The Breeders’ Cup, the greatest innovation in racing in

50 years, will run its 26th edition at Santa Anita next week amid rising concern over its future form and shape.

Critics have been carping for a year about running the Cup for a second straight year over Santa Anita’s synthetic racing surface, defying the historic American sport’s dirt tradition.

They question the decision to expand the Cup to 14 races over two days, diluting the product. They increasingly are impatient with the Cup’s continued low TV ratings, and the near collapse of the breeding business has them worried about the Cup’s financial resources.

Management tacitly acknowledged problems recently by announcing a shake-up, including a five-to-10-year rotation of the Cup site and other unspecified cha+nges.

What the critics fail to note is that last year’s Cup at Santa Anita was spectacular — perfect setting, perfect weather, memorable racing, an entertainment package almost matching the fabulous opener at Hollywood Park in 1984. Nevertheless, the Cup cannot ignore how the introduction of synthetic surfaces radically has changed the nature of American racing, especially the Breeders’ Cup itself.

The problem looks insurmountable, unless the Cup makes the hard decision to exclude synthetic tracks from its roster. That immediately would knock Santa Anita, Hollywood Park, Del Mar, Keeneland, Arlington and Woodbine out of the program.

If that’s tough medicine, the alternative is just as distasteful. That is to rotate the cup, one year on dirt, the next on synthetic, introducing the principle of maximum confusion.

Worse, synthetic surfaces destroy the fundamental premise of the Cup, which is to showcase and define America’s champion thoroughbreds.

It is folly for the nation’s best horses to campaign year round on dirt tracks like Belmont, Saratoga, Churchill Downs, Gulfstream, Monmouth, Pimlico, Delaware, Oaklawn Park and Fair Grounds, then suddenly throw them onto a foreign, artificial surface for one race at the Breeders’ Cup to decide who’s the champion.

Last year’s Classic illustrated the flaw. Curlin won four Grade 1 races on dirt — the Dubai World Cup, the Stephen Foster at Churchill, the Woodward at Saratoga and the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont — before going to Santa Anita for the Classic.

In his 15-race career, he had never run on a synthetic surface like Santa Anita’s Pro-Ride. He was ambushed on it, opening the way for two European turf horses to scoop the pool.

What did the race prove? Nothing. The $5 million Classic, the richest race in America, the signature championship event, became a non-championship event.

It could happen again next Saturday. The Europeans are bringing a grass star, Rip Van Winkle, to the Classic to challenge America’s dirt horses — including Summer Bird, the Belmont, Travers and Jockey Club Gold Cup winner; and

Quality Road, the Florida Derby winner and Amsterdam record breaker. But neither has raced on a synthetic track.

If the Rip clobbers them on Pro-Ride’s turf-like bias, the Classic will be reduced, again, to a meaningless championship event.

Can you imagine the French prepping their horses all year on turf, then suddenly running the Arc de Triomphe on dirt to crown their champion? It’s inconceivable. But we are doing roughly the equivalent.

If the Breeders’ Cup is to fulfill its mission to sort out and crown America’s champions, its races should be run on dirt, while still giving Europeans attractive incentives with rich turf races.

Dirt racing is America’s heritage, America’s game. And that’s where the champions should be crowned. Santa Anita is an incomparable racetrack, but its “plastic” running surface is not what the Cup founders had in mind 25 years ago.