Breeders’ Cup featured several competitors with local ties

A half-dozen Thoroughbreds with local ties competed at the Breeders’ Cup World Championships on Oct. 31-Nov. 1 at the Del Mar racetrack.

The top finisher was Explora, who was second in the $2 million NetJets Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies. She fell three-quarters of a length short of catching the winner, Super Corredora.

“My filly broke well and I thought she would be on the lead, but (jockey Hector Berrios on winner Super Corredora) got aggressive and got the good spot, and that’s the way it went,” said Explora’s trainer Bob Baffert. “She tried hard.”

Explora is co-owned by part-time Del Mar resident Mike Pegram.

Two fillies co-owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, which is headed by Rancho Santa Fe resident Aron Wellman, also competed in that race: Meaning, who was fourth; and La Ville Lumiere, who finished seventh.

Eclipse and Pegram also had two horses in the field of the $7 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic – Journalism (fourth) and Nevada Beach (seventh), respectively.

Johannes, who was runner-up in last year’s $2 million FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Mile Presented by PDJF, was eighth in this year’s edition of that race. He is owned by Joe and Debby McCloskey (CUYATHY LLC) of Solana Beach.