RACHEL VS. ZENYATTA: CHAMPIONS FOR A NEW GENERATION
Although I don’t necessarily buy her conclusion that Rachel Alexandra “must” be elected Horse of the Year for 2009, I can’t disagree with Natalie Voss that we have two very exciting and deserving candidates for the sport’s top honor. Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra are to many in Natalie’s generation what Secretariat, Ruffian, Affirmed or Seattle Slew were to mine, or Seabiscuit was to a previous generation of racing fans.
A University of Kentucky Equine Communications student, Natalie joined the Paulick Report earlier this year as an intern. This, her first published piece for us, reflects both her enthusiasm for Thoroughbred racing as well as her burgeoning knowledge of the sport. But most importantly, as we look to expand our audience in the future, it is imperative that we listen to the voices of the next generation. — Ray Paulick
By Natalie Voss
Right before this year’s Breeders’ Cup, the Paulick Report posted a handful of editorials and news articles taking the view that Zenyatta could not beat the males in the Breeder’s Cup Classic. The Europeans were too tough, it was too big a test for her first try against boys, Summer Bird was a sleeper sitting on a big performance: the reasons were various and valid. I’ll admit that if you had asked me, I would have pointed out all these things, particularly because although Zenyatta has a tremendous lifetime record of victories, she hadn’t blown away any of the fields she’d beaten.
On these points I’ll admit I was proven conclusively wrong. For perhaps the first time in her career, Zenyatta was forced to overcome adversity and did so with ease. The loading debacle before the race, her slow start and spotting 12 lengths to the leaders early made me shout in disappointment ”She’s done” as the field moved down the backstretch. I gave my television set a round of applause right along with the Southern California crowd when we realized she had fought through to the lead coming to the wire. It was a truly incredible race.
But now the party is over, and we are left to all put our two cents in on which horse will be forever associated with this season by carrying the title “Horse of the Year 2009,” and here are mine: as incredible as Zenyatta’s win was this weekend, the title still must go to Rachel Alexandra.
There have been, and will continue to be a flurry of editorials on the Paulick Report and elsewhere from various handicapping experts and journalists voicing their (sadly, ultimately irrelevant) opinions on which of the two fillies should go home with this honor. Mine may perhaps be less relevant than any of them, as I am just starting out in the racing industry, a mere college intern for the Paulick Report, but for what it’s worth here are my assertions:
– Zenyatta has faced and beaten stakes company males once. Rachel has done it three times, with many (although not all) of the horses she beat also appearing in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Both fillies ran against and defeated many top fillies and mares this year. In short: they have faced almost all of the same opponents.
– Considering the above, Zenyatta does just enough work to win, weighing in with an average margin of victory of two lengths. That is what a winning racehorse is supposed to do–just enough to get the job done. But a champion is a horse who smashes their competition impressively, particularly in the face of adversity. Rachel’s 20 length margin over her peers in the Oaks, her crushing six-length margin in the Haskell, and even her hard-fought length victory in the Preakness, so soon after the Oaks and despite her dislike of the Pimlico surface, all make her victories more impressive than Zenyatta’s.
– Zenyatta had a relatively easy season, in my opinion, only running five times this year while Rachel has run nine times, each time facing harder competition and setting five stakes records along the way. Zenyatta set one.
– Rachel’s exciting victories made a splash in the sports world at large, which the racing industry so desperately needs. Granted the attention of the “non-equine world” is not a great indicator of what events in racing are most relevant, but name me a horse that has captured more (positive) attention from casual fans this year, or even within the last ten years. We need a horse like her. And now that we have one, we need to reward her for what she’s done for the industry: she’s given us a great athlete to point to when people ask us to explain why this sport is great.
Whoever wins the award will be deserving. The most remarkable aspect of the debate to me is that, for the first time in my young memory we are choosing between two females for Horse of the Year. Looking back at the list of past winners, I have always become immediately jealous of other generations that they have lived to see such greats as Secretariat, Affirmed and Ruffian, while as a loyal fan since 1995 the greatest season I can boast witnessing is Silver Charm’s in 1997. Now I think finally, we are all privileged to have seen something truly, timelessly great for the first time in years and that is a pair of horses who should both be remembered through history for their accomplishments…and perhaps that is the greatest reward of all.
Tags: affirmed, Natalie Voss, Paulick Report, Rachel Alexandra, ruffian, seabiscuit, seattle slew, secretariat, University of Kentucky Equine, zenyatta
November 10th, 2009 at 10:34 pm
Overcome adversity for the first time? Have you ever actually seen any of Zenyatta’s races before? And apart from the two birds, who did they face in common?
