Friday was the first day of the Breeders’ Cup. The event is known as the Super Bowl of horse racing.
The race is attracting people from all over the country and the world.
“I was like I have to come,” said Matthew Martinez, who traveled from Chicago for his first Breeders’ Cup.
He fell in love with horse racing after a visit to the Del Mar racetrack earlier this summer.
“I won on my first bet and I was hooked,” he said. “So after I had found out the Breeders' Cup final is going to be here, I was like, should I go do it? I'm going to go do it.”
Love for the sport and horses is why so many people are here today … from the spectators to the jockeys to the trainers and owners, such as Caitlin Ward, whose horse Lennilu was a contender in the juvenile race.
“It's honestly surreal,” she said. When we bought the filly that I own with my mom and dad, we never imagined that she'd bring us here. This is the Olympics of horse racing. So just to be able to have her here and on the stage, she can do no wrong.”
The Breeders’ Cup main event is Saturday, and some of the contenders are Journalism, Forever Young and defending champion Sierra Leone.
