Horses who won races on the last two opening days at Gulfstream Park scored Breeders’ Cup victories Friday and Saturday, and a young colt who did not win his Breeders’ Cup start will spend the winter in South Florida as the East Coast’s leading candidate for next year’s Triple Crown races.

The Breeders’ Cup is a two-day, multi-million-dollar, 14-race extravaganza that, for the second straight year, was hosted by Santa Anita Park near Los Angeles. Gulfstream Park has hosted the Breeders’ Cup three times: 1989, ’92 and ’99.

Gulfstream Park takes wagers on all major racetracks and its handle on this year’s Breeders’ Cup races was up both days from 2008. Friday’s business registered a 13.9% increase from 2008 ($428,528 then, as opposed to $489,715 this year), and Saturday’s business reached past $833,000, an increase of 7% over last year’s corresponding number of $779,846.

Gulfstream Park’s simulcast, poker and slots businesses are open every day of the week. Its 68th live-race meeting opens its 79-day stand on Jan. 3.

Noble’s Promise, owned by Chasing Dreams Racing 2008 and trained by Ken McPeek – who narrowly lost out on winning last year’s training title at Gulfstream Park – finished third in Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, with only the European Vale of York and the Californian Lookin at Lucky ahead of him at the wire.

“Yeah, absolutely we’re going to be there (racing at Gulfstream Park) this winter,” said McPeek. “We’ll be traveling the next few days but all is good and we’re looking forward to getting there.”

The Gulfstream Park barn area opens Monday.

Noble’s Promise had won three straight coming into the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, a race in which less than a length separated the first four finishers.

After the race, McPeek spoke of an infection that hit Noble’s Promise last month, saying the interruption in the colt’s training “got us beat today. I didn’t even think we were going to be able to run two weeks ago, but we got it together and he ran super.”

            Jockey Willie Martinez added, “Just a half a length away from history. He’s going to be a real nice three-year-old.”

Also on Saturday, Furthest Land, a two-time winner at Gulfstream Park’s 2009 meeting, took the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. Furthest Land won on Gulfstream Park’s traditional opening day, Jan. 3, then won again Jan. 29. Julien Leparoux, who had his first season riding at Gulfstream in 2009, won his third Breeders’ Cup race aboard Furthest Land.

Incidentally, last year’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner, Albertus Maximus, returned to win the Donn Handicap at Gulfstream in February.

You can also expect to see the winners of the two big races for juvenile fillies at Gulfstream Park this coming winter.

Gulfstream Park regular trainers Dale Romans and Wayne Catalano saddled the respective Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Tapitsfly and Juvenile Fillies winner She Be Wild.

The Nancy Mazzoni-owned She Be Wild gave Catalano his second victory in the Juvenile Fillies; he won the race in 2006 with Frank Calabrese’s Dreaming of Anna. That filly was third in the Old Hat and second in the Gaily Gaily as a 3-year-old at Gulfstream in 2007.

Leparoux rode She Be Wild to her three-quarter length victory.

Robby Albarado rode the Frank Jones Jr.-owned Tapitsfly to her half-length score in the Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Another winner from Friday with Gulfstream Park in her pedigree was Informed Decision, the 1 ¼-length winner of the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint. The 4-year-old filly, owned by Augustin Stable and trained by Hall of Fame trainer and Gulfstream regular Jonathan Sheppard, Leparoux was aboard.

Informed Decision won her first career race, and her first at Gulfstream Park, by nearly seven lengths opening day, Jan. 3, 2008. Hit with the whip of a rival’s jockey in her next start, she was elevated to first after finishing a nose behind JZ Warrior (photo attached), and in her third try at that meeting she was fourth in Bsharpsonata’s Davona Dale. She’s a daughter of 2001 Florida Derby winner Monarchos.