Bodog Beat

Owner Jess Jackson doesn't know when Curlin's next start will be. (AP Images)

Curlin may have won the Woodward Stakes, but the questions of where he'll run next and whether he'll defend his Breeders' Cup Classic title are still unanswered.

Owner Jess Jackson has indicated that Curlin may start in either the Gr. 1 $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup Invitational at Belmont Park or the $500,000 Goodwood Stakes at Santa Anita; both races are scheduled for Sept. 27. But will he choose the dirt track, Curlin's favored racing surface, at Belmont Park? Or will he test Curlin on the synthetic surface at Santa Anita—which, incidentally, is the same track on which the Classic will be held on Oct. 25?

Jackson's previous experiment of racing Curlin on a non-dirt surface did not turn out as he had hoped. With the ultimate goal of racing Curlin in the world's richest turf race, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in France, Jackson entered Curlin in the Man o' War Stakes in July as a prep. But after Curlin finished runner-up to Red Rocks, Jackson revised his plans and pointed Curlin to the Woodward, which the 2007 Horse of the Year won by one-and-a-quarter lengths.

Now with the Woodward under Curlin's belt, Jackson has a decision to make. In early August, Jackson had all but ruled out the Breeders' Cup Classic, saying: "We’d like to go there but that’s an untested surface and I’m very uncertain about it… He’s won the Classic before. Been there, done that." But one factor in particular might be changing Jackson's mind.

In an attempt to entice owner Michael Iavarone to enter Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes champion Big Brown into the Woodward Stakes, Jackson offered up a $50,000 charitable donation—an offer that Iavarone declined. But Big Brown is being pointed towards the Breeders' Cup Classic on Oct. 25, and the possibility of a showdown might be too tempting for Jackson to resist.

Will Big Brown and Curlin race against each other in 2008?

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