Not sure if this link is posted properly but if it is, this is why they paid so much money for this horse as a yearling

Look at the siblings deeper in the pedigree

Classic Value
Student Council (JB, you know that one at all?)
Patriot Act
Don't Get Mad

None of this means the horse is going to win but this is the kind of stuff I have been taught to look for in a pedigree to judge classic distance ability

I am sure others in the race have nice deep pages as well, I was just posting this as an example of how some people approach pedigree analysis

http://www.thoroughbreddailynews.com/restricted/pdf/pedigrees/wicked%20strong%20750.pdf]

Wicked Strong Catalog Pedigree