Photo:

Gary Johnson / Eclipse Sportswire

Fierceness, winner of the Grade 1 Travers Stakes at Saratoga , has maintained his overall lead in the Breeders’ Cup Classic rankings, and Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) winner Highland Falls jumped into the top 10 for the first time.

Fierceness, winner of the 2023 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and the champion 2-year-old male of 2023 for trainer Todd Pletcher, earned 343 votes and led a contingent of 3-year-olds occupying the first five positions in the sixth week of the rankings.

The Breeders’ Cup Classic rankings are a weekly rating of the top 10 horses in contention for the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic, which will be run Nov. 2 at Del Mar.

City of Troy is now in second place with 295 votes. Trained by Aidan O’Brien, the son of Justify earned an automatic berth in the Breeders’ Cup Classic when he won the Juddmonte International Stakes (G1) at York.

Forever Young, winner of the UAE Derby (G2) and third in the Kentucky Derby, is in third place with 241 votes for trainer Yoshito Yahagi.

Sierra Leone, who finished third in the Travers, moved up one spot to fourth place with 185 votes. Dornoch, winner of the Belmont Stakes, is in fifth place with 153 votes for trainer Danny Gargan.

Highland Falls roared into the rankings this week with a powerful four-length victory in the Sept. 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Saratoga and earned an automatic starting position in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Trained by Brad Cox, the 4-year-old son of Curlin is in sixth place with 134 votes.

Four-year-old Whitney (G1) winner Arthur’s Ride finished fifth in the Jockey Club Gold Cup and dropped from second place to seventh with 130 votes for trainer Bill Mott.

Seven-year-old Ushba Tesoro, second in the Saudi Cup (G!) and the Dubai World Cup (G1), rose to eighth place with 199 votes for trainer Noboru Takagi.

Four-year-old Derma Sotogake, who finished second in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic, is in ninth place with 96 votes.

The 6-year-old Saudi Cup winner Señor Buscador dropped from seventh to 10th place with 94 votes for trainer Todd Fincher.

In the Breeders’ Cup Classic rankings, each voter rates horses on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 system in descending order.

The rankings are determined by a panel of Thoroughbred racing media, horseplayers and members of the Breeders’ Cup racing directors-secretaries panel.