most successful Breeders’ Cup trainers with victories by Miesque in the Mile and Arazi last year in the Juvenile, saddles Arazi along with Exit To Nowhere in the Mile and Trishyde in the Turf on Saturday.

Working five furlongs on grass Thursday, Arazi was timed in :49 4/5 for the first four. Pat Valenzuela, who rode the colt in the Juvenile and in his crushing eighth-place defeat in the Kentucky Derby, was here from California for the workout. Steve Cauthen has been riding Arazi in Europe, where he won at a mile in his last start on Oct. 4.

Stung by the American press after the Kentucky Derby and called “snooty” in a local headline Thursday, Boutin has been incommunicado since his arrival two days ago.

Valenzuela joked about some other workouts with Arazi. The jockey was unseated a few days before last year’s Juvenile and also before the Derby.

“At least he didn’t dump me this time,” Valenzuela said. “Mr. (Allen) Paulson put Super Glue on my pants. He’s always been a good work horse. He felt very strong.”

Paulson owns 50% of Arazi after selling the rest to Sheik Mohammed al Maktoum for an estimated $9 million last year.

For Paulson, Valenzuela also rides Eliza in the Juvenile Fillies, Fraise in the Turf and Fowda in the Distaff, and the owner has promised him a new Rolls-Royce if he wins all four. If the British don’t win all the races, they may at least be part of the story with their car.

Horse Racing Notes

There is no rain in the weekend forecast. . . . Sea Cadet, scratched Wednesday from the Classic because of a leg injury, had X-rays taken and they showed no serious damage. Trainer Ron McAnally said the colt might run in the Hawthorne Gold Cup in suburban Chicago on Nov. 22. . . . Rodrigo de Triano had a swift three-furlongs breeze in 35 seconds. . . . The other Europeans in the Classic are Zoman, winner of the Budweiser International at Laurel, and Jolypha, who was eighth in soft going in the Arc de Triomphe after three victories in his first four starts. . . . Subotica, the Arc winner, is among nine horses trying to beat Sky Classic in the Turf.

Trainer Shug McGaughey, winner of three Breeders’ Cup races, has six starters Saturday, more than any other conditioner. McGaughey’s runners are Strolling Along and Living Vicariously in the Juvenile, Lure in the Mile, Versailles Treaty in the Distaff, Educated Risk in the Juvenile Fillies, and Furiously in the Sprint. . . . Two of McGaughey’s winners, Dancing Spree and Rhythm, ran at Gulfstream Park in 1989, but the victory the trainer wanted the most, Easy Goer beating Sunday Silence, didn’t happen in the Classic. Sunday Silence won by a neck and clinched horse-of-the-year honors.

Lester Piggott, England’s most famous jockey, has mounts on Mr Brooks in the Sprint and Rodrigo de Triano in the Classic. Piggott was 54 when he won the Mile with Royal Academy in 1990. His 57th birthday is next month. The oldest jockey to win a Breeders’ Cup race is Bill Shoemaker, who was 56 when he won the Classic with Ferdinand in 1987. . . . Laffit Pincay, who will be the first jockey to ride in 50 Breeders’ Cup races, has four mounts. In 47 rides, Pincay has won with Bayakoa twice, Capote, Is It True, Skywalker and Tasso. Pat Day also has six victories. . . . Wayne Lukas, who leads the trainers with 10 victories, hasn’t won a race since 1989. With four starters this time, his best shots are Mountain Cat in the Juvenile and Salt Lake in the Sprint.

Breeders’ Cup

European winners in the Breeders’ Cup:

$2 Win Year Horse Race Payoff 1984 Lashkari Turf $108.80 1985 Pebbles Turf 6.40 1986 Last Tycoon Mile 73.80 1987 Miesque Mile 9.20 1988 Miesque Mile 6.00 1990 Royal Academy Mile 7.60 1990 In the Wings Turf 5.80 1991 Sheikh Albadou Sprint 54.60 1991 Arazi Juvenile 6.20 1991 Miss Alleged Turf 86.20