On DVD or VHS:  A rare documentary of the 1989 BREEDERS' CUP featuring SUNDAY SILENCE & EASY GOER as they face-off in their last meeting.

 

 

There is a place where the magnificent Atlantic meets the white sandy shores and the sun shines brightly on the palms...In November of 1989 Florida played host for the first time to racing's greatest day - the Breeders' Cup. South Florida's offered a tropical setting for the sixth running of the Breeders' Cup - Thoroughbred racing's, "Championship Event"...the richest and most prestigious day of racing in the world.

A track record crowd of over 51,000 filled this racing paradise and they enthusiastically awaited the seven championship races with purses totaling $10 million - racing's greatest stars were to perform on Gulfstream's track throughout this day but most of the crowd focused on the afternoon's cover story - the $3 million Breeders' Cup Classic which featured Triple Crown rivals EASY GOER and SUNDAY SILENCE...their upcoming battle for Horse-of-the-Year was the main topic of conversation among the fans.

Come along for an inside look as this action-filled JOHN FORSYTHE-narrated documentary takes the viewer through all seven Breeders' Cup races chronicling the excitement and heartbreak complete with interesting stories of several race favorites, interviews with their human connections and basically gives you insight into all the activities leading up to and including the big race day.

A seemingly endless supply of talented runners that assembled on that day included: Sprinters: SEWICKLY, DANCING SPREE, SAFELY KEPT and BLACKTIE AFFAIR; Juvenile Fillies: GO FOR WAND and STELLA MADRID; Distaffers: GORGEOUS, BAYAKOA, OPEN MIND, WINNING COLORS and GOODBYE HALO; Milers: STEINLEN, ZILZAL, SIMPLY MAJESTIC and SABONA; Juvenile Males: RHYTHM, ADJUDICATING, GRAND CANYON, SLAVIC, GO AND GO and PLEASANT TAP; Turf Specialists: EL SENOR and PRIZED; and Classic Contenders: EASY GOER, SUNDAY SILENCE, BLUSHING JOHN, SLEW CITY SLEW, CRYPTOCLEARANCE and WESTERN PLAYBOY.

In the first event, thirteen of the fastest Thoroughbred's in the world gathered to contest the six furlong Breeders' Cup Sprint - the razor-sharp filly, SAFELY KEPT, set a blistering pace but would be nipped at the wire by Ogden Phipps-owned, DANCING SPREE, ridden by ANGEL CORDERO in a race marred by bumping and collisions from the onset.

A star is born in the Juvenile Filly Division as GO FOR WAND collars favorite, STELLA MADRID, at the 16th pole and bounds for home in a powerful stretch run - an emotional BILLY BADGET fought back tears as he paid tribute to his outstanding filly.

The odds-on choice in the star-studded Distaff field was BAYAKOA - a brilliant but temperamental Argentinean-bred mare. With infinite patience, trainer, RON McANALLY transformed BAYAKOA to a poised and confident front-runner. She had won seven of her previous eight races and now dominated her division. The LUKAS-trained OPEN MIND who had won ten races in a row at the beginning of the season was BAYAKOA's most formidable opponent but on this day, BAYAKOA would not disappoint her connections...the win was most gratifying to McANALLY as he felt all the effort invested for two years finally paid off - the champion race mare's moment had arrived!

STEINLEN was 's best hope to turn back the European invasion in the Mile...in the 1988 Breeders' Cup Mile, STEINLEN finished second behind the great two-time Mile Champion, the great French filly...MIESQUE. With her now retired, STEINLEN avenged his loss and brought the title back to America.

In the Juvenile, the trainers waited for the start of the race as twelve young hopefuls readied for the preview that would establish the early Kentucky Derby favorite - the Phipps' Stable was delighted to be in the winner's circle for the second time that day...this time with two-year-old RHYTHM.

The Breeders' Cup Turf matched fourteen of the most accomplished horses in the world and the Europeans were out in full force. Trainer, NEIL DRYSDALE first considered running his three-year-old Florida-bred colt, PRIZED in the Classic but opted for the 1-1/2 mile Turf instead to avoid EASY GOER and SUNDAY SILENCE. Special workouts were designed to prepare PRIZED for a difficult first test on the grass...and in the biggest Breeders' Cup hat trick...DRYSDALE's masterful training gamble paid off as PRIZED turned back the best turf runners in a stunning finish - an amazing feat!

During 1989 there were no fiercer rivals in all of sports than EASY GOER and SUNDAY SILENCE; they had battled in all three Triple Crown races. It was their dramatic eye-to-eye and stride-for-stride duel down the stretch in the Preakness that best displayed the awesome talents of these two great athletes...together with the photo finish win in the Preakness and an earlier 2-1/2-length victory in the Kentucky Derby...SUNDAY SILENCE had captured the first two Triple Crown races but EASY GOER was a decisive 8-length winner in the Belmont stopping SUNDAY SILENCE's bid to become racing's 12th Triple Crown winner and serving to intensify the rivalry. The confrontation about to be staged was the moment that racing fans everywhere had waited for...SUNDAY SILENCE vs. EASY GOER...the race of the year for Horse-of-the-Year...but perhaps more importantly the winner of the season-long rivalry. In a racing epic, SUNDAY SILENCE would barely hold back a final burst of acceleration from the oncoming power of EASY GOER who was set down to a fierce drive in the final furlong. By a desperate neck, SUNDAY SILENCE was indeed golden!

The sixth Breeders' Cup had its share of memorable racing moments...but with the sun ready to set on this remarkable racing season, there came the sound of silence.

 

 

60 Minutes.

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