Europeans shine at Breeders' Cup Classic

ARCADIA, California: British-trained Raven's Pass won the Breeders' Cup Classic on Saturday, upsetting hot favourite Curlin and crowning a stellar day for European raiders, who won a record five of the nine races on the card.

Raven's Pass, a three-year-old chestnut ridden by Frankie Dettori, out-muscled his rivals in the Santa Anita stretch to win by one-and-three-quarter lengths over Irish raider Henrythenavigator.

Four-year-old Curlin tired in the closing stages and finished fourth as the 4-5 favourite, failing in his bid to win the $5 million Classic for the second consecutive year.