with left elbow tightness. ... Reds left fielder Chris Heisey left the

The path to the 2016 Breeders Cup is a road with plenty of ups and downs as talented racehorses vie for a spot in one of 13 championship races. This blog provides a capsule look at three horses who are heating up on the Road to the Breeders Cup World Championships and three horses whose Breeders Cup chances are not quite as strong as they were a week or two ago.For this weeks edition, the two major races were restricted to 3-year-olds and thats where the results took us for each of the names below. I think we can say at least one sophomore emerged as a probable favorite for a race on the Breeders Cup World Championships card, while quite a few other 3-year-olds came up empty.Heating up1. Songbird Originally, I planned to make Songbird an honorable mention. She was already the dominant leader of the 3-year-old filly division and one of the clear favorites for the Longines Breeders Cup Distaff, so she had no room to move up significantly. But ultimately, Songbird is without question the most likely Breeders Cup winner to come out of the racing action last weekend. In the Grade 1 Cotillion Stakes, she defeated a couple of highly regarded opponents in Carina Mia and Longines Kentucky Oaks winner Cathryn Sophia and also recorded a new career-top 122 Equibase Speed Figure, a 10-point jump from her previous career best earned while winning the 2015 14 Hands Winery Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies. Sure, three-time champion Beholder would present Songbird her toughest challenge to date in the Distaff, but this is an absolute superstar at the pinnacle of her game.2. Connect While many of the other elite 3-year-olds are heading in the wrong direction, lightly raced Connect just seems to be finding his best stride. He had won three of his first four starts, including a stakes win at Saratoga Race Course, before a troubled sixth-place finish in the Travers Stakes. But Connect bounced back in a big way on Sept. 24 in the Grade 2 Pennsylvania Derby, outfinishing Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands and Travers Stakes third-place finisher Gun Runner and beating both Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist and Preakness Stakes victor Exaggerator. By two-time Horse of the Year Curlin, Connect seems to be improving as his 3-year-old season progresses, much like his sire did in 2007, and he earned a new career-best 108 Equibase Speed Figure for the Pennsylvania Derby victory. Connect has consistently been fast since his debut and, while hell face a tall task in the Breeders Cup Classic, he is in terrific form.3. Noholdingback Bear Before a third-place finish in August at Saratoga Race Course in the Grade 1 Ketel One Kings Bishop Stakes, Noholdingback Bears best races had come on synthetic surfaces. But after pairing a strong Kings Bishop with a 1-1/4-length win in the Grade 3 Gallant Bob Stakes on Sept. 24, this Put It Back colt looks like a legit threat for the Twinspires.com Breeders Cup Sprint. Three-year-olds historically can compete with older runners in the Sprint -- Runhappy last year and Trinniberg in 2012 won the race at 3 -- and, while there are some talented Sprint contenders, there are no true standouts. With 111 and 113 Equibase Speed Figures in his last two starts, Noholdingback Bear could pack a nice surprise on Breeders Cup Saturday.Honorable MentionTexas Chrome It was a tough call for the third spot between Noholdingback Bear and Texas Chrome, but I felt like Texas Chrome certainly warranted a mention after winning the Grade 3 Oklahoma Derby for his third straight victory. Looking back even further, hes actually been strong all year. Texas Chrome has not finished worse than third in seven races this season and has four stakes wins. Hes recorded Equibase Speed Figures between 101 and 106 (the career-top he earned Saturday) in his last five races, so hes also very consistent. He reportedly will target the Breeders Cup Las Vegas Dirt Mile, a race in which he figures to fit well. Sure, Runhappy would be a heavy favorite should he make the Dirt Mile, but he has not yet raced once in 2015. Take Runhappy out of the mix, and the Dirt Mile is wide open.Cooling down1. Exaggerator Its easy to forgive one bad performance, but back-to-back duds indicate to me that Exaggerator has either gone off form or hit a wall this season. One race after he finished 11th, beaten by 33 lengths, in the Travers Stakes, Exaggerator never fired in the Pennsylvania Derby and ran a nonthreatening seventh. Beaten by 12 lengths by Connect on Saturday, this is not the same horse who won the Preakness Stakes in May during a stretch of 10 straight races in which he either won or finished within three lengths of the winner. Theres no doubt Exaggerator is a gifted racehorse. Lets hope trainer Keith Desormeaux can find the key to get him back to his best.2. Cupid Hall of Famer Bob Baffert is as good as any trainer in bringing a 3-year-old back after the Triple Crown trail for a great second half of the season. After Cupid won the Grade 2 Indiana Derby, I had great confidence he was poised for a huge second half. His four-length runaway in the Grade 2 West Virginia Derby reinforced that confidence, but in the Pennsylvania Derby he came up empty when eighth, beaten by more than 14 lengths. It feels like Cupid is just a cut below the best of his division. Hes a very nice racehorse, no doubt, but at this point it would be tough to see him being competitive in the Breeders Cup World Championships when hes struggled against the best of his generation in the 3-year-old division.3. Nyquist Seeing a trend here? The romance is over for this years class of 3-year-olds. Nyquist didnt run a terrible race in the