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Wonderboy looks like Derby fave 10/30/2005 4:10:28 PM NEW YORK (AP) - The Breeders' Cup turned into a beginning and an end for two of racing's biggest stars: Stevie Wonderboy emerged as the early Kentucky Derby favorite with his victory in the Juvenile, and Saint Liam's win in the Classic was the final race of his career. "It's a long road to the Derby, but I think he's got the capabilities to do it," Stevie Wonderboy's jockey, Garrett Gomez, said Sunday. "He's never done anything that would make us second guess him, and hopefully we can keep on going." That won't be the case with Saint Liam, who likely clinched Horse of the Year honours with a stirring one-length victory over Flower Alley, owned by Toronto's Eugene Melnyk, in America's richest race. "We're going to retire him and send him to Lane's End (Farm)," trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. said. The five-year-old Saint Liam closed out a brilliant 2005 campaign with four victories in six races, all in Grade 1 races - the Donn Handicap, the Stephen Foster Handicap, the Woodward and the $4.7-million US Classic. By earning $2,433,600 US in the Classic, Saint Liam boosted his career bankroll to $4,456,995 US for owners William and Suzanne Warren. Dutrow said getting his horse to the Classic was a goal since last year, when Saint Liam missed the '04 edition because he wasn't in top form after losing by a neck to Ghostzapper in the Woodward less than two months earlier. "That was the only thing on my mind," Dutrow said. "I skipped Dubai (the World Cup in March). I just wanted him to have a chance to be Horse of the Year, and in a big race like this. And it happened." Saint Liam, ridden by Jerry Bailey, beat 12 rivals in front of a crowd of 54,289 on a crisp, fall Saturday, including Travers winner Flower Alley, Australian champion Starcraft (seventh) and Jockey Cup Gold Cup winner Borrego (10th). Flower Alley, owned by Melnyk, who also owns the NHL's Ottawa Senators, and his wife Laura, stayed tucked in third for much of the race, that is until the field made the turn for home. Then he and St. Liam became embroiled in a tight run to the finish line. But many of the stars from the first half of the year were missing, either injured or retired. Among them were Derby winner Giacomo, Preakness and Belmont winner Afleet Alex, '04 Classic winner Ghostzapper and Dubai World Cup winner Roses in May. A day before the race, top contender Rock Hard Ten was scratched with an injured foot. "Yeah, we have the best horse around," Dutrow said. "Anybody left standing, they were here and we beat them. We didn't duck any kind of horse in any race." Stevie Wonderboy's popularity will soar in the coming months. Besides being named after singer Stevie Wonder, the two-year-old colt is owned by TV impresario Merv Griffin, a 15-time Emmy Award winner and creator of game shows including Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. In Stevie Wonderboy, the 80-year-old Griffin has another hit on his hands. And Griffin appears to be getting his voice ready for a trip to Churchill Downs for the first Saturday in May. "The sun shines bright on my Old Kentucky Home," he crooned during Saturday's post-race news conference, then added, "I got it all down." So does Gomez, who overcame drug and alcohol problems - he spent 40 days in jail for narcotics possession in 2003 - to become a leading rider in California. And now he has his first two Breeders' Cup wins. He also won the $2-million Mile aboard Artie Schiller. Gomez was voted the top jockey of the Breeders' Cup and accepted the Bill Shoemaker Award at a news conference Sunday. "I'm just happy to be able to participate, much less win two and then accept the Bill Shoemaker Award," Gomez said. "It's beyond my wildest dreams." While Gomez's career is on the rise, Bailey's may be at an end. As he has the past few years, the 48-year-old Hall of Famer said he'll take a month off after Thanksgiving and decide whether to keep riding. Was this his final Breeders' Cup? "If it is my last one, it's a great way to go out," Bailey said. Asked the odds of returning, he replied: "Same as last year, and I didn't think I'd be here then." FINISH LINES: The crowd was the largest at a Breeders' Cup since 2000, when 76,043 attended at Churchill Downs ... Todd Pletcher, who won his first two Breeders' Cup races last year, was zero for eight in six races this time. His best finishes were with Flower Alley (second in the Classic), Lion Tamer (third in the Sprint) and Ashado (third in the Distaff) ... European horses finished 1-2-3-4 in the Turf - Shirocco, Ace, Azamour and Bago ... Trainer Bobby Frankel added a fourth Breeders' Cup win to his resume when Intercontinental took the Filly & Mare Turf.