Don’t mean to be hard on you, I know it’s your first blog post, but still. Gotta get it right
November 10th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
Mine That Bird captured more positive attention this year than any horse. The Kentucky Derby always gets the most attention, plus he made the cover of Sports Illustrated (and not because his owner commissioned it). His popularity has continued through this fall - they even had a Mine That Bird 24/7 camera in his stall from the time he arrived at Santa Anita so his fans could watch him. His trainer has somehow become an almost unofficial spokesman for the sport.
Thankfully, Rachel’s trainer hasn’t gotten nearly that much attention. But unfortunately, his doping violations will again come to the forefront if another horse in his charge is honored as Horse of the Year. An ESPN writer has already pointed out that the last 3 HOYs were trained by men with significant doping rap sheets.
I hope the Paulick Report does an editorial imploring the Eclipse voters to take into account the WHOLE picture and the message they send with their awards to those with dirty records. This year they have chance to award a horse with a clean trainer (Shirreffs). Think it all the way through and decide which message this sport/industry should send to the casual as well as hard core fan.
November 10th, 2009 at 10:42 pm
RACHEL WHO? thats what people would say if she ever had the misfortune of facing ZENYATTA on the track…..ANY TRACK, ANYWHERE!
November 10th, 2009 at 10:57 pm
Sydney, You are sooo right! Besides, if you want to compare fans, Zenyatta’s crew with all the signs and cheering was far bigger than Rachel’s. You gotta love a winner that finishes with the ears pricked. She was even doing her ‘cakewalk’ after the race.
November 11th, 2009 at 12:27 am
I respect Natalie’s argument, but I don’t find it persuasive.
My vote would go to Zanyatta. There are various factors that I could hold forward to justify that choice. However, I’ll just focus on the one that I think is most decisive — that Zenyatta put an unbeaten streak on the line and “went for the gusto” in the Classic, while Rachel sat home despite being sound and ready to race.
Despite Zenyatta’s awesome performance last weekend, perhaps Rachel might have prevailed if she had been there. We’ll never know due to Jess Jackson’s obstinence over the synthetic surface issue (which I found unsportsmanlike). Now Jackson has to lay in the bed he has made… If Zenyatta doesn’t run past that field and Gio Ponti wins the Classic, Rachel is the obvious choice for Horse of the Year. However, given that Zenyatta did everything that was asked of her — while Rachel was sitting on the sideline (aiming to win by default) — I believe that Zenyatta is now the clear winner of Horse of the Year honors.
Rachel will presumably get her shot to replicate Zenyatta’s feat next year, and I hope she does so in just as vibrant a fashion. But awarding Horse of the Year to a candidate that “sat out” the big dance when everyone else showed up wouldn’t just be unfair, it would be unwarranted.
November 11th, 2009 at 1:07 am
Natalie,
While I disagree with your conclusion I congratulate you on a well-written first piece for the Paulick Report and look forward to many more. Prior to last Saturday’s superlative performance by Zenyatta I would have agreed that the magnificent Rachel Alexandra was certain to be the Horse of the Year but things have changed and Jess Jackson will come to regret ducking the world championships and denying Rachel the opportunity to prove whether she is more deserving than Zenyatta.
Jackson chose the calculated risk of not needing to compete in the most important race of the year assuming his horse had a lock on the HOY award. Zenyatta’s connections, on the other hand, chose the much greater risk of taking on a world-class field comprised of the best horses in training in the championship event and possibly diminishing Zenyatta’s place in history by blemishing a previously perfect record with a final loss.
Champions show up to compete in championships. Zenyatta did, Rachel didn’t.
November 11th, 2009 at 8:15 am
It seems to me that the one question that come into play is this: do we decide our champions on the Breeders Cup? If we do, are they required to win? Was it right that Cigar was 96 HOY when in fact he did not win the BC - didn’t even finish 2nd? Is it right that we award European turf horses that win the BC - their only start in the US - after other turf horses win multiple grade 1’s in the US through out the year?
Are we voting champion Horse of the Year or champion Horse of the Breeders Cup?
If we decide we want to vote for the horse that acheived an ideal year-long campaign, then despite the emotion coming off of this weekend, RA really must be considered. She raced in SIX states. Zenyatta raced in ONE. RA faced the boys THREE times. Z faced them once. RA went outside not only her sex group, but her age group; and in racing’s history, how many times have 3 yr old females beaten the older boys? Nine races to five.
I hear so often how Jackson blew RA’s campaign. I’m assuming most hail from CA and if I lived there I would feel the same way. But doesn’t that go both ways? Why didn’t Z’s owners make a more concerted effort to expand Zenyatta’s base, explore other tracks and expose more fans to her amazing talents.
I am one of a few racing fans that thinks the BC has done as much damage as it has good. I wonder, why was Mine that Bird even running? Hasn’t he demonstrated that maybe he’s had enough this year, a hard spring campaign and didn’t fare well over the the poly? Was it one last ditch effort to win 3 yr old of the year, deperate hopes to win this one race? I see good quality horses duck competition all year long in hopes to win one race - while us racing fans loyal throughout the year long for the years when champion horses thrived on meeting each other.
