As its name implies, it is part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships, the de facto year-end championship for North American thoroughbred racing.
[1] Because of technical requirements, it was not eligible for classification as a graded stakes race in its first two runnings.
[4] Beginning in 2007, the Breeders' Cup developed the Breeders' Cup Challenge, a series of races in each division that allotted automatic qualifying bids to winners of defined races.
Note though that one horse may win multiple challenge races, while other challenge winners will not be entered in the Breeders' Cup for a variety of reasons such as injury or travel considerations.
In the Juvenile Fillies Turf division, runners are limited to 14 and there are up to six automatic berths.