Knicks Go

Korea Racing Authority’s Knicks Go ($8.40) played catch me if you can in the 2021 running of the $6 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) for 3-year-olds and up, and no one could as he posted a 2 ¾-length victory over Medina Spirit to conclude the Breeders’ Cup World Championships races at Del Mar. The victory was his second win in the World Championships, which followed his triumph in 2020 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1) at Keeneland, and made him just the sixth horse to win two different Breeders’ Cup races.

Trained by Brad Cox and ridden by Joel Rosario, Knicks Go covered the 1 ¼ miles of the  Classic on a fast main track in 1:59.57. The victory was the first in the Classic for Cox and eighth overall while Rosario picked up his 15th World Championships victory and second in the Classic. He won the 2018 running with Accelerate at Churchill Downs.

Knicks Go set off on an uncontested lead through fractions of :23.16, :45.77 and 1:10.04 with Art Collector in closest pursuit early and Medina Spirit and Hot Rod Charlie tracking in third and fourth. On the far turn, Art Collector backed out of the picture as Medina Spirit tried to mount a rally to the outside of Knicks Go, and Hot Rod Charlie cut the corner on the inside. The threats were short-lived as Knicks Go scampered clear to victory.  A 5-year-old Maryland-bred son of Paynter out of the Outflanker mare Kosmo’s Buddy, Knicks Go improved his record to 24-10-3-1 that included five Grade 1 victories. The winner’s share of $3,120,000 increased his earnings to $8,673,135.

“He ran a tremendous race,” said Cox. “Obviously, the race went really well. He broke (well), and was able to establish position early. Once he was able to do that, he’s a hard horse to catch. I’m very proud of him.”

“We had a beautiful trip,” said Rosario. “He does exactly what he wants to do. I tried to save as much as I could, because we had a mile and one quarter to go. But he was going easy. At the quarter pole he just took off again. He’s just an amazing horse.”

Originally trained by Ben Colebrook, Knicks Go burst onto the scene in 2018 when at only 2, he turned in a sizzling front-running performance in Keeneland’s Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity (G1), winning at odds of 70-1. The Breeders’ Futurity would punch his first ticket in the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series to that year’s TVG Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) at Santa Anita Park  in which he came in a strong second.

His 3-year-old campaign proved more of a march than a sprint with no wins that season, but a new barn, and a new trainer in the form of Cox, proved just the change Knicks Go needed to get back on the path to success at age 4. Knicks Go was undefeated that year in three starts, capped by another gate-to-wire victory in the Big Ass Fans Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1) at Keeneland.

In 2021, Knicks Go won five times in seven starts, including victories in the Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) at Gulfstream Park, the Whitney (G1) at Saratoga, and the Lukas Classic (G3) at Churchill Downs, prior to his Breeders’ Cup Classic score.