Just my two cents. I’m with you Natalie.
November 11th, 2009 at 8:39 am
Incidence, Causes, and Severity of High School Football Injuries on FieldTurf Versus Natural Grass A 5-Year Prospective Study Michael C. Meyers, PhD, FACSM*,† and Bill S. Barnhill, MD‡
+ Author Affiliations
>From the †Human Performance Research Center, West Texas A&M
>University, Canyon, Texas, and ‡Panhandle Sports Medicine Associates,
>Amarillo, Texas
Address correspondence to Michael C. Meyers, PhD, FACSM, Human Performance Research Center, Department of Sports & Exercise Science, WTAMU Box 60216, West Texas A&M University, Canyon, TX 79016 (e-mail: mmeyers@mail.wtamu.edu).
Abstract
Background: Numerous injuries have been attributed to playing on artificial turf. Recently, FieldTurf was developed to duplicate the playing characteristics of natural grass. No long-term study has been conducted comparing game-related, high school football injuries between the 2 playing surfaces.
Hypothesis: High school athletes would not experience any difference in the incidence, causes, and severity of game-related injuries between FieldTurf and natural grass.
Study Design: Prospective cohort study.
Methods: A total of 8 high schools were evaluated over 5 competitive seasons for injury incidence, injury category, time of injury, injury time loss, player position, injury mechanism, primary type of injury, grade and anatomical location of injury, type of tissue injured, head and knee trauma, and environmental factors.
Results: Findings per 10 team games indicated total injury incidence rates of 15.2 (95% confidence interval, 13.7–16.4) versus 13.9 (95% confidence interval, 11.9–15.6). Minor injury incidence rates of 12.1 (95% confidence interval, 10.5–13.6) versus 10.7 (95% confidence interval, 8.7–12.7), substantial injury incidence rates of 1.9 (95% confidence interval, 1.4–2.6) versus 1.3 (95% confidence interval, 0.8–2.1), and severe injury incidence rates of 1.1 (95% confidence interval, 0.7–1.7) versus 1.9 (95% confidence interval 1.2–2.8) were documented on FieldTurf versus natural grass, respectively. Multivariate analyses indicated significant playing surface effects by injury time loss, injury mechanism, anatomical location of injury, and type of tissue injured. Higher incidences of 0-day time loss injuries, noncontact injuries, surface/epidermal injuries, muscle-related trauma, and injuries during higher temperatures were reported on FieldTurf. Higher incidences!
of 1- to 2-day time loss injuries, 22+ days time loss injuries, head and neural trauma, and ligament injuries were reported on natural grass.
Conclusions: Although similarities existed between FieldTurf and natural grass over a 5-year period of competitive play, both surfaces also exhibited unique injury patterns that warrant further investigation.
November 11th, 2009 at 8:59 am
Natalie,
God bless you - you are young and have staked out your favorite in Rachel - even when faced by the overwhelming performance of Zenyatta. And that’s okay - that’s what builds a legend - people who emotionally invest in them to the exclusion of all else - even facts.
Both Rachel and Zenyatta are totally deserving of HOY - if I had a vote, I’d choose Zenyatta, primarily because she - not Rachel - captured that essence of emotion that I haven’t seen since Secretariat came down the Belmont stretch. People wept with joy at Santa Anita last Saturday - not just the connections, not just some hard core fans - but the entire grandstand.
Despite her incredible season, Rachel didn’t move people to tears. Cheers - yes - absolutely. But no one I witnessed at Saratoga wept at her narrow all out win in the Woodward.
Where the heart invests - treasure will follow. That is an old development/fundraising axiom. It applies to racing and it’s ever waning hope to engender new fans. People invested with Barbaro because of tragedy. But on Saturday - people invested their hearts and souls into a giant mare who stirred the dreamers and fired imaginations with that most rare thing - perfection. Whether or not the vote goes her way - Zenyatta has surpassed just awards and become legend.
Oh - and one more thing - and this is the mistake so often made by youth - you need to check your facts before you send something to print.
Rachel did not set 7 stakes records this year or even across her career thus far. She has three speed records - the Golden Rod, the Martha Washington and the Mother Goose. Don’t try to slip “winning distance” against a batch of overmatched fillies into the mix if you are arguing horse of the year.
It’s a rookie mistake - learn from it and keep writing - the sport needs more passionate writers with heart - and you certainly fit the bill!
November 11th, 2009 at 9:21 am
While many people weigh in on Rachel vs Zenyatta, I’d like to turn the debate this direction: why can’t there be co-champs? HsOY? They’re both pretty amazing and we haven’t seen two horses like them in quite some time. Either of their camps can take a knock for staying put one way or the other. Why, yet again, split the industry in two? Share the love! Spread the goodness all around! Bring everyone to the table and feed them all!! There should not be a loser in this competition.
