Top Longshots for Breeders’ Cup Weekend

Key Takeaways:

• The Breeders’ Cup’s deep fields create opportunities to find longshots at attractive odds, especially horses whose form or connections may be overlooked by bettors.
• Vanta (20-1) brings a perfect 3-for-3 record into the Juvenile Fillies Turf, with improving form, a favorable pace setup, and trainer Jeff Mullins’ strong record with shippers.
• Let Em Know (20-1) bounced back from a troubled Summer Stakes effort to win the Pilgrim (G2), and his proven ability over two turns on turf makes him an intriguing Juvenile Turf price.
• In Our Time (20-1) has the class and tactical speed to contend in the Turf Sprint, while Hymn (15-1) offers a strong alternative to favorite Englishman in the Sprint with consistent form at six and seven furlongs.
• Eunomia (30-1) rebounded with a win in the Clement L. Hirsch (G1) and has already run well over Keeneland’s fast dirt, making her an appealing longshot to use in Distaff exotic wagers.

The Breeders’ Cup World Championships happen at Keeneland on Friday, October 30 and Saturday, October 31, and it is the biggest weekend in horse racing. The series of 14 championship races offers over $30 million, including $7 million in the Breeders’ Cup Classic and $5 million in the Turf. However, the big money isn’t just there for the horse owners.

With large fields of the best horses in the world, there is a lot of money to be made at the betting windows, as well. It makes sense: with so many world-class horses lining up to face each other in the Breeders’ Cup, the difference between the favorite and a horse who is 15-1, 20-1, or even longer is not nearly as big as it is for many races on regular race days. If those huge price horses win, or even find the exacta or trifecta, the bettors who found those diamonds in the rough are going to cash those life-changing scores.

Here are long shots across the two days of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships who could key some of those huge payouts during the weekend, along with the morning-line odds for each of these live longshots.

Naturally, you can bet which horses will win their Breeders’ Cup races at FanDuel Racing. Also, discover 2026 Breeders’ Cup odds and bet the Breeders’ Cup with exclusive bonuses and promos.

Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf: Vanta (20-1)

As with many of the Breeders’ Cup races on the lawn, the heavy hitters are the European horses, and good American horses who have a chance to hit the board are likely not to take money. That’s good news when there’s a U.S.-based horse with a shot, especially one coming from races and connections that fly under the radar.

Vanta is a perfect 3-for-3, with both open-length wins and a close battle to her credit. She has made steady improvement through those starts, from a five-furlong maiden win to a listed win at a mile to a Grade 3 win at the same distance. She goes the mile once again, a distance she is clearly fit enough to handle. In terms of conditions, the good weather all week means the turf should come up firm, much like she is familiar with from California. In terms of pace, there is enough early speed signed on to set up nicely for her closing run.

Her connections also likely mean she won’t get bet as heavily as she should be. Trainer Jeff Mullins hits the board at a 42% rate with shippers, meaning they tend to be very well-meant, and his graded-stakes runners over the last three years have won at 23% with a flat-bet profit. She also keeps jockey Umberto Rispoli, a strong California turf rider who still tends to get underbet, especially outside his home circuit.

Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf: Let Em Know (20-1)

His career began with a flat six-furlong sprint effort on the dirt, but a switch to two turns on the grass was a revelation. He tracked the pace and battled home to win by a head in a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight at the Spa in August, and then two starts later posted another game win at 1 1/16 miles – in the Pilgrim (G2), punching his ticket to the Breeders’ Cup.

Bettors might sell him short because of the race in between his maiden win and his Pilgrim score: he was a flattening fifth in the one-mile Summer Stakes (G1) at Woodbine. However, he has some excuses for that. For one, he had some traffic trouble midstretch which wasn’t good for his late momentum. Furthermore, the Breeders’ Cup is a different mile than the Summer was.

