You will get no argument from me if you call the field for last weekend’s Jockey Club Gold Cup “modest at best,” particularly with $1 million dollars in purse money at stake. That is an undeniable state of horse racing in general, namely that there are simply not enough legitimate Grade 1 horses for the rich purses being offered.

All of which is fabulous for the fortunate owners, but leaves fans cold. People long for deep, competitive fields where they can get a decent bang out of their betting buck.

Nevertheless, Funny Cide’s dramatic win in that Gold Cup at Belmont Park — weak field or not — will give the Breeders’ Cup Classic on October 30^th at Lone Star Park outside Dallas a gigantic boost that can not be underestimated.

As great as the Breeders’ Cup has been in its brief 20-year history, it is a day for hard core fans of the sport who will watch  the event on NBC Sports, travel to their nearest simulcast facility to place their bets or make the pilgrimage to that year’s venue to be there in person.

A hook for casual racing fans
Casual fans across the country however needs a reason to watch, a storyline that can hook their interest. And thanks to the cloutof the Triple Crown, many of these fans know the amazing story of Funny Cide and his unforgettable journey through the 2003 triumphs in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.

With the Seabiscuit saga so beautifully documented by Hollywood filmmakers fresh in our minds, the modern day story of this New York-bred gelding from the other side of the tracks took on a life of its own.

We all couldn’t help but root for the owners — the boys of the Sackatoga Stables of central New York, who chipped in several thousand dollars of their hard-earned money to buy Funny Cide at a modest price.

They were high-school pals with a love of the game. They traveled to the big races in a yellow school bus, drinking six-packs of beer — a far cry from the limousine, champagne-and-caviar crowd that generally owns and races these Triple Crown hopefuls.

We couldn’t help but root for his jockey Jose Santos, who was foolishly accused of using a battery by one of our nation’s leading daily newspapers. Ever been unjustly accused of cheating in your life? I had that unfortunate experience in college.

It’s not much fun when you are totally innocent but have to prove it anyway.

Smarty absent
Those casual fans of 2003 are probably many of the same folks that followed this year’s version — with Smarty Jones as the lead character. But alas, he will not be in the BC Classic, instead dispatched to the breeding shed with various injuries.

But Funny Cide will be in the starting gate later this month in the Classic. He will be facing a much tougher field that day  than in the Gold Cup with the likes of Ghostzapper, Saint Liam, Pleasantly Perfect, Bago, and Roses in May as likely opponents.

But he likes the underdog role.

That’s the precise position he was in prior to last year’s Kentucky Derby. A New York-bred gelding win the Derby?

Hah, they all said.

One of these days a NY-bred will take the Classic aswell. We’ve seen two Florida-breds (Unbridled, Skip Away), two Maryland-breds (Concern, Cigar), a Pennsylvania-bred (Alphabet Soup) and a California-bred (Tiznow, twice) win this Breeders Cup showdown, haven’t we?

Why not Funny Cide?

I know one thing. The Sackatoga Stable boys have their bus rented in Dallas for the trip to Lone Star. I am sure the cold beers will be on ice in the coolers in the back of that yellow school bus.

I also know that millions of Americans watching on NBC Sports will be watching and hoping that Funny Cide does in Dallas what he did last year in Louisville in the Derby and in Baltimore in the Preakness: Win a big race when the experts say he won’t.

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