Case The Race - Breeders Cup Ladies Classic

By Emily Shields

Review

As expected, heavily favored Zenyatta made a mockery of the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Ladies Classic (gr. I) on Friday. The massive dark bay mare thundered to an impressive 1 1/2 length win over Cocoa Beach and Music Note under a hand ride from jockey Mike Smith. Finishing the mile and an eighth in 1:46.85, Zenyatta ended her season an undefeated nine for nine lifetime.

Zenyatta’s CASE numbers far surpassed those of her rivals. The Street Cry filly had the highest Stride Quality rating, the highest overall average rating, the highest average in her last race, and co-owned the highest Coordination rating.

The Ladies Classic played to form, with the favorite winning, third choice running second, fourth choice finishing third, and second choice ending up fourth. The exacta only paid $6.70. John Shirreffs trains the winner for owners Jerry and Ann Moss.

Prerace Analysis

Some of the most spectacular mares to ever set foot on the racetrack have won the Breeders’ Cup Ladies Classic (gr. I) – previously known as the Distaff. Run at 1 1/8 miles on the main track and worth $2 million, this year’s edition of the race is one of the most highly anticipated races of not only the weekend, but of the year.

The undefeated filly Zenyatta headlines the race after a perfect season. The daughter of Street Cry will be heavily bet, and for good reason. Under the conditioning of patient trainer John Shirreffs, Zenyatta has never lost in eight starts, including three grade 1 races, and has already defeated three other horses in the field of eight. Zenyatta has the most “black type” in her CASE numbers, including the co-highest Coordination rating at 81 (in two separate races), the highest Stride Quality rating at 96, and the highest overall average at 90.8.

The only horse whose numbers rival Zenyatta’s are those of the race’s defending champion, Ginger Punch, who also has an 81 for Coordination and scored a whopping 109 for Aerobic Efficiency last out. Although Zenyatta soundly defeated Ginger Punch in their only meeting back at Oaklawn Park in April, many believe that trainer Bobby Frankel has Ginger Punch primed for a top effort. The daughter of Awesome Again, who won the 1998 Breeders’ Cup Classic, won four straight races, including three straight grade 1s, after the loss to Zenyatta. In the Beldame Stakes (gr. 1) at Belmont Park in the slop on September 27, Ginger Punch fought gamely down the stretch and just narrowly missed to Cocoa Beach at the wire.

Cocoa Beach (Chi) is the wise guy horse for this race after a blistering workout on Santa Anita’s Pro Ride surface earlier this week. The Doneraile Court filly started a remarkable career in Chile with four straight wins, including two by over nine lengths. The dark bay was purchased by the world famous Godolphin Racing operation and traveled from South America to Dubai, where Cocoa Beach won the UAE 1000 Guineas by over 5 lengths, the UAE Oaks by 6 lengths, and then finished an impressive third in the UAE Derby (gr. II) against a full field of colts. Shipped to America to continue the year, Cocoa Beach ran away with a listed stakes race at Saratoga before her defeat of Ginger Punch. Cocoa Beach also ran an 81 CASE rating for Coordination last out.

Music Note, Cocoa Beach’s talented stablemate, is another filly that could upset Zenyatta. Five wins in seven starts pad Music Note’s record, and the daughter of A.P. Indy is making a bid to be Eclipse Champion Three Year Old Filly. Her only loss this year came at the hands of division leader Proud Spell by only a head in the Alabama (gr. I) at Saratoga; otherwise the filly has been untouchable with grade 1 wins by 8 1/2 and 11 lengths.

Carriage Trail and Hystericalady round out the list of Ladies Classic contenders. Carriage Trail is something of a synthetic specialist, coming off a record-setting performance in Keeneland’s Spinster Stakes (gr. I). In any other year, Hystericalady would be heavily favored in the Ladies Classic, given that the Distorted Humor mare has won four of six races this year and just missed to Ginger Punch in last year’s Breeders’ Cup, but Zenyatta thrashed Hystericalady in the Lady’s Secret on September 27^th at Oak Tree. Multiple graded stakes winner Bear Now and Santa Teresita, a longshot who actually has the highest Endurance rating in the field at 101, complete the star studded field.