This past Monday night, I’m driving with my mom down Wilshire Boulevard and my Pre starts buzzing like a frenzied bee colony – “we must have a new Horse of the Year,” Mom says.
Boy – rather, Girl – do we ever! Now that the debate has been settled, we can start to focus on the other parts of the Rachel Alexandra v. Zenyatta story.
I was (admittedly) tough on the Rachel camp last year for not going to the Breeders’ Cup and I still feel they made a mistake – even though I do think to push her any harder than 8 races in 7 months could have been a bigger mistake. I was (admittedly) understanding of the Zenyatta camp for facing the boys and then announcing retirement, even though they kept her in training long enough for most of us to expect the inevitable Favreian reversal – and though I think the breeding shed is a safer bet for a mare who has nothing left to prove on the track, you cannot fault the Moss/Shirreffs camp for wanting to keep their superstar in orbit.
And the stats of this supposed rivalry are tremendous: the next start is #15 for both; Rachel’s combined win margin is 45-3/4 more lengths, even though Zenyatta’s been in training 52% longer (she’s older by 2 years, I know, but the numbers don’t lie: 1,360 days v. 637), and the stats go on…
Now the big question is when will the ladies stop doing the dance of the socialiates and finally sit down to lunch at the same table?
Personally, I think both of them would be ready – with two preps apiece – for the La Troienne (aka the Louisville Breeders’ Cup) on the Kentucky Oaks undercard. This is the same race Zenyatta came into Churchill for last year – and for which she trained like an absolute beast – but was scratched from the morning of, due to fears of a wet track. After that incident, I think John Shirreffs will be more trusting of Butch Lear’s ability – there’s no one better in the business at getting a track to dry out.
And we all know how much Rachel likes her home turf (or, rather dirt). Oh, and “ironically” enough, the Breeders’ Cup is not only not on “plastic” this year but happens to be at Churchill – just like the La Troienne.
I don’t think there’s a question that a starting gate with these two ladies in it will be among the greatest moments in recent racing history. But – as a fan of this game as much as I work in the sport – I have to ask myself: Do I really want these two to meet?
And, after much deliberation, I honestly have to admit that no, I really don’t. I know it’s sacrilegious to say such a thing, but I’m not sorry: I don’t want to see one of them lose.
It’s not about Zenyatta getting her 15th straight or Rachel her 10th – it’s the fact that there are two certainties in racing (with a walkover being the exception that proves the rule): someone’s going to win and someone’s going to lose. Realize that in 26 years and 208 Breeders’ Cup races there has been just 1 (one!) dead heat. One of the many reasons I love the call of the 2002 Test Stakes is that Tom Durkin said it: it was a photo finish that didn’t deserve a loser – even though the stewards called it and You got the W while Carson Hollow just went back to the barn.
From a business standpoint, I know it would be amazing: it’d be great promotion for a sport that’s struggling: our version of David Beckham playing in the MLS. We know that fans turn out in droves to see either mare run, so it’s absolutely safe to assume that getting them together would cause even the calmest fire marshall to need oxygen. Heck, we could race for charity instead of purse money – as long as people keep buying wine and music, neither owner is hurting for cash – and we could maybe even convince other owners to run their horses instead of it being just a match race.
Whichever track finally gets these two gals into the same gate is going to have a great day in the handle department, no doubt. And it will be a major coup for a sport that’s been dying to see it happen for two racing seasons. But – ask yourself this without geographic bias and knowing that the odds of these two super girls getting their noses on the same line at the same time is near impossible – is an invitation to this meeting really what’s best for the sport?
I have to regretfully decline.
