BREEDERS' CUP CAN STAND ON ITS OWN.

Byline: KEVIN MODESTI

Ten years ago, the last time the Breeders' Cup graced Hollywood Park, the race of the day owed its glamour to the Kentucky Derby.

As Ferdinand and Bill Shoemaker edged Alysheba and Chris McCarron in the Breeders' Cup Classic, announcer Tom Durkin exclaimed in a memorable call, ``The two Derby winners hit the wire together!''

The Kentucky Derby was still the horse race by which all others were measured.

In racing, much has changed in a decade, and one difference is that the Breeders' Cup has matured into an event that stands on its own merits.

The Derby has lost none of its romance. But for most of the horsemen and horseplayers who will flock to Hollywood Park in the next week for the seven-race, $11 million program on Saturday, the Breeders' Cup is the event of the 12-month season.

``The Breeders' Cup is what got me interested in thoroughbred racing,'' said Bob Baffert, the former quarterhorse trainer who plans to enter five horses - two in the $1 million Juvenile, two in the $1 million Juvenile Fillies and one in the $1 million Mile. ``Looking at the Derby, I thought, `What's the chance of me getting a horse in the Derby?' Not every horse can be a Derby horse, but any horse can be a Breeders' Cup horse.''

That's because the Derby is a single race restricted to 3-year-olds, while the Breeders' Cup includes races for both genders, all ages, and sprint, route and turf specialists.

Ironically, the chances of Baffert getting a horse in the Derby were pretty good. His Cavonnier finished a close second in 1996, and his Silver Charm won the race last May.

But he also trained Thirty Slews to win the $1 million Sprint at the '92 Breeders' Cup in Florida, and said the excitement was the same.

``It's like championship playoffs,'' Baffert said of the Breeders' Cup, which will be held for the 14th time Saturday. ``When we look at (young horses up for auction), we're thinking about the Breeders' Cup first, the Derby second.''

There are good reasons to rate the Breeders' Cup over the Derby:

Quality: The Derby is a crapshoot, the Breeders' Cup is an Olympic Games. Nearly two-thirds of Breeders' Cup winners have been voted Eclipse Awards in their divisions at year's end, while less than half the Derby winners in the same span have been so honored.

Louisville: The Breeders' Cup requires a visit only once every three or four years. The Derby is there every year.

The Breeders' Cup has produced more great moments since its debut - at Hollywood Park in '84 - than the Derby has in the same time: Sunday Silence's final duel with Easy Goer in '89; trainer D. Wayne Lukas' 1-2-3 finish in the $1 million Juvenile Fillies in '88; the great Miesque's back-to-back Mile victories in '87 and '88; Arazi's sensational Juvenile in '91; Arcangues' $269.20 Classic shocker in '93; Personal Ensign's 13th straight victory in '88; Cigar's 11th straight in '95; jockey Lester Piggott's return to glory in '90; Alysheba's Classic in the gloaming in '88; and that Ferdinand-Alysheba finish in '87.

Of course, the Breeders' Cup has an unfair advantage, seven times as many opportunities to make a splash. But more is better in more ways than one.

The Derby is six months of anticipation for a little over two minutes of action. At Churchill Downs, fans start arriving early in the morning, beating the traffic. With nearly an hour between races, it's a long wait for the 5:30 p.m. Derby.

The Breeders' Cup is a more enjoyable day. The nerves coming early, shaking your binoculars and making a blur of the first race. The pace of the afternoon is accelerated to accommodate TV, and by the time the Classic horses go into the starting gate the sensory overload is almost numbing.

Whether this year's Classic will make memories remains to be seen. The infirmities of Gentlemen and Formal Gold have deprived the $4 million race of two favorites. In the Breeders' Cup, where quality counts, this was a double blow.

The most accomplished horse still in Saturday's Classic is Skip Away, but two-thirds of his supplemental nominating fee remains unpaid and he isn't scheduled to fly west until Wednesday. If something happens to him, the race is among 3-year-olds Touch Gold, Behrens and Deputy Commander.

A horseman at Hollywood Park called it the ``Breeders' Cup Derby.'' He didn't mean it as a compliment.

JUVENILE FILLIES

One in a daily series of previews for the seven Breeders' Cup races at Hollywood Park on Saturday.

Conditions: The Juvenile Fillies is a 1 1/16-mile race on the dirt track for the world's best 2-year-old fillies. The winner collects $520,000 of the $1 million guaranteed purse. Each horse carries 119 pounds.

Favorites: Countess Diana (a winner of four of five starts in Kentucky, New York and Maryland) would be the public choice if betting were held today. Silver Maiden (5 for 5 in Illinois and New York) dropped out Friday because of a virus.

Hometown horses: Vivid Angel, the Del Mar Debutante and Oak Leaf winner for trainer Bob Baffert, leads a local brigade that includes California-bred Career Collection and D. Wayne Lukas-trained Love Lock. The field and starting posts will be announced Wednesday.

History: The first running of the Juvenile Fillies is still the most memorable. At Hollywood Park on Nov. 10, 1984, 74-1 Fran's Valentine and jockey Pat Valenzuela were disqualified from first place to 10th for bumping Pirate's Glow and Fernando Toro, and 22-1 Outstandingly and Walter Guerra were made the winners. Fran's Valentine remains the only Breeders' Cup ``winner'' to be DQ'd.

Fastest running: 1:42 2/5, won by My Flag, Belmont Park, 1995 (muddy track).

Handicapper helper: Since its wild debut, the Juvenile Fillies has been formful, with the typical winner paying less than 5-2 odds. Seven of the 13 winners ran their prep races in New York, and 12 won or finished second in their preps. Only one winner led from gate to wire, and nine winners rallied from sixth or farther back. Lukas has trained three winners, Twilight Ridge ('85), Open Mind ('88) and Flanders ('94).

The Juvenile Fillies is scheduled as Saturday's second race (and first Breeders' Cup race), at 10:55 a.m. Other Breeders' Cup races: $1 million Sprint, 3rd, 11:30; $1 million Distaff, 4th, 12:05 p.m.; $1 million Mile, 5th, 12:40; $1 million Juvenile, 6th, 1:15; $2 million Turf, 7th, 1:50; $4 million Classic, 8th, 2:35.

Channel 4 coverage begins at 10:30 a.m.

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BOX: JUVENILE FILLIES (see text)