One other BC note — I propose 2 yos and sprinters (or turf horses) be highlighted on the Friday card and let’s give the ‘classic’ horses, both male and female, the spotlight on Saturday. I’ve worked in this industry (and others) for almost 30 years. I don’t think a *&%$ strip club is as sexist as this industry. Kudos to Paulick for giving a woman a voice. Now if we could only start making some of the decisions…
November 11th, 2009 at 9:26 am
Cgriff…she said 5 stakes records, not 7. Yeah, only the young have published material full of holes. Just ask Dan Rather.
November 11th, 2009 at 10:54 am
Cgriff, If charisma that moves fans to tears is your yardstick for measuring greatness, I was at Pimlico, Monmouth and Saratoga when Rachel Alexandra ran last summer. At Pimlico there were questions - and a lot of support for Mine That Bird. But I was standing on the rail at Monmouth as she came down the stretch and I can assure you that everyone around me was weeping as she crossed the finish line. I can’t vouch for the entire grandstand - I couldn’t see the entire grandstand - but I know what I saw and felt at the rail. I don’t know where you were sitting at Saratoga but not in the same section I was in, apparently. I was crying - everyone around me was crying, laughing, cheering. As tough a season as she’d had - she did it. She dug down and she won. Again.
I don’t doubt for a second that Zenyatta moved the Santa Anita grandstand to tears. I watched on TV and I was crying too. She was magnificent that day. But don’t forget that Zenyatta was a hometown girl delivering the performance of a lifetime to a hometown audience. It would have been surprising if emotion hadn’t overflow there.
Rachel Alexandra won race after race, month after month, all year long, against all comers. Zenyatta’s Classic was a revelation - she could have been beating the boys all year - like Rachel. But she stayed in California and ran only the other 4 races. I vote with Natalie.
November 11th, 2009 at 11:15 am
cgriff - I stood at the finish line at Saratoga and snapped photos of crying fans after the Woodward. The fans clapped RA from the winners circle and all the way back to the barn.
RA’s fans wore pink, held signs and all you could hear walking around the track before the race were people talking about “can she do it”…soon followed by, “I can’t believe she did it.”
I’d be happy with a tie but my vote goes to RA.
November 11th, 2009 at 2:14 pm
The Breeders’ Cup was created to help settle which horses were the best in the world.
Rachel didn’t show up. She’s out.
Rachel never beat males or females going 1 1/4. Champions win races at classic distances. Her connections had the option of running her in the Travers, but opted for the softer spot in the Woodward.
When Hal Wiggins trained her, she had fast works leading up to her races. When Assmussen got her, she started working two seconds slower, but still fired lights out when they loaded her into the gate. Her trainer is a notorious cheater. I doubt he stopped cheating when she came into his barn.
On top of what Zenyatta did this past saturday, what Life is Sweet did on friday validates Zenyatta even more.
FOR THE RECORD: JESS JACKSON WAS AN ADVOCATE FOR SYNTHETIC TRACKS AS A MEMBER OF THE THOROUGHBRED OWNERS OF CALIFORNIA (TOC) - HE WAS ONE OF THE PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR THOSE TRACKS BEING INSTALLED. HE NEEDS TO STOP ACTING SO SELF RIGHTEOUS ABOUT IT.
so he can stick that excuse in his whine bottle.
November 11th, 2009 at 4:58 pm
As far as I’m concerned Zenyatta is the queen of the sport and totally deserves HOY honors. Jess Jackson can blame synthetic tracks as much as he want’s for Rachel not coming to the Breeders’ Cup in 2009, but I think the real reason is they know she couldn’t win going the Classic distance of 1 1/4 miles. Heck Zenyatta wasn’t even blowing hard after beating the boys in the Classic. I feel so sorry for all of you who have only seen Zenyatta on TV, you are so missing out on the live experience of the real thing!
November 11th, 2009 at 7:46 pm
Natalie, congrats on your first published PR piece!
Of Zenyatta’s five wins this year, her supporters are pegging her Horse of the Year hopes on the BC Classic win. And it was a sensational win - no question about it.
Not much is really mentioned about her other four wins though. And you can’t base a HOY argument on one single race. After all, if we wanted to give the award to a horse that won a 1 1/4 mile race with an enormous purse against older horses, then Well Armed could stake his claim to the prize. And that simply won’t happen.
As a result, we must look at the entire 2009 season. Goldikova had a nice 2009 campaign. She has as many Grade or Group 1 wins against older males as Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra combined. But she has two losses, so it won’t be her.
Overall, RA has put together the best season as a whole. Her three wins against the boys this year, including that victory against older males in the Woodward, were simply awesome. She raced at several tracks in several states over the year, and beat everyone she faced.
If this great sport, in its great history, has ever witnessed a 3yo filly accomplishing over the course of a season what RA accomplished in 2009, then please tell me who it was.
