Horse players across the globe are waiting eagerly for next month’s Breeders’ Cup, and its centerpiece “Classic” race. It’s the most important thoroughbred event on the calendar – yes, even bigger than the Kentucky Derby, although not as mainstream.

The Cup is considered the year-end championships for North American horse racing, and the Classic features the best of the best 3-year-olds (and older) in the sport. Whoever takes this year’s event will likely be named U.S. Horse of the Year by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. The past three Classic winners all received that distinction: Invasor, Saint Liam and Ghostzapper.

The 2007 Classic champion will also earn $5 million; even better, there’s a lucrative future on the horizon as a top stallion. 1992 Classic winner and Horse of the Year A.P. Indy earns a cool $300,000 per breeding. He’s sired 512 foals as of press time, including 24 graded stakes winners. It’s a living.