Breeders' Cup
Filly & Mare Sprint
Introduction
The Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint is a test that compresses speed, tenacity and edge-of-the-seat excitement into a relatively short distance. Established in 2007, the race became an instant hit, adding a fresh dimension to the Breeders’ Cup World Championships by offering a sprint distance specifically tailored for fillies and mares without the requisite stamina for the Breeders’ Cup Distaff.
Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint History
The Filly & Mare Sprint was introduced to spotlight the fastest female horses in the sport and to offer them an opportunity to compete for a championship title. The race’s addition to the Breeders’ Cup roster was met with wide acclaim as it provided a much needed opportunity for horses that specialize in shorter distances to compete against their own gender at an optimal trip.
The race is open to fillies and mares aged three years and older and is run at a distance of seven furlongs on a dirt track. The purse has generally hovered around the $1 million mark, offering both prestige and also lucrative reward for the connections of the winning horse.
It took twelve years from 2007 for the first three-year-old to claim the Filly & Mare Sprint crown, after which that age group rattled off a hat-trick between 2018 and 2020. Since 2021, older horses have regained the ascendancy, winning the most recent three renewals.
2025 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint Challenge Series Races
| DATE | TRACK | RACE | GRADE | DISTANCE | AGE | SEX | DIVISION | AREA | WINNER |
| 8/23/2025 | Sar | The Resorts World Casino Ballerina | I | 7 Furlongs | 3 YO & UP | F & M | Filly & Mare Sprint | New York | Hope Road |
| 9/20/2025 | GP | Princess Rooney Stakes | III | 7 Furlongs | 3 YO & UP | F & M | Filly & Mare Sprint | Florida | Haulin Ice |
| 10/04/2025 | Kee | Thoroughbred Club of America | II | 6 Furlongs | 3 YO & UP | F & M | Filly & Mare Sprint | Kentucky | Praying |
Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint Trends
- Winner’s age: 644544554453335455
- 3yo’s 3 from 48 to date; ’18 winner 3yo, 20/1; ’19 1st/2nd only two 3yo’s in the field; ’20 winner Gamine 3yo; ’22 2nd & 3rd 3yo’s
- 3yo’s won 0 of first 11, and have since won 3 of last 7 (well btn, incl fav, in ’24)
- 17/18 finished in the top 3, or within 3L of the winner, last time (not ’17 winner)
- 15/18 won at 7f; 8/18 2+ wins at 7f (’24 winner was 1/1 at 7f)
- 13/18 won or were 2nd in a G1 (’17 winner 2nd 7f G1 2 yrs ago, ’18 winner 1st G2 LTO only 7f start, ’21 winner won G1 a yr ago)
- TCA at Keeneland is a key prep (albeit over 6f)
- PID Masters (6 1/2f) also key race – Gal In A Rush came from some way back to win going away.
- Surface switch (synth or turf to dirt) : 7/18 winners; ’18 winner 1stx2 on synths prior to final prep on dirt
- 12/18 had career form on synth and/or turf (10/18 synth, 11/18 turf)
- Fav 7/18, 2nd fav 2/18, 3rd fav 1/18. 8/18 4th or lower in the betting
- 9/18 were off 6 weeks or more; 8/18 off 4 or 5 weeks; only 1/18 rested less than four weeks
To view the following sections:
– How the Runners Fit the Trends
– Pace Map
– Trends Contenders
– Form Overview
– Form Contenders
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Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint Results
Key: PP – post position; RS – run style (lengths behind leader: 4 <½L, 3 ½L- 1½L, 2 1¾L – 3½L, 1 > 3½L); Odds – return for a 1 unit stake; SR – Equibase speed figure
| Track | Date | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | PP | RS | Odds | SR | Chart |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Del Mar | 2/11/2024 | Soul Of An Angel | Saffie Joseph, Jr. | Drayden van Dyke | 7 | 1 | 19.80 | 111 | Result |
| Santa Anita | 4/11/2023 | Goodnight Olive | Chad C. Brown | Irad Ortiz, Jr. | 1 | 2 | 1.10 | 100 | Result |
| Keeneland | 5/11/2022 | Goodnight Olive | Chad C. Brown | Irad Ortiz, Jr. | 8 | 2 | 1.85 | 106 | Result |
| Del Mar | 6/11/2021 | Ce Ce | Michael W. McCarthy | Victor Espinoza | 3 | 2 | 6.20 | 105 | Result |
| Keeneland | 7/11/2020 | Gamine | Bob Baffert | John R. Velazquez | 2 | 3 | 1.10 | 121 | Result |
| Santa Anita | 2/11/2019 | Covfefe | Brad H. Cox | Joel Rosario | 1 | 2 | 1.50 | 112 | Result |
| Churchill | 3/11/2018 | Shamrock Rose | Mark E. Casse | Irad Ortiz, Jr. | 14 | 1 | 25.90 | 106 | Result |
| Del Mar | 4/11/2017 | Bar of Gold | John C. Kimmel | Irad Ortiz, Jr. | 5 | 1 | 66.70 | 110 | Result |
| Santa Anita | 5/11/2016 | Finest City | Ian Kruljac | Mike E. Smith | 12 | 4 | 8.70 | 110 | Result |
| Keeneland | 10/31/2015 | Wavell Avenue | Chad C. Brown | Joel Rosario | 7 | 1 | 10.00 | 108 | Result |
| Santa Anita | 1/11/2014 | Judy the Beauty | Wesley A. Ward | Mike E. Smith | 7 | 2 | 3.10 | 98 | Result |
| Santa Anita | 2/11/2013 | Groupie Doll | William B. Bradley | Rajiv Maragh | 11 | 2 | 3.00 | 115 | Result |
| Santa Anita | 3/11/2012 | Groupie Doll | William B. Bradley | Rajiv Maragh | 9 | 2 | 0.70 | 121 | Result |
| Churchill | 4/11/2011 | Musical Romance | William A. Kaplan | Juan C. Leyva | 5 | 3 | 20.20 | 106 | Result |
| Churchill | 5/11/2010 | Dubai Majesty | W. Bret Calhoun | Jamie Theriot | 12 | 3 | 8.60 | 109 | Result |
| Santa Anita | 6/11/2009 | Informed Decision | Jonathan E. Sheppard | Julien R. Leparoux | 7 | 3 | 3.40 | 112 | Result |
| Santa Anita | 10/24/2008 | Ventura | Robert J. Frankel | Garrett K. Gomez | 11 | 1 | 2.80 | 115 | Result |
| Monmouth | 10/26/2007 | Maryfield | Doug F. O’Neill | Elvis Trujillo | 4 | 1 | 8.00 | 98 | Result |
Memorable Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint Winners
Ventura (2008)
In only the second edition of the race, Ventura, trained be the late and greatly missed Bobby Frankel, stunned the racing world with a performance that saw her win by four lengths and get within one hundredth of a second of a new track record in the process.
Groupie Doll (2012, 2013)
Groupie Doll cemented her legacy by winning back-to-back editions of the Filly & Mare Sprint. Her 2012 victory was particularly memorable, as she won by an impressive 4 1/2 lengths having been positioned wide conceding ground throughout, and she remains the only multiple winner of the race.
Covfefe (2019)
Named after a viral tweet by former US President Donald Trump, presumed to have been a typo, Covfefe lived up to her name’s buzz with a hard-fought victory in the 2019 edition. In doing so she became only the second three-year-old, after 25/1 shot Shamrock Rose a year earlier, to win the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint.
