Breeders’ Cup Turf Loses Lammtarra

The $2-million Breeders’ Cup Turf at Belmont Park on Oct. 28 lost its probable favorite Monday when Sheik Maktoum, the owner of Lammtarra, announced that his winner of the Arc deTriomphe and the English Derby is being retired.

“Lammtarra is 100% sound, but the Arc [on Oct. 1] was a hard race for him,” said Simon Crisford, who manages Godolphin Racing for the sheik and his family. “The Breeders’ Cup is being run earlier this year than it usually is, and the race is coming up too quickly for our horse.”

Lammtarra, undefeated in his four starts, will be sent to stud and will stand next year at the Maktoums’ farm in Newmarket, England.

With the defection of Lammtarra, the Breeders’ Cup Turf becomes a grab-bag. Of the remaining European challengers, Crisford likes Freedom Cry, who finished second, three-quarters of a length behind Lammtarra, in the Arc, France’s most prestigious race. Freedom Cry is owned by Daniel Wildenstein and trained by Andre Fabre, the pair who pulled off the biggest Breeders’ Cup upset when they won the Classic with Arcangues, a 133-1 shot, at Santa Anita in 1993.

Godolphin’s only representative in this year’s Breeders’ Cup will be Halling, who will challenge Cigar in the $3-million Classic. Halling is on an eight-race winning streak, five this year, and will be making his dirt debut at Belmont.

One oddsmaker in Nevada has put a 10-1 price on Halling.

“Cigar looked like he won [Saturday’s Jockey Club Gold Cup] with quite a lot up his sleeve,” Crisford said. “We have a lot of respect for him. But there is no way that Halling should be [as high as] 10-1. If I were [in Nevada], I would be getting down at that price.”