American Pharoah to race in Breeders’ Cup Classic

A few days of indecision over, Triple Crown winner American Pharoah is back on schedule for the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic and a chance for a magical career-ending race.

After a tough loss in the Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course last Saturday, American Pharoah’s owner Ahmed Zayat said his “gut feeling” was to retire rather than race on as planned.

On Thursday, after hours of talks with trainer Bob Baffert and the rest of Team Pharoah this week, the owner decided against retirement because “the champ deserves another chance.

“I am very confident that this is the right decision for American Pharoah,” Zayat said in a statement released to the Associated Press and several other media outlets. “He loves to race. He has provided my family, racing fans, and general sports fans with great thrills this year.

“He won the Triple Crown earlier this year, and he deserves the chance to be in the sport’s premier year-end event.”

Zayat says after conferring with Baffert, assistant trainer Jimmy Barnes, jockey Victor Espinoza and his son and racing manager, Justin Zayat, that American Pharoah came out of the Travers “in great shape.” His initial read was perhaps the chiseled bay colt was tiring from the grind of shipping more than 20,000 miles by air and horse van and running in seven tough races since March.

“I believe there were a combination of factors that prevented American Pharoah from running his absolute best on Saturday,” Zayat said without elaborating. “I have every confidence that he can run to his best again.”