Cy Fair delivers pure speed to open the 2025 Breeders’ Cup World Championships
- Turf Diario
- Nov 1
- 2 min read
The daughter of Not This Time became only the second filly in history to win the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1)
By Diego H. Mitagstein (Special Correspondent for Turf Diario at Del Mar, California)
DEL MAR, California — The 42nd edition of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships got off to an ideal start Friday at Del Mar, as the speed and determination of Cy Fair proved decisive in the $1,000,000 GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint.
Carrying the colors of Swinbank Stables, Medallion Racing, and Joey Platts, and guided by the relentless Irad Ortiz Jr. for trainer George Weaver, the filly covered the five furlongs on firm turf in :56.02, defeating Brussels (GB)(Wootton Bassett) by three-quarters of a length after that rival launched a strong late rally from the back.
The favorite Schwarzenegger (Not This Time) broke sharply to set the pace, but was kept close company by Cy Fair, who began applying pressure around the far turn. Straightening for home, the daughter of Not This Time wasted no time, drawing level with the pacesetter before putting him away and holding off the closers to seal a well-earned and memorable victory.
For Weaver, the win carried the weight of a milestone.
“I can’t even describe what I’m feeling,” he said. “This is why we’re all in this game. It’s so hard to win a big race like this, and it’s my first Breeders’ Cup. We’ve had a great year, and I’m so grateful to my team, my clients, everyone who supports us. We’ve got some really nice horses, and she’s one of the best.”
Cy Fair also became only the second filly in history to win the Juvenile Turf Sprint, following Twilight Gleaming(National Defense), who achieved the feat at Del Mar in 2021.
“She’s been a rocket all year,” Weaver added. “Honestly, I still don’t understand how she got beat the second time she ran in a stakes. But she proved herself at Woodbine, and now she’s come here and done it again against the best in the world. We’re thrilled.”
Bred in Kentucky, Cy Fair is by Not This Time out of Remarqued (Arch). The victory improved her record to four starts, three wins and one second, with earnings climbing to $780,205—$520,000 of that coming from this Breeders’ Cup triumph.
For Ortiz Jr., it marked his 21st Breeders’ Cup win and his fourth in this very race, further cementing his reputation as a master of the California turf sprints.
On a weekend that had only just begun, Cy Fair made a resounding statement—speed, grit, and a big heart: the kind of qualities that define the sport’s future stars.