The 2009 Horse of the Year Award should go to the Queen of Racing herself: Rachel Alexandra.
November 11th, 2009 at 9:14 pm
Nice article. In addition to what you have written, perhaps you should consider the following points:
1) You don’t have to smash the competition to be considered a champion. As I recall, no one doubted Affirmed’s greatness when his average margin of victory over Alydar in the TC was ~1/2 length… And Rachel’s 20 length “crushing” victory in the Oaks is no Secretariat in the Belmont if that’s what you’re getting at.
2) Zenyatta was the reigning Ladies’ Classic champion. All year long in fact. If you want to be the best, you can always go beat the best. I don’t think it’s the champion’s job to go find the challenger, I think the challenger needs to go find the champion. Don’t forget that as a 5yo, Zenyatta was not eligible to run in most of Rachel’s races. The converse is not true.
3) Zenyatta’s ‘other’ four races turned out not to be against such soft competition after all. Life is Sweet is now the reigning Ladies’ Classic Champion and a pretty darn good filly. Zenyatta beat her three times this year. Remember to add Life is Sweet to the impressive list of horses Zenyatta has beaten this year!
November 11th, 2009 at 9:21 pm
The fact is Rachel did not show up. She didn’t even want to run in The Ladies Classic. I think Life Is Sweet could have gave her a run for her money. Jess knew Rachel couldn’t win at a Mile and a Quarter and ducking the hard race for an easy race like The Travers, that was no easy race.Rachel barely won.Not giving The Horse Of The Year to Zenyatta would be like giving The World Series championship to The Dodgers and they weren’t even in The World Series, same thing. If you don’t show up for the championships. You don’t win. What they should do is have Co-Horses Of The Year because what each did ,could not be ignored at all. They have to have Co-Horses Of The Year. Would be the proper thing to do. Rachel was also the first female horse to win The Preakness in 100 years and no, we do not forget that amazing fact either. Co-Horses Of The Year.
November 11th, 2009 at 9:35 pm
Vicki, We only saw her on TV because she never left the state of CA! At least with RA, fans from various parts of the country got to see her because she ran over multiple tracks.
November 12th, 2009 at 10:11 am
Your blog is spot on. Rachel’s wins were more impressive, especially the Haskell. On slop she nearly set a track record. Her body of work throughout the year is far more impressive than Zenyatta’s. This is for HOY, not trainer of the year or horse of the BC. The years worth of races should be taken into account. I say Rachel for HOY.
November 12th, 2009 at 11:08 am
#1 i am not surprised that noelle & the newbe got on the same train.girls will be girls..
FROM MY PAST EXPERIENCE OF 60 PLUS YEARS OF BEING ON THE TRACKS..
I PREDICT>>>>> THERE WILL BE JOINT HORSE OF THE YEAR
————————————–
THATS NO SHOCK AS THERE HAS BEEN A NUMBER OF THEM IN THE PAST
November 12th, 2009 at 11:14 am
I am Praying both Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta Win Horse of the Year together. Kinda like “Sisters, that share things in Life”. They both are Awesome and Incredible. I can’t pick only one to be the winner of HOY. I Love them Both
You Go Girls !!
November 12th, 2009 at 6:59 pm
Please, can anyone not see the light? Is it really just about how many races against males that Rachael won? Or the prestige of the race’s name? Does the quality of competition absolutely mean nothing in deciding HOY honors? If it doesn’t, maybe I should find a different game. One I’ve been playing all the way back to Secretariat and Ruffian. Rachael Alexandra in three races against males faced and beat 4 total Grade 1 winning male’s. Mine That Bird in the Preakness, and what a joke he’s been exposed as. Summer Bird in the Haskell, which is by far the best horse she’s beaten. And Macho Again, Bullsbay in the Woodward. Both respectable colt’s, but not quite championship caliber. Macho Again 20-6-6-0 lifetime and Bullsbay 3 wins, 1 place, and 1 show in ten races dating back to September 2008. Not exactly, with the exception of Summer Bird, what one would call world class caliber. Zeyatta dove right in to the deep end of the pool, never having raced the boy’s, never having run 1-1/4, all the while the pressure of keeping an unbeaten record in tact. She in one race, faced, raced, and beat more Grade 1 winning male’s, most were multiple Grade 1 winners, than Rachael Alexandra has ever or will likely ever face in races in the rest of her racing career. Jess Jackson, on YouTube, making comments post-Preakness, was ask about facing Zenyatta. “I hope they do race” he said. “I’m an entrepreneur and believe in taking chances. I believe champions should race champions”. That’s Jess Jackson’s remark’s caught on camera after the 09′ Preakness. Where were those beliefs on Saturday. He also spoke of “raising the bar” in that clip. Well I’d say Zenyatta was the one who raised the bar, not Rachael. If it is really just about the numbers, then Rachael could probably go on beating one Grade 1 winner with the field rounded out by allowance company males per race forever. Or if it is really just about the prestige of a race’s name, then why is the quality of competition that one faces not a factor. Because in this case, it’s simple numbers winning out over quality of competition. Ask yourself this, if this year’s Breeders Cup Classic had been run back east on conventional dirt, Churchill Downs, Belmont, Saratoga or Monmouth. And you ask Jess Jackson to race his filly against 8 Grade 1 Stakes winning male’s, the best racing currently in the world, plus Zenyatta do you really think his filly would have been in the starting gate? Doubtful. And even if she were, do you really think Zenyatta could have closed on a field of competitors that strong like she did and not have passed Rachael as well? Doubtful. If there’s ever a case that the quality of competition a horse has faced and beaten should override the number of races a horse has faced and beaten this year cries out for that. After her performance against the world’s best on the industries biggest stage on Saturday, if Zenyatta is denied HOY honors it will be absolutely CRIMINAL and will forever be a DARK STAIN on the thoroughbred racing industry people who decide HOY honors. Period, end of statement !!!
