Curlin Is Classic Contender Curlin booked his ticket for the Breeders' Cup Classic with victory in the Jockey Club Gold Cup Stakes at Belmont Park on Sunday.The Preakness Stakes winner, trained by Steve Asmussen and ridden by Robby Alborado, just got up to beat Lawyer Ron by a neck in the Grade One feature.Curlin was having his first start in eight weeks and Asmussen is now looking forward to clashing with some old adversaries at Monmouth Park later this month.'The third in the Haskell and the third in the Kentucky Derby were against horses whose form had held up,' Asmussen told www.thoroughbredtimes.com.'We'll all meet in a month's time, probably to decide a lot of honours. He'll fly to Keeneland (racecourse on Monday) and prep there.'The Todd Pletcher-trained English Channel is also heading to Monmouth after claiming the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational Stakes on the same card.The five-year-old will line up in the John Deere Breeders' Cup Turf after his two-and-a-quarter-length win over ex-Sir Michael Stoute inmate Stream Of Gold.(C) PA Sport