Pennsylvania Derby, but he wasnt the gutsy, powerhouse racehorse who opened his career with eight straight wins, capped by a clear win in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands. Hes now lost three straight starts and, even though he hasnt been beaten by more than five lengths in any of his defeats, he doesnt resemble the beast who took Mohaymens lunch money at the top of the Florida Derby stretch. Nyquist reportedly came out of the Pennsylvania Derby in good order, and trainer Doug ONeill and owner Paul Reddam will meet to discuss whats next for the 2015 champion 2-year-old male.For more stories like this check out Americas Best Racing. Discount Air Jordan Sale . -- Edmontons Val Sweeting is two wins away from a trip to Winnipeg to play in Canadas Road of the Rings in December. Cheap Air Jordan 4 China Wholesale . Batiste, who briefly signed with the Eskimos in 2006, has spent time with several NFL teams including the Pittsburgh Steelers and Washington Redskins. http://www.cheapjordanschinawholesale.com/ . -- Its been a long road back for Sean Bergenheim. Cheap Jordans From China . As he recorded his 23rd and 24th points of the evening, a segment of the sellout Air Canada Centre crowd expressed their appreciation for the Raptors point guard with a smattering of MVP chants. Clearance Jordans China . -- Charline Labonte couldnt have asked for a better homecoming. MILWAUKEE -- Cincinnati starter Tony Cingrani cant be faulted for expecting a win after limiting Milwaukee to two runs over seven innings. Problem is he ran into Wily Peralta on the best night for a Brewers starter in over two years. Milwaukees wildly inconsistent right-hander tossed a three-hit shutout Tuesday night to give Milwaukee a 2-0 victory over the Reds and the teams first complete game since Yovani Gallardos two-hit shutout on April 5, 2011 -- a span of 407 games that the Brewers said was the longest such drought in major league history. "Cingrani actually threw a better game," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "He had more strikeouts. But theres only one left-handed hitter in the lineup. He walks (Martin) Maldonado and the only left-handed hitter in the lineup hits a home run. When youre not going too good, these things happen." That left-hander was Logan Schafer, who provided Peralta all the support he needed, driving in both runs with his first career homer. Peralta (6-9), whose start was pushed back from Sunday to give his ailing left hamstring a few extra days of rest, struck out six and walked four. He was aided by two double plays and also picked a runner off first. The Reds also had a runner thrown out at home. "Ive been playing with Wily for a while now, "Schafer said. " Ive seen him that dominant before. It was really fun to watch tonight. He was incredible. It was really fun to play defence behind him today. Im glad we came away with the win." Cingrani (3-1) allowed just two singles in addition to Schafers two-run homer, striking out 10 and walking two in seven innings. Schafer, a last-minute replacement for Norichika Aoki, broke up the scoreless duel in the fifth. Martin Maldonado battled back from an 0-2 count for a leadoff walk and Schafer drove the first pitch 429 feet over the wall in right-centre to put the Brewers up 2-0. "One mistake, well, two mistakes; the walk and then I tried to get a head of Schafer and he jumps me," said Cingrani. "Its frustrating. I thought I did my job." Derrick Robinson was within a hand swipe of putting the Reds on the board in the seventh when he sliced an opposite-field triple into the left-field corner. The ball eeluded left fielder Jeff Bianchi, normally a utility infielder who came on to start the inning as a defensive replacement for Ryan Braun.dddddddddddd Robinson tried to score on the play but was nailed on his reach back slide at home on a perfect relay throw from shortstop Jean Segura. "Of course, as soon as you get out there, you get a tough play," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. "I dont remember balls hitting off that railing too often. They dont go up there." The Reds also threatened in the ninth when Joey Votto walked with two outs and advanced on a wild pitch, but Brandon Phillips grounded out to short. "When I walked Votto, I had the feeling they were get let me finish up with Phillips," Peralta said. "When I walked Votto, I just kind of stepped back and said make one pitch at a time and thats what I did." Roenicke said he probably would have pulled Peralta had Phillips gotten on. "It was going to be a bad decision if Phillips got on there," Roenicke said. "That was going to be a tough one." Braun, in the starting lineup for the first time since going on the disabled list June 10, singled in the first inning on the first pitch he saw. He grounded out to short and flied to right before being lifted. "I think I was pleasantly surprised with the way I got through today," Braun said. "Id only taken batting practice a couple times. I hadnt seen any live pitching, I didnt do any simulated games or anything. So, I was definitely pleasantly surprised with the way that today went." NOTES: Aoki was in the starting lineup in right field and as the leadoff hitter, but was a pre-game scratch with left elbow tightness. ... Reds left fielder Chris Heisey left the game after getting hit on the left elbow by a pitch from Peralta in the second inning. X-rays were negative. "He said his feeling didnt come back and thats why we took him out," Baker said. "I dont think hes playing tomorrow." . Reliever Sam LeCure pitched one scoreless inning, extending the Reds bullpen scoreless streak to 23 1/3 innings, spanning eight games. . The victory was only the fifth of the season for the Brewers when scoring less than four runs (5-33). ' ' '