Martin Garcia celebrates as Bayern crosses under the BC Classic wire first (Wendy Wooley/EquiSport Photos)

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert reported that all of his Breeders' Cup starters came out of their races in good order, but all of the buzz was about Bayern, who delivered Baffert his 11th Breeders' Cup victory and his first in the Classic in 13 tries dating back to 1998.

"I have never seen so much animosity over a horse race," Baffert said. "It seems like people forgot how to watch a race."

Owned by Kaleem Shah, Bayern broke inward at the start starting a chain reaction that prompted a steward's inquiry.

"If the stewards had not posted the inquiry, there would not have been one," Baffert said. "Mike Smith (who rode Shared Belief) wasn't going to (claim foul). He said all the trouble happened a little later when the 9 (Toast of New York) came over and by that time, my horse was already gone."

Under Martin Garcia, Bayern led all the way to prevail by a nose over Toast of New York with California Chrome another neck back, completing the 1 1/4 miles in 1:59 4/5.

"The sad part about all of this is that it distracts from what he did yesterday," Baffert said. "It's not like he is a fluke. He can do it all and he's a fighter. You could tell he was not going to let that other horse (Toast of New York) by."

Bayern took his left-hand turn into Shared Belief as soon as the doors opened (Matt Wooley/EquiSport Photos)

"I just wish it would have come without all the controversy," Shah remarked. "If he is healthy, I would like (to take a shot at) the (Group 1) Dubai World Cup. When Bob tells me he is ready to roll, we roll. As long as he stays healthy and sound, he'll run at (ages) four, five and six."

Besides Bayern, Baffert's other runners were Secret Circle (second Sprint),  Indianapolis (10th Sprint), One Lucky Dane (sixth Juvenile), Fed Biz (seventh Dirt Mile) and Tiz Midnight (sixth Distaff).

Jerry Hollendorfer, who trains Shared Belief, said the Candy Ride gelding exited his rough race in good order.

"He came out OK," Hollendorfer said of Shared Belief, who finished fourth in the Classic. "I don't have any plans. He will go back to Golden Gate Fields. He needs to be freshened up a bit."

Dan Ward, Hollendorfer's chief assistant, went into other details. Like Hollendorfer, he chose not to comment about the controversy surrounding the start.

"We want to make sure he's OK," Ward remarked. "He will walk and rest for a couple of days before shipping back to Golden Gate."

Ward thought that three-year-old male and Horse of the Year honors were left a puzzle after the Classic.

"All the three-year-olds ran good," he said of the unprecedented 1-2-3-4-5-6 finish by sophomores in the race.

California Chrome likely wrapped up his three-year-old campaign in the Classic (Matt Wooley/EquiSport Photos)

"She came back with a lot of dirt in her face," Ward said of Majestic Presence. "She was covered with mud. It looked like the race had been run in the mud."

Art Sherman reported on Kentucky Derby and Preakness hero California Chrome from his Los Alamitos base on Sunday after shipping the three-year-old colt back from Santa Anita on Saturday night.

"He pulled up good," Sherman said by telephone. "It was a great race for him, and a game race to get beat by a neck. Maybe with a stronger race the one before (when sixth in the Pennsylvania Derby) he might have won, but I don't know."

Sherman said future plans for the California-bred son of Lucky Pulpit had not yet been formulated.

"I'll have to talk to the owners," Sherman said in reference to Steve Coburn and Perry Martin.

As for Eclipse Award honors for three-year-old male and Horse of the Year, Sherman thought the controversial finish left the outcome unclear.

"It's up in the air now," he remarked.

Regardless of the outcome, the 77-year-old trainer could not imagine a more memorable year.

"It's been a great run," Sherman said. "He's done everything we wanted...$4 million...It's been a great year."