Woodbine’s sweeping outer course reopened this year, meaning that it was a one-turn mile. The turf mile at Keeneland is a two-turn mile, configured more like his maiden win and Pilgrim win were. With good tactical speed from a nice middle gate, Let Em Know should be fit and ready to get a good trip over this two-turn trip, and could get ignored at the windows despite his proven class.

Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint: In Our Time (20-1)

The Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint is one of the best races of the weekend to look for prices. And, all year long, one of the best barns in which to look for prices has been Saffie Joseph, Jr.’s. He still tends to get ignored at the windows despite winning many big races over the last few years, up to and including at the Breeders’ Cup. And, In Our Time is one of two very live longshots he brings to the Breeders’ Cup.

Though Kentucky Downs preps underperform in other races, it’s a very live prep track for the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. Though In Our Time prepared with a victory in their 6 ½-furlong feature, she should turn back effectively. She has the speed to be forward even at this sharper 5 ½-furlong trip, but also has the class to cut back and win from a stalking trip. She proved that over this very course in April when she won the Giant’s Causeway (G2) from a stalking shape. She also did that in a field of 11; between that and the win in a 10-horse field at Kentucky Downs, she has shown that she can do well from a middle gate against a lot of horses. If she is on her best this time around, she stands to at least invade the exotics at an overlaid price compared to how well she stands to take to these conditions.

Breeders’ Cup Sprint: Hymn (15-1)

All the talk coming into the Breeders’ Cup Sprint is about Englishman. And, though he hasn’t laid a hoof wrong going shorter than a mile, all that top-class form has come at seven furlongs, and all of it has come against straight sophomore company. Now he not only faces older for the first time, but cuts back to six furlongs – a trip he has tried only once, facing a bunch of overmatched allowance horses at Fair Grounds.

This kind of a heavy favorite makes the Sprint a great place to look for a longshot alternative. Hymn is four years old this year, and has been a completely new horse since being gelded. He climbed through his allowance conditions and has three smart stakes efforts going into the Breeders’ Cup. Though his Grade 1 breakthrough came last out at seven furlongs, he ran a credible second at the Spa two back going six furlongs, and won a stakes at Laurel in good, tactical fashion over the distance in his first-ever one-turn stakes try. Jockey Rafael Bejarano returns to the irons on him for the first time since that race – and although his foes are deeper in this spot than they were there, he has gained more experience at higher levels of racing since that start, and should be able to work out a good tactical trip from a good middle gate.

In short? If Englishman falters against older horses or he isn’t as good going six furlongs as he is at seven, it’s a close race on paper for who takes up the mantle. Hymn’s consistent form, tactical speed, and connections – he is trained by Ron Moquett, responsible for the biggest upset of the last 10 years in this race, with Whitmore! – make him a strong longshot play.

Breeders’ Cup Distaff: Eunomia (30-1)

Here we return to the Saffie Joseph, Jr. barn and his second live longshot of the Breeders’ Cup. Eunomia looked like an up-and-comer for the barn, but a disappointing outing in the Ruffian (G2) in May took her off the radar of many people. She caught a less-than-fast track, she had a poor start, and she came up empty. It was enough to cause the public, who had bet her well in her last three starts, to ignore her at 12-1 in the Clement L. Hirsch (G1) at Del Mar. And yet, the daughter of Tiz the Law bounced right back to her better form from earlier in the year, battling on the pace and keeping on stoutly to win by half a length.

Of course, she needs to take another step up if others in this field are on her game. But, her good second-place effort in the Doubledogdare (G2) in April suggests that there’s improvement to be made over that last race, and it doesn’t hurt that her good second in the Doubledogdare happened over fast dirt at Keeneland, home of this year’s Breeders’ Cup World Championships. Horses from Joseph’s barn tend to fire fresh, and she’s working regularly and sharply leading into the race. The draw helps too, as she can get a clean stalking or pressing trip from the outside gate.

In short? At 30-1 on the morning line, you really don’t need a lot to like about a horse to put them in the mix. There’s a lot more to like about Eunomia than you need at 30-1, and she looks like the key to a big exotic payout in the Distaff.

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