November 12th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
What a year! It would be incredible if there could be co-HOYs this year, but let’s look at a couple of things:
Zenyatta has raced in several handicap races, once carrying 129 lbs. (the highest weight in several years) and giving up to 18 pounds to her rivals. She was giving weight to all the 3 year olds in the Classic (one pound, but still giving weight) and ran by all of them, older males too, with her ears pricked - after “stopping to pose” in mid-stretch (according to Smith) AND running the last mile of a mile-and-a-quarter race FASTER than the winner of the BC Mile. Before the race, it was called one of the deepest fields in Classic history, and the “experts” gave her little chance of winning, but win she did, and with style. She only goes as fast as she needs to, but she also holds a track record at Del Mar at 1-1/16, which is not her best distance. Her performance in last years’ Apple Blossom, only her 4th race, proved she can run on dirt as well, as she destroyed the BC distaff winner from the year before, winning going away. Her trainer says she’s even better on dirt - that’s a scary thought!
I love Rachel! She had an outstanding year as well, one of the best ever for a 3yo filly, but she only raced in weight-for-age, and always got at least five pounds from her male rivals, and in all but the Woodward only in her age group. She was all out in the Woodward, and just barely won against what really was a “B” team of older horses, getting eight pounds from them; but win she did, at her best distance of a mile and an eighth. She’s primarily a front-runner which is more spectacular to many, but in her races against the colts they’ve been gaining on her. She’s undefeated this year, and that says a lot. If not for Zenyatta’s perfection, it’s Rachel’s hands down. If you consider the whole handicap/weight issue and running in open races vs age restricted, that tips the scales to Zenyatta in my mind. She came, she saw, and wow did she conquer.
November 12th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
ktq, I don’t know how Rachael got this “world traveler” tag laid on her. After coming home from Maryland in the Preakness, where else did she go other than New York and New Jersey. Not exactly a cross country trip. As big as California is, I’d almost bet that the total distance traveled between Hollywood, Santa Anita, and Del Mar park’s is about as much as from Monmouth to Saratoga. Probably not quite, but you see my point. She stayed primarily in the New York area herself after the Preakness. And the gentleman above who said that Zenyatta was the reigning champion. It’s the challenger’s job to seek out the champion is absolutely correct. Zenyatta didn’t have to leave California because she was the champion. She’s proven worthy on dirt as well if you’ll remember beating a super group of fillies at Oaklawn in 2008 headed by Ginger Punch. A champion in her own right. Zenyatta sought her out, raced her, and beat her. That’s the thing about Jess Jackson that I don’t like. He play’s that synthetic card too much after we all had already seen Rachael race and win quite easily over the surface at Keenland when she was with her previous owner. He constantly uses Curlin losing over the surface as an excuse to not race Rachael over it. If you’re looking to beat the best, you’ve got to be willing to race both surfaces. Like it or not, synthetics are likely here to stay. Zenyatta, at least, in her career has raced over dirt and raced champion fillies in doing so.
November 12th, 2009 at 7:39 pm
Natalie Voss, I don’t know what you were doing before you started interning for the Paulick Report, but maybe you should consider going back to that job. First of all, Rachael beat males three times, most of which were in the Classic. You sure dropped the ball on that one. Of the entire Classic field, only Mine That Bird and Summer Bird are on Rachael’s resume’. And personally, I feel that the 09′ Classic has done an excellent job of exposing Mine That Bird for exactly what he is. A Grade 3 Stakes horse at best. He’s one of those horses that won the biggest race he ever has or ever will win in the Kentucky Derby by it being absolutely a fluke. He’s done nothing since then but completely regress in his career. And making the statement that a front runner smashing her competition is more impressive than a horse that can spot a field like the Classic a good 15 lengths and then make that up and blow past them like a runaway locomotive. I’m not sure how long you’ve been following thoroughbred racing, but for a deep closing horse like Zenyatta to still have an undefeated recorded without coming up short once in making up all those lengths, to me that’s much more impressive than one who either is on or stalks the pace then opens up to pull away. That’s much more common in racing than Zenyatta’s style imo.
