Breeders Cup Dirt Mile 2024: Dr. Venkman, National Treasure, or Post Time?

The popular weight-for-age race, the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, will have its annual renewal on November 2nd, 2024 at Del Mar Racetrack. There’s a guaranteed purse of $1 million riding on the race, which is for 3-year-olds and up.

The betting for the 2024 Dirt Mile renewal will be heating up as race day approaches. Those shifts in the market can be tracked, and potential entries can be followed in prep races at leading betting sites, right alongside the latest score odds football options for MLS action and big European leagues.

2023 Recap

Last year’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile was a spectacular show, with Godolphin’s Cody’s Wish putting in a determined effort to win for the second year running. Going off as the odds-on favorite, he came under tremendous pressure from National Treasure who pushed him all the way.

Cody’s Wish just had a little extra inside the final 100 yards to get the win by a nose in a cliffhanger of a finish. It was a fairytale ending for Cody’s Wish, trained by Bill Mott, as he was retired afterwards. So who is likely to next step into the winners’ circle?

Races to Read

First, there are three key races to watch for in the build-up to Dirt Mile 2024 as part of the “Win And You’re In” Qualifying process.

Metropolitan Stakes

This prestigious race at Saratoga was won last year by Cody’s Wish who then went on to score at the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. This year it was National Treasure that scored the victory ahead of Post Time and Hoist the Gold, albeit in the second-slowest time in the last fifteen years.

Pat O’Brien Stakes

The Pat O’Brien Stakes, a Grade 2 7f sprint on the dirt, is another big milestone in the build-up to the Dirt Mile. This year’s renewal is scheduled for August 24th. Anarchist scored last year in the Pat O’Brien after stretching to seven furlongs, but didn’t go to the Dirt Mile which connections may have felt was too far.

Ack Ack Stakes

The Grade 3 fixture was won last year by Zozos who finished fifth in the 2023 Dirt Mile. This year’s renewal of the 1-mile test is on September 8th at Churchill Downs.

National Treasure

Last year’s runner-up effort by National Treasure in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile and his score in this year’s Metropolitan, naturally puts him front and center in the betting for success this year. His win at Saratoga in June was by more than six lengths over Post Time and came after winning the Pegasus earlier in the campaign too. He should have every chance of landing the big prize.

Dr. Venkman

July’s San Diego Handicap at Del Mar was an interesting run and with a victory in the 1m 1/2f trip, Dr. Venkman put himself on the radar for the Dirt Mile. He soundly scored by a good length in a small field that also included Grade 1 winner Arabian Knight. That was the first score of Dr. Venkman’s young career for trainer Mark Glatt and he will be expected to challenge.

Post Time

Post Time is one of the most consistent horses in training, winning 8 of his 12 career starts while never finishing any worse than 3rd in defeat. He won 4 straight to start 2024 including his first 2 in graded stakes races before eventually finishing 2nd or 3rd in a pair of Grade 1 races, including runner-up to National Treasure in the Met Mile.

With the wife-husband duo of trainer Brittany Russell & jockey Sheldon Russell, supporters will be cheering for Post Time to pull off a matrimonial miracle in the Dirt Mile.

Quick Dirt Mile Trends

In the last ten renewals of the Dirt Mile, half of the winners were four-year-olds, with only two in that sequence older. Trainers Todd Pletcher and William Mott have both won the race twice in the last nine editions. Five jockeys have won the Dirt Mile twice, including Junior Alvarado, Irad Ortiz Jr and Joel Rosario.