There was a lot of superlatives thrown around before, during and after the 1998 Breeders’ Cup Classic, and for good reason.

“The best field I have ever seen,” said Seth Hancock, president of Claiborne Farm and co-owner of one of the 10 Classic runners (Arch), Bloodhorse before the race. “You pay the money and you get the best of the best.”

The money Hancock was referring to was the $5.12 million purse, which made the race the largest ever at the time, and the large number of outstanding racehorses that competed was worthy of the All-Star Field designation.

On November 7, 1998, Churchill Downs was the scene of a huge hype and the World Championships drew record numbers and spectators (80,452) at the time. The all-star cast of the classic followed suit and provided a grand finale.

The field for the 1998 Classic was led by two-time Eclipse Award winner Skip Away, making his final start of his career, and Silver Charm, winner of the 1997 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes and the 1998 Dubai World Cup. The former was looking to repeat his success in the Classic, but despite an unusually poor performance in his final race, he still won the Eclipse Award as Horse of the Year in 1998 and was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 2004; Silver Charm was inducted into the Hall of Fame three years later, in 2007.

European star Swain, a four-time Group 1 winner in Europe and making the final start of his career, was shipped out for the 1998 Classic, which also featured 1997 Belmont Stakes winner Touch Gold, 1998 Belmont Stakes winner Victory Gallop and 1998 Haskell and Travers winner Coronado’s Quest.

And then there was Awesome Again, who won the 1997 Queens’ Plate and Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes and had three wins in six races. Trainer Patrick Byrne and owner and breeder Frank Stronach took a patient approach to their four-year-old’s season, giving him a lengthy break of over five months before resuming training in March 2018.

Awesome Again opened the year with an allowance win on May 22 at Churchill Downs and became a force to be reckoned with in the division with two straight clear wins in the Grade 2 Stephen Foster Handicap and the Grade 1 Whitney Handicap. He took advantage of a 14-pound weight difference to beat Silver Charm by a length in the Foster. He remained undefeated in 1998 by adding open-length wins in the Grade 2 Saratoga Breeders’ Cup Handicap and the Grade 3 Hawthorne Gold Cup Handicap in August and October, respectively.

In total, the ten horses had earned nearly $30 million in prize money and 31 Group or Grade 1 victories prior to this year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic – and the race did not disappoint.

Coronado’s Quest got off to a good start and took the lead right away, while Skip Away dropped back a bit but moved into third place as the field crossed the finish line for the first time. Skip Away settled into second place, just behind Coronado’s Quest, entering the backstretch, but Hall of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey had a strong feeling this was not his day.

“I knew after 50 meters that I was in trouble,” said Bailey Bloodhorse“He just couldn’t cope with the track.”

While Coronado’s Quest led the field for half a mile in :47.69 – an honest but not particularly strenuous pace – Silver Charm was loaded under Gary Stevens as he stalked from fourth on the outside just a length behind inside the first three-quarters of a mile. Swain closed early behind Skip Away before jockey Frankie Dettori steered him a couple of lengths to the outside on the backstretch and the European invader was also in ideal position, just a couple of lengths behind as he turned the final turn. Meanwhile, Awesome Again and Touch Gold were classified towards the rear of the field, just ahead of Victory Gallop.

As the field entered the home straight, Silver Charm made an explosive charge to take the lead, while Swain also launched a powerful attack on the outside. Swain began to slow noticeably as he finished the home straight with determination, and Silver Charm seemed to follow him into the middle of the racetrack, while Coronado’s Quest fought on bravely from the inside lane.

Dettori, who was riding Swain (after being thrown off twice in the final parade), said his horse drifted toward the lights set up near the winner’s circle for the NBC television crew.

This left a gap of about five paths wide for the last riders, Awesome Again and Victory Gallop, who both stormed into the competition with a lot of momentum.

While Victory Gallop could not maintain his charge, Awesome Again was able to extend his lead significantly under Pat Day with sweeping strides and overtake the first two places to win by three-quarters of a length.

“He was so deep inside, I don’t think Silver Charm ever saw him,” Stevens said Bloodhorse“I never saw him until it was too late.”

Silver Charm took second place, a nose ahead of the wandering Swain, with Victory Gallop a nose back in fourth, while the three-year-old Coronado’s Quest ran a monster race against older horses to settle for fifth, beaten by just two lengths. Skip Away slipped to sixth in his last start.

Awesome Again completed a perfect season with 6 wins in 6 races, capped off with a victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, but he failed to take home a single Eclipse Award as Skip Away won the Older Stallion and Horse of the Year championships. Awesome Again also finished his career in the Classic and began a great second career as a stud for Stronach, siring the 2004 Classic winner and Horse of the Year Ghostzapper, among others.

Note: This story was first published in 2020 and has been updated.