November 12th, 2009 at 9:49 pm
John Horton, Jr.: Had you read Ray’s intro, you would have noticed that Natalie is a University of Kentucky student. Therefore, you would have known what she was doing prior to interning for the Paulick Report: she’s a student.
And nobody is discounting Zenyatta’s win in the BC Classic. It was awesome. We get that. It was a smashing, sensational, sizzling victory. Very, very exciting to say the least.
But of Zenyatta’s five races this year, her backers are basing their HOY opinions based on that one race. They barely, if ever, mention her other four races this year. Now, other than being the first female to ever win the BC Classic, I’m not sure that there is anything she did in 2009 which hasn’t been done before. While it certainly doesn’t happen all the time, mares have beaten older horses in Grade or Group 1 company before. Doesn’t happen all the time, but it does happen. In fact, Goldikova did it twice this year.
And yes, Zenyatta beat a deep field in the Classic. But we can’t pretend that beating Gio Ponti and Rip Van Winkle on the pro-ride is the same as beating them on turf.
What Rachel Alexandra did this year is unprecedented for a 3yo filly. Seriously, if there is another 3yo filly with RA’s level of accomplishments in this sport’s history, please let me know. Her Preakness was awesome. She chased Big Drama through fast early fractions and still was able to hold off a fast-closing Mine That Bird. Ridicule Mine That Bird all you want, but on dirt, he’s a good closer. As far as his performance Saturday, who knows, maybe he’s not what he was prior to the surgery.
Her Haskell in the slop was also another fantastic performance. Then, she stepped out of her division even more by facing older males in the Woodward and defeating them. Seriously, when has a 3yo filly ever done anything like this before?
Zenyatta has had a great career. Can’t do much better than 14-for-14. But nine of those races occured prior to this year, so we can’t really factor those in too much. It’s not a lifetime achievement award we’re debating, it’s Horse of the Year. And no horse had a better year, in my humble opinion, than Rachel Alexandra.
Natalie: Again, great piece. Don’t let these kinds of comments bother you. Keep up the good work.
November 12th, 2009 at 9:58 pm
John Horton Jr. …. I wish rather than hurling an insult toward an aspiring young journalist like Natalie Voss who happens to love Thoroughbred racing, you would respectfully disagree with her point of view. It’s not that hard to disagree without being disagreeable.
November 13th, 2009 at 2:49 am
I think you can summarize their respective years in the following manner:
Number of Wins: Rachel, 8-5. Rachel won 5 Gr.I + 2 Gr.II. Zenyatta won 4 Gr.I + 1 Gr.II
Prestigious Races: Rachel, 3-1. Rachel won the Preakness, Haskell, and Woodward. Zenyatta the BC Classic.
Beating the Boys: Rachel, 3-1. See above. Note: Preakness and Haskell for 3yo’s.
Margin of Victory: Well, I don’t think much of this measure at all. It should be noted that Rachel’s much touted 20+ length victory in the Oaks was against mostly G3 / Allowance competition. E.g. the 2nd place finisher Stone Legacy actually dropped down to a *Claiming* race in August. But if it matters, then Rachel.
‘Other’ Victories (not against the boys): Zenyatta. She beat Life is Sweet three times this year. This filly would win 2 Gr.I’s (incl. the 2009 Ladies’ Classic) and 2 Gr.II’s. LIS also finished 3rd in the Hollywood Gold Cup (against the boys). In contrast, Rachel beat a future Gr.I winner and some Gr.III winners.
Impressive Horses Beat: Zenyatta. She beat Mine That Bird, Summer Bird, Gio Ponti, Rip Van Winkle, Colonel John, and Einstein–not to mention Life is Sweet. Rachel beat Mine That Bird and Summer Bird. Pioneer of the Nile *might* have been pretty good. The other TC colts may develop down the line–only time will tell.
Munnings, Bullsbay, Macho Again, and Asiatic Boy are kind of iffy. Yes, I realize MA and AB beat Einstein in the Stephen Foster this year but I don’t think anyone seriously rates them as better horses overall.
So there you have it. On paper, Rachel has the sheer numbers and the prestigious races. Closer inspection shows Zenyatta beat better horses. Who’s HOY? I guess it depends how heavily you weigh each of the factors above.
In the final accounting, a case could be made either way–with probably a slight edge to Rachel in fact.
But here’s how I look at it. Zenyatta is the defending Eclipse Champion Older Female. She is also the defending Ladies’ Classic winner. Zenyatta beat the future 2009 Ladies’ Classic winner all year long. Finally, she went on to win the boys Classic herself. Where was the challenge from Rachel Alexandra while all this was happening?
