Horse Racing's Most Disappointing Weekend
Contributed By Post Time PetePosted on 11/7/10 3:05 PM
About a week ago, I was ripe with anticipation for an exciting Breeders' Cup weekend. Now that it's all over and I've had some time to reflect, all I can think is what a disappointment. I realize this is very subjective. After all, what is it we look for in a great horse race? An amazing upset? A come from behind win by the favorite? A nose-to-nose finish? The 2010 Breeders' Cup at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky gave us all of that.
Goldikova came from behind in thrilling fashion to win the TVG Breeders' Cup Mile and, in the process, became the first horse in history to win 3 Breeders' Cup races. Dakota Phone went off at 37-1 in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile and pulled ahead in the home stretch for an amazing upset. Uncle Mo proved himself to be the most dominating 2-year old in the country with an amazing victory in the Grey Goose Breeders' Cup Juvenile. What more could a horse racing enthusiast ask for in the biggest American racing weekend of the year? Yet despite all this excitement, the weekend left me lacking.
Breeders' Cup weekend started out on Friday evening with an upset in the Breeders' Cup Marathon by Eldaafer. However, it was what happened in the winner's circle that drew everyone's attention. Calvin Borel and Javier Castellano had to be restrained after coming to blows over events that took place during the race. Castellano, aboard Prince Will I Am, took a sharp cut to the inside of the track in the final turn, cutting off Martin Garcia on Romp (almost dumping him in the process) and Borel on A.U. Miner. The event likely cost A.U. Miner the race as he ended up finishing third (later bumped up to second after Prince Will I Am was disqualified), but more importantly it was a very dangerous move by Castellano. Borel made his feelings known after the inquiry when the two came to blows. They were separated, but it was later reported the fight continued in the jockey's room.
It's easy to understand why Borel was so angry. We've all been there at some point - once your adrenaline starts pumping things can get out of hand quickly. The problem is this is Breeders' Cup - a nationally televised event. It sets a bad example for anyone watching, this is not what racing is about. What happens in the jockeys lounge stays in the jockeys lounge, but letting this happen in the winner's circle is unacceptable. Both Borel and Castellano should be fined if not suspended for the brawl. Incidentally, it's ashame TVG didn't offer it as an event because I would have put $20 to win on Calvin "The Ragin' Cajun" Borel.
The Breeders' Cup races continued on Saturday morning with the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf. Continuing the trend of disappointment for the weekend, jockey Rosie Napravnik was tossed off her horse Rough Sailing when he slipped heading into the first turn. At first glance the fall didn't appear to be too bad as Rough Sailing continued to run after the slip. However, it was later announced by on-call veterinarian Dr. C Wayne McIlwraith that Rough Sailing suffered a fracture that was not repairable and had to be euthanized.
It's never good when a horse has to be euthanized. Avid horse racing fans know that these horses love what they do and this is an unfortunate and uncommon possibility when racing, especially for juveniles. However, as the PETA crew and other animal rights groups see and read about this in the media, it fuels the "end Thoroughbred horse racing" argument. It's bad for the sport and very hard to watch.
Despite these events, the biggest disappointment of the weekend occurred in the headline event: the Breeders' Cup Classic. The Classic was Zenyatta's race, a race she had already won the previous year. She was supposed to win for the second year in a row, become the second horse in history to win three Breeders' Cup races, and retire to a life of luxury and breeding at 20-0. She put on an amazing performance as she always does but lost by a nose to Blame. Anyone who watched the race has to believe she was the better horse but was an unfortunate victim of circumstance.
Don't get me wrong, Blame is a great horse and, after this win, is deserving of the Horse of the Year award. Blame is no Zenyatta though. Jockey Mike Smith held her up as the broke form the gate and let the speed horses in the pack set the pace. The race essentially broke into 3 groups, the speed horses up front, a smaller group of pacers just behind them, and, of course, Zenyatta in the back. When Mike Smith tried to break for the front, he got stuck twice trying to break out. In the end, the race was nose-to-nose with Blame winning by just a hair. If she had one or two more lengths to go, there's no doubt she would have won and, in my heart, I'll always believe she did.
Zenyatta is arguably the greatest female race horse of all time. There have been other greats, like Ruffian, that passed long before their time. There are also the Goldikova's of the world who rise to the top with dramatic wins. But what Zenyatta has done for horse racing is undeniable. Fans flock from all over the country not only to see her race, but just to catch a glimpse of her. The "Girl Power" shirts and "Queen Z" hats trimmed in pink and teal are visible all over the stands. They cheer for her as she does her pre-race dance from the paddock and they scream her name when she enters the winner's cirle. Her influence is everywhere and it's done more for the sport of horse racing then any horse in the last 10+ years.
On a different day, with a different crowd, maybe she wins that race. There will be lots of second guessing. Should she have run in a second Breeders' Cup Classic when she had nothing left to prove? Should Mike Smith have tried to break sooner and get to the front faster? Fate has a funny way of turning things upside down on us. In the end she will always be immortalized as one of the greats, but I will never be able to forget the stinging disappointment left by the 2010 Breeders' Cup.
That's what I think, now tell me what you think. Post your comments below!
Comments (3)
Tim
11/9/10 06:55 pm
As much as i love Zenyatta Ruffian is probubly the best filly or mare of all time.
Post Time Pete
11/8/10 01:42 pm
Hi James, thank you for the feedback. As I mentioned in my article it's all very subjective and I'm well aware of that. Her style is to come from behind so I'm willing to discount that she only wins by less then a length. One other thing I think that needs to be considered is that in several races over the last few years she's had some significant weight handicaps over the horses she beat. That has to be considered because it definitely takes a few lengths off the finish. When discussing greatness, it's difficult to rank horses, specifically horses from different generations. Many people argue Secretariat is the greatest of all time but Man o'War ran in different races in a different generation and is considered by others to be the greatest. You also have to look at how many great east coast horses never went west and vice-versa. I think she beat a tremendous field last year in the Classic and, had circumstances been different, would have beaten a tremendous class in this year's Classic, so I truly don't believe she would have lost more to males. Now the dirt argument *may* have some validity but again, I think you could say that about a lot of "greats." That of course is the great thing about this sport, it allows for debate while we are able to enjoy some pretty amazing races in between. Thanks again!
James Mabry
11/8/10 01:18 pm
Let's not be haste in granting "greatest" to a mare that only raced 3 times against males and 3 times on dirt. One of the best today? Definitely. But great? Has to be questioned. It may be questionable that she merely ran out of race in the Breeders Cup. She lost to Blame by a nose but did not pass Blame following the finish. As misfortunate one may think that she lost her last race by a nose, don't ignore that many of her wins were by less than a length. Her running style typically ends in close races. Had she run more often on dirt and against males, it is my opinion that she would have had more losses prior to this race and we would not be discussing "greatness."