• Seamie Heffernan’s mount leads all the way, with stablemate Found third • Frankie Dettori wins by a nose on Queen’s Trust; Arrogate beats California Chrome

Highland Reel, the winner of the King George at Ascot in July, gave Aidan O’Brien his first winner at this year’s Breeders’ Cup meeting on Saturday under an outstanding front-running ride by Seamie Heffernan.

With Ryan Moore, O’Brien’s No1 rider, aboard Found (the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner), Heffernan had an excellent opportunity to record his first success at the Breeders’ Cup and he seized the initiative from the early stages of this mile-and-a-half contest.

Highland Reel was in front within a few strides, and led Ectot as the field turned away from the stands with a circuit to run while Found raced much further back with only a couple of opponents behind her. Heffernan then kicked even further clear down the back stretch, and was six lengths to the good going into the final turn.

Heffernan still had a healthy lead at the top of the straight, and though his opponents were now well aware that they had handed a multiple Group One winner a soft lead, it was too late to do anything about it. Flintshire, America’s best middle-distance turf horse, closed the gap in the straight under Javier Castellano, but he was still one-and-three-quarter lengths adrift of the winner at the line.

Highland Reel can land Breeders’ Cup Turf for dominant Aidan O’Brien yard Read more

Found, who will now retire to the paddocks, ran on into third place without ever looking entirely at ease on the quick ground, while Ulysses was fourth for Sir Michael Stoute.

“We knew that he gets a mile-and-a-half well, that he handles fast ground and doesn’t mind dictating,” O’Brien said. “So it was straightforward really, but Seamus executed it brilliantly. He controlled the race perfectly. He kicked at the right time, and really the race was over from a long way out.

“He has two options now, in the Japan Cup and a race in Hong Kong. I don’t know if he’ll be able to take in two or take in one, but we’ll see how he is. But he’s an incredibly versatile horse that loves travelling.”

Earlier on the card, Stoute, already the most successful British trainer in Breeders’ Cup history, added a seventh victory to his record as Queen’s Trust and Frankie Dettori edged ahead of the favourite Lady Eli on the line to win the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf.

Dettori was at his outstanding best to snatch victory from Lady Eli and Irad Ortiz, having broken from a wide berth in stall 11 which forced him to sit well off the pace. Queen’s Trust had not enjoyed much luck in running in several previous races this season, but there was no danger that she would be blocked here as Dettori pulled her to the middle of the track at the top of the stretch and set out to run down the leader, Avenge.

Lady Eli was nearly three lengths in front of Queen’s Trust as Dettori launched his challenge, and Ortiz’s mount only got to Avenge well inside the final furlong. Queen’s Trust was finishing even faster than the favourite, however, and Dettori’s perfectly timed pursuit ensured she had her head in front when it really mattered.

“When we got to the backstretch, basically I tried to find a spot where I could get into a challenging position,” Dettori said.

“I was very fortunate mid-turn because I got behind the favourite, and then she got a jump on me and my first thought was, well, I’ll be a good third.

“Then she started to motor and it’s funny, it’s a short straight but those last hundred yards make a big difference. She got into top gear, and we flashed past the line and I was pretty much sure we’d won.”

Stoute has now won the Filly & Mare Turf three times, to go with four victories in the Turf, a record that stretches back to Pilsudski’s victory in the latter race in 1996.

But European hopes were dashed in the Mile when Henry Candy’s Limato faded from a furlong out behind Bill Mott’s runner Tourist, with last year’s Mile winner Tepin in second place. Midnight Storm completed a 1-2-3 for US-trained horses.

The Turf Sprint also went the way of the Americans, with O’Brien’s Washington DC out of the frame behind Obviously, a veteran eight-year-old who has lined up for the Mile three times in the past. Home Of The Brave, from Hugo Palmer’s stable in Newmarket, was also unplaced, along with Undrafted, who took the Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot for his American trainer Wesley Ward in June 2015.

The feature event of the meeting produced another exceptional finish as Arrogate, the second-favourite, got up to beat the market leader California Chrome after a protracted duel down the straight.

California Chrome made the running and looked to be going easily as he turned for home, but Mike Smith had Arrogate a couple of lengths behind and the three-year-old showed tremendous courage to eat into California Chrome’s lead before passing him a few strides before the line.

The winner carried the pink, green and white colours of Prince Khalid Abdullah so familiar to European fans thanks to the exploits of horses like Dancing Brave and Frankel, and gave Bob Baffert his third consecutive success in the Classic.