Breeders' Cup Mile

Introduction

The Breeders’ Cup Mile is one of the seven original races inaugurated with the Breeders’ Cup at the sadly now defunct Hollywood Park in 1984. A Grade 1 race on the turf, it serves as an international battleground where the world’s best middle-distance runners converge to compete for supremacy. Over the years, the Mile has consistently asserted its position as arguably the most important race globally at the distance, attracting an increasingly diverse pool of talent from North America, Europe, and beyond.

Breeders’ Cup Mile  History

The Breeders’ Cup Mile was established to fill a void in American horse racing for a top-tier middle-distance turf race. The event quickly gained prominence, serving as a critical year-end championship that almost always determines Eclipse Award winners and influences international rankings. With a purse that has steadily risen and now stands at around $2 million, the Mile has become one of the most sought-after titles ‘on the greeen’.

The Mile is open to thoroughbreds aged three years and older, and it is run over a distance of one mile on turf.

A feature of the Breeders’ Cup Mile has been the number of repeat winners. No fewer than five horses have secured multiple Mile titles, but only one – the outstanding mare Goldikova – has won it three times. Indeed, she is one of only two horses to win at the Breeders’ Cup race three times! [The other is Beholder, winner of the Juvenile Fillies, and twice triumphant in the Distaff]

2025 Breeders’ Cup Mile Challenge Series Races

Breeders’ Cup Mile Trends

• 21 of last 23 winners had 4-6 seasonal starts (’24 winner only raced 2x in season)
• 19 of last 23 winners had 2+ mile turf wins (exceptions all Euros)
• Repeat winners common (Miesque, Lure, Da Hoss, Goldikova, Wise Dan)
• 17 of the last 29 were US winners; 7 French-trained (UK/Ire back in biz, after long blank: wins in ’18, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23)
• 10/12 3yo winners were Euros (4 fillies); 12/15 5yo+ winners were US (exception Goldikova #3, and 2x C Appleby)
• Euro G1 win important (Expert Eye, Order of Australia no G1 win), US any Graded win
• 28 of the last 31 ran 123 last time, or finished within 4L of the winner
• Career record at 1m of BC Mile winners since 2002: Runs 157, 1st 90 (57%), 2nd 38 (24%)
• Thus, the last 23 BC Mile winners had a collective 81% 1-2 record at the distance
• Only 1 front runner has been 1st or 2nd since 2000 (Smooth Like Strait, 2nd in 2021); Lure (1992,1993) only winning front-runner
• Charlie Appleby won in ’21, ’22, ’23 – 3rd in ’24
• 7 winners since 2005 had run in the race the previous year, incl 64/1 Court Vision, 12/1 Tourist and ’24 winner More Than Looks

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 Mile 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

Noteworthy Breeders’ Cup Mile Winners

Miesque (1987, 1988)

French mare Miesque became the first horse to win two consecutive editions of the Mile. Her wins in 1987 and 1988 were dominant and set the standard for excellence in the race. Trained by Francois Boutin, she was ridden by Freddie Head, who would go on to train Goldikove to her famous Mile ‘three-peat’.

Lure (1992, 1993)

American-bred Lure equaled Miesque’s feat with back-to-back wins in 1992 and 1993, showcasing his extraordinary speed and agility. Not only was Lure a repeat winner, but he’s the only horse to have won the Mile gate to wire, a feat he all but reprised in his second score, giving best only at the first call by a mere head before moving on to lead for the rest of that double up success.

Goldikova (2008, 2009, 2010)

The brilliant French mare Goldikova stands in a league of her own with three consecutive victories, a feat that remains unmatched in the history of the Mile. She won a mind-boggling fourteen Group or Grade 1’s across five seasons of racing, and placed second or third in another eight, including on her career swansong at Churchill Downs. There, bidding for an unprecedented four-timer in the Mile, she had to settle for third place after a troubled transit.

Wise Dan (2012, 2013)

American gelding Wise Dan not only won the Mile twice but also earned Eclipse Horse of the Year Awards in both years, a testament to his all-around brilliance..