Trainer Brad Cox believes the Highland Falls he will send to Southern California in November is a better version of the one he sent there in March. If that proves true, Highland Falls should be a significant player in the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 2 at Del Mar. After winning three of his first four starts between Kentucky and Louisiana, Highland Falls was shipped west by Cox and Godolphin Racing for the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap on March 3. Racing last for the first half of the race, Highland Falls ultimately finished fourth, 2 3/4 lengths behind Newgate. “Maybe threw him to the wolves a little early going to Santa Anita,” Cox said. “But his [speed] figures were really good, the timing was good, we had some luck a few years back with Warrant going a mile and a quarter [finishing second] in the Big Cap. He deserved a chance with how he was doing and the figures he received.” In hindsight, Cox said, “I don’t quite think he was ready for it. He didn’t get quite as involved as I felt like we needed him to be to be effective that day. I thought he ran on fine. He was just left with a little too much to do and seemed to be a better horse for it.” :: BREEDERS’ CUP CLASSIC: See DRF’s special section with top contenders, odds, comments, news, and more In four starts since the Santa Anita Handicap, Highland Falls has two wins and two seconds in graded stakes. In April, Highland Falls finished second to Skippylongstocking in the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap. In June, Highland Falls won the Grade 3 Blame Stakes at Churchill Downs. While the Blame is the local prep for the Grade 1 Stephen Foster, Cox and Godolphin had First Mission for that race. With an eye toward the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Saratoga in September, Cox ran Highland Falls in the Grade 3 Monmouth Cup, where he finished second to Tapit Trice. “It wasn’t a bad effort,” Cox said. “Not a lot of pace, was stuck down inside, didn’t really get as good a trip as the winner that day.” Still, Cox thought it was a good setup for the Jockey Club Gold Cup, where, at the very least, Cox figured the horse would relish the 1 1/4-mile distance of the race. In the Jockey Club, Cox instructed Flavien Prat to put Highland Falls into the race and not let the favored front-runner Arthur’s Ride have things his own way. Prat did just that and Highland Falls put Arthur’s Ride away by the quarter pole en route to a four-length victory. Prat is committed to Sierra Leone in the Classic, so Cox has tabbed Luis Saez to ride Highland Falls. Saez and Cox teamed to win the 2020 BC Juvenile with Essential Quality, who came back the next year to win the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes and Travers. Highland Falls certainly has the pedigree to win a Breeders’ Cup race. He is by Curlin, the 2007 BC Classic winner, out of Round Pond, the 2006 Distaff winner. In 2021, the last time the Breeders’ Cup was held at Del Mar, Cox won the Classic with Knicks Go. Highland Falls will come into the Classic off a nine-week layoff, the longest time he’s had between races since he debuted at Ellis Park in August 2023. “He’s been super solid and seems to be hitting his best stride,” Cox said. “He’s received some very big [speed] figures that I think definitely stacks up with the group. If he throws one of those big figures he’s going to be right there.” Next likely to be cross-entered Next, the dominant dirt marathoner, worked five furlongs in 1:00.60 Wednesday morning over the synthetic surface at Turfway Park. Afterward, trainer Doug Cowans said, provided the horse comes out of the work in good order, Next will be pre-entered in both the $7 million Classic and the $5 million Turf with a final decision on which race to run in made closer to entry day, Oct. 28. :: ON SALE NOW: DRF Breeders' Cup Packages! Get everything you need to win and save 41% off the retail price. Next has won seven consecutive dirt stakes by a total of 91 3/4 lengths. The shortest distance at which he has won during that span is 1 3/8 miles, which he did taking the Grade 2 Brooklyn by 9 1/4 lengths in July at Aqueduct. Next, who ran last in the 2020 BC Juvenile when trained by Wesley Ward, is 3 for 7 on turf. ◗ Skippylongstocking, who would get into the Classic on points accrued in graded stakes, worked a half-mile in 49.42 seconds Wednesday morning over the Oklahoma training track in Saratoga. Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. said Tuesday that he and the horse’s owner, Daniel Alonso, will discuss whether to run in the Classic or the Dirt Mile, a race in which Skippylongstocking finished third a year ago. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.