FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, October 31st, 2016

CALIFORNIA CHROME LEADS STAR-STUDDED FIELD IN BREEDERS’ CUP CLASSIC LIVE THIS SAT., NOV. 5, AT 8 PM ET ON NBC

2014 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes Winner California Chrome Faces Breeders’ Cup Classic challenge From Whitney Winner Frosted & Travers Stakes Winner Arrogate

Bob Baffert Goes for Third Consecutive Breeders’ Cup Classic Victory

NBC Sports Group Televises all 13 Breeders’ Cup World Championships Races Live in 10 Hours of Coverage from Santa Anita this Fri., Nov. 4 & Sat., Nov. 5

Breeders’ Cup Commentators Tom Hammond, Jerry Bailey, Randy Moss, Eddie Olczyk, Bob Neumeier & Larry Collmus Available on a Conference Call this Wed., Nov. 2, at 3 p.m. ET

Coverage Streamed Live on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app

STAMFORD, Conn. – October 31, 2016 – 2014 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner California Chrome leads a star-studded field for the running of the 33rd Breeders’ Cup Classic live from Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif., this Saturday, Nov. 5, at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.

California Chrome has six victories in six starts this year, and has won more prize money than any North American horse ($13.4 million in career earnings). He faces competition from 2016 Whitney Stakes and 2015 Wood Memorial winner Frosted; 2016 Jockey Club Gold Cup winner Hoppertunity; and Keen Ice, who edged out Triple Crown Winner American Pharoah down the stretch in the 2015 Travers Stakes. Trainer Bob Baffert looks for his third consecutive Breeders’ Cup Classic win with Arrogate, after previously winning with 2015 Triple Crown champion American Pharoah, and Bayern in 2014.

The running of the 33rd Breeders’ Cup Classic culminates 10 hours of Breeders’ Cup World Championships coverage this week on NBC and NBCSN from Santa Anita Park, including live coverage of all 13 Breeders’ Cup World Championship races.

NBCSN’s coverage of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships begins this Thursday, Nov. 3, at 7 p.m. ET with handicapping special “Betting The Breeders’ Cup,” and continues Friday, Nov. 4, at 5 p.m. ET, culminating with a 5.5-hour show on Saturday, Nov. 5, at 2:30 p.m. ET.

Programming highlights include:

  • A feature about California Chrome, who was bred for just $10,500 and has won more than $13 million on the racetrack. If he wins the Breeders’ Cup Classic, he will have more career earnings than any horse in the history of thoroughbred racing;
  • The Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff, headlined by a talented trio of females – Songbird, ridden by Mike Smith, Beholder, ridden by Gary Stevens, and Stellar Wind, ridden by Victor Espinoza, also the jockey for California Chrome;
  • A feature on 2014 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Lady Eli, who has made an incredible comeback from Laminitis disease to run in Saturday’s Filly & Mare Turf.

2016 BREEDERS’ CUP TELEVISION SCHEDULE:

Date Time (ET) Program Network
Thurs., Nov. 3 7 p.m. Betting the Breeders’ Cup NBCSN
Fri., Nov. 4 5 p.m. Breeders’ Cup World Championships NBCSN
Sat., Nov. 5 2:30 p.m. Breeders’ Cup Classic NBCSN
Sat., Nov. 5 8 p.m. Breeders’ Cup Classic NBC

COMMENTATORS: NBC Sports Group’s coverage of the Breeders’ Cup features Tom Hammond, whose first-ever assignment for NBC was as a reporter 32 years ago on the network’s inaugural Breeders’ Cup broadcast in 1984. Coverage is hosted by Mike Tirico, who serves in his first career horse racing assignment. Hall-of-Fame jockey Jerry Bailey, who owns 15 Breeders’ Cup wins, including five victories in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, serves as an analyst along with Randy Moss; contributing analysts/handicappers Bob Neumeier and Eddie Olczyk; host/reporter Laffit Pincay, III; and reporters Kenny Rice, Donna Brothers, Jay Privman, Nick Luck, and Carolyn Manno. NBC’s Triple Crown race caller Larry Collmus will call all of the Breeders’ Cup races. Daily Racing Form’s Matt Bernier will serve as a handicapper on NBCSN telecasts.

The Voice winner Alisan Porter will perform the Breeders’ Cup anthem “The Best is Yet to Come” as the horses come out on the track for the running of the $5,000,000 Breeders’ Cup Classic.

NBC Sports Group’s Breeders’ Cup coverage will be produced by Billy Matthews.

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs – will stream coverage of the Breeders’ Cup Classic. The NBC Sports app will stream coverage via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value to their subscription service, and making high-quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms. Powered by Playmaker Media, the NBC Sports app is available on Apple iOS, Android and select Samsung devices, as well as on Amazon Fire, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Win10, and Xbox.

BREEDERS’ CUP “ALL ACCESS”: Horseracing fans and fans of the celebrities and fashion at the Breeders’ Cup can access content leading up to, and through the event at NBCSports.com/breeders. Fans can access the latest from the Breeders’ Cup spanning horses, fashion, celebrities and more.   The “All Access” page aggregates what’s trending, Breeders’ Cup video and photo content.  Fans can also type in their names into the “Horse Namer” and are instantly provided with their Breeders’ Cup horse name along with a horse avatar that is shareable on Facebook and Twitter.

Additional social media content this week will include Facebook Live sessions from the NBC Sports page with Larry Collmus and Eddie Olczyk, a Snapchat tour of the Breeders’ Cup purple carpet, behind-the-scenes photos on NBC Sports’ Instagram account, and more.

BREEDERS’ CUP CONFERENCE CALL: NBC Sports Group will conduct a media conference call Wednesday, Nov. 2, at 3 p.m. ET with Hammond, Bailey, Moss, Neumeier, Olczyk, and Collmus.

Dial 785-830-1942 to participate

Conference ID: 6384848

BREEDERS’ CUP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: The Breeders’ Cup, thoroughbred racing’s most prestigious global racing event, consists of 13 races held over two-days with $26 million in purses and awards at stake.  The culminating event of the Breeders’ Cup, the Breeders’ Cup Classic, is contested at 1 ¼ miles on the main track, for 3-year-olds and older, and is often the determining race for the coveted Horse of the Year title. Over the years, 12 Classic winners have been voted Horse of the Year.

Breeders’ Cup Limited administers the Breeders’ Cup World Championships, Thoroughbred racing’s year-end Championships.  The Breeders’ Cup also administers the Breeders’ Cup Challenge qualifying series, which provides automatic starting positions into the Championships races. Breeders’ Cup press releases appear on the Breeders’ Cup Web site, www.breederscup.com. You can also follow the Breeders’ Cup on social media platforms Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

NBC SPORTS GROUP AND HORSE RACING: NBC Sports Group is the exclusive home to the most important and prestigious events in horse racing, including the Triple Crown and the Breeders’ Cup. NBC has been the exclusive home of the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes since 2001, and the Belmont Stakes since 2011, when the NBC Sports Group reassembled the Triple Crown.

–NBC SPORTS GROUP–