Zenyatta–by a nose.
November 13th, 2009 at 5:49 pm
Josh said: “Seriously, if there is another 3yo filly with RA’s level of accomplishments in this sport’s history, please let me know. ”
Busher -10 for 13 from May to October 1945 - the year when there was no racing until May due to WWII. Only her first two races that year were restricted to 3 year old fillies. She began beating the 3 year old boys third time out and beat the older girls in her fourth race and several more times after that, and won carrying top weight when weight actually meant something- and there were fewer weight-for-age events than there are now. Later that year she beat older males twice and that included Armed, himself a champion, setting a track record at 1-1/4 miles in the Washington Park Handicap. Often her assigned weight in those handicaps wiped out the “gender allowance” she was entitled to. Her losses occurred when she gave weight to the winners, sometimes quite a bit of it. She was HOY in 1945. Just about the only thing not on her resume was a Triple Crown race, but in that fractured year of 1945 that is not a glaring omission. Injured that October, she was unable to return to form after sitting out her 4 year old year, losing her only race at five. Busher’s three year old season stands right up there with the best by any three year old, regardless of gender, in the history of the sport. I pulled this information from Wikipedia, National Racing Hall of Fame, and BloodHorse’s Top 100 Thoroughbred Champions of the 20th Century.
November 13th, 2009 at 7:26 pm
Laura: Thank you! That is some serious research. But even after all of that, I am still with Rachel Alexandra. But I must say the debate with everyone on here has been interesting and enjoyable. And I am sure it will continue. What a year!
November 13th, 2009 at 9:25 pm
rachael did indeed set track records while gearing down!! does anyone here think that zenyatta would have run in the classic if not for rachael throwing the first three punches? i love both of these champs but we are talking about a three yro that raced almost double the races that the 5 yro mare raced.rachael wasn’t ducking anybody..i give her connections kudos for giving her much needed rest.
why do some have to demean one or the other? we will never know who would beat who in a match race.. after ruffian i hope i never ever see another match race..
rachael beat a lot of grade 1’s at a few different tracks.zenyatta never left the comfort of her home..okay once but not this year.zenyatta ran down the boys but rach did it three times..i guess you know who i am going with..
rachael alexandra the great!
November 21st, 2009 at 3:37 pm
I loved your article its pretty much spot on. Here is what my 1 point is for the Zenyatta fans. When comparing their records and the significance of the races they won. Let’s take 1 important race away from the equation for both horses. The Haskell, Preakness or the Woodward, or even the Kentucky Oaks could be removed from the equation for Rachel and the Campaign is soooooo impressive. On the Flip side if you take away Zenyatta’s BCC win what are you left with. Oh yeah a all out nose win against an allowance horse named Anabaa’s Creation. Wow that is impressive, I would love for the Zenyatta lovers to answer that question.
November 23rd, 2009 at 12:25 am
AAForever,
Well, you can’t really takeaway races or wins can you? If you could Mine That Bird wouldn’t attract crowds where ever he goes. 2nd in the Preakness and 3rd in the Belmont is not the same as the ‘Kentucky Derby Winner’ !
But more importantly, takeaway Touch Gold’s tremendous stretch drive in the ‘97 Belmont and suddenly Silver Charm might be one of the top 25 horses of all time–not languishing away at #63. Where would Smarty Jones be if not for Birdstone in ‘04? Point Given if not for Monarchos’ Secretariat-esque Derby run? I could go on but surely you will admit ‘point given’ ?
Yet suppose for a moment we play your takeaway game. You propose we takeaway a $5 million race with what some call the deepest field of horses assembled this year. Then Zenyatta is left with just 4 races, 3 of which she beat the eventual 2009 BC Ladies Classic champion, Life is Sweet.
Now we takeaway Rachel’s most impressive victory. It’s a tough call, because if you look closely at the fields, none were very deep. But takeaway the Haskell because Summer Bird is arguably the best horse she’s run against this year. Rachel is left with the Preakness (Mine That Bird and Pioneer of the Nile), and the Woodward (Macho Again, Bullsbay, and Asiatic Boy).
Yes, in this takeaway game, Rachel Alexandra wins. But I don’t think it’s as dominating a victory as you might have imagined. And if you think I’ve left out the Oaks… well, let’s just say beating future claimer Stone Legacy by 20+ lengths doesn’t even rate. It is no accident I’ve left it out.
But now we put the race back in. Suddenly Zenyatta has won the BCC, beaten MTB, Summer Bird, Gio Ponti, Rip Van Winkle, Colonel John, and Einstein–all in the same race! You put Rachel’s Haskell back in and she has additionally beaten Summer Bird.
hmmm…
p.s. takeaway Victory Gallop’s nose and Real Quiet is Triple Crown Champion.