| Owner: Arthur Hancock III, Ernest Gaillard & Charles Whittingham |
It was the most eagerly anticipated race of the year and some were calling it the race of the decade. Sunday Silence had bettered his rival Easy Goer two times to one, but the $3 million Breeders’ Cup Classic would be a winner-take-all. Horse of the Year and 3-year-old championship honors were on the line as the dynamic duo and six others went to the post. Easy Goer, on the strength of an eight-length romp in the Belmont Stakes to deny Sunday Silence the Triple Crown, along with four other consecutive grade 1 triumphs, was made the 1-2 favorite. Sunday Silence, the 2-1 second choice, grabbed the lead in mid-stretch and held a four-length lead on Easy Goer. In the final furlong, Sunday Silence’s seemingly comfortable lead diminished with each stride, but at the wire the Charlie Whittingham-trained son of Halo held on to win by a neck. Sunday Silence won $4,578,454 in 1989, breaking the single-season earnings mark of Alysheba in 1988. Sixth Running, Gulfstream Park Breeders’ Cup Classic - $3 Million Sponsored By Mobil Corporation |
