She lost to Rachel Alexandra last year. This year's vote, announced in January, will come down to Blame vs. But she had her shot to get by, and she didn't do it. So I don't think you can vote for her. Zenyatta's 19 consecutive wins tied her for most all-time with Peppers Pride, who retired last year after running against much lesser competition.
Peppers Pride never raced outside New Mexico and all her wins came against fillies and mares. It was just two very good horses, and everybody talked about it coming down to these two for a long time.
We were fortunate to have the right horse on the right day at the right time. We're real proud of her. She tried hard, she's the greatest. Upset -- like Blame, another aptly named winner -- beat the unbeaten Man o'War; Triple Crown winner Secretariat was beaten; and Cigar won 16 in a row, but couldn't pull out one more. During the two-day Breeders' Cup championships, American horses earned 12 victories while Europe-based horses won twice.
In the Juvenile Turf, Rough Sailing was euthanized after breaking a major bone in his upper leg when he slipped and fell going into the first turn.
Jockey Rosie Napravnik wasn't hurt. Skip to main content Skip to navigation. Streak ends: Zenyatta loses by a head to Blame. The winners Michigan, Cincy and losers oh, Texas! Florida Gators. KU stuns Texas on walk-on's winning 2-point grab. Kansas Jayhawks. Sources: OBJ may return punts in Rams debut. San Francisco 49ers: NFL betting lines, odds and how to watch. Not because he beat Oklahoma. All Sections. About Us. B2B Publishing. Business Visionaries. Hot Property.
Times Events. Times Store. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options. Zenyatta nuzzles newborn Cozmic One in March, By John Cherwa Special Contributor. John Cherwa. Follow Us twitter instagram email facebook. More From the Los Angeles Times. Chargers Chargers vs. He's thoughtful; this morning, as he walks over to watch horses train, he describes the romantic dichotomy of dawn at a race track: the pastoral grunt of the horses, the groaning sounds of beer kegs and clanging grandstand doors as a concrete monster awakens.
He loves that contradiction, even sees some of himself in it, a man who loves nature and technology, who has a photo of Zenyatta on the back of his iPad. My point being, he's not prone to flights of fancy. He's not someone who falsettos after seeing Justin Bieber, and even he turns into a starstruck teenager over his horse. It amazes me how Zenyatta always adds something positive to the day. He's a man in love.
He's at work early this morning, like every morning. After winning the Kentucky Derby with Giacomo, he flew back to Los Angeles on the Mosses' Gulfstream jet, drinking Cristal and eating off fine china; the next morning he dragged himself to the barn.
His life is a rhythm of horses, young ones arriving from the farm, old ones returning to the farm. The cycle is one of the things he understands best, and yet, something feels different now. Zenyatta is leaving soon, and there's no Zenyatta coming to replace her. He looks around at Hollywood Park, this old condemned relic of another time, and gets nostalgic. How many times has she galloped around this track? You'll need to keep this in mind as you listen to her fans and handlers talk about her.
Shirreffs' time in the Army taught him to use his brain, not his heart. It taught him to follow orders, to do what the head trainer said when he was an assistant, and what the owners said when he went out on his own. His first job showed him a painful lesson. The yearlings arrived and, as a groom, part of his day was spent brushing them. He wanted his horse to shine, to be perfect.
He came to love the animal, obsessing over every detail, from September to March, when, one day, a van pulled up and the horse rode away. Shirreffs learned that all horses eventually leave. Zenyatta was born on April Fool's Day. She arrived at auction with a skin disease; most people didn't want anything to do with the gangly filly. He bought the horse for the Mosses. The reports soon came out of the farm: You've either got one amazing horse or a lot of really bad ones.
None of the boys or other girls could keep up with Zenyatta. The horse was big, with long limbs and unformed muscles. She needed, as Jerry Moss puts it, a stonecutter. She got John Shirreffs. He stood by her stall and saw the power, all muscle and potential. An idea began to form in his subconscious: She is the one. A month or so later, he brought a friend to see her.
The wins came early and often. Zenyatta never lost, developing a style: running from the back of the pack. She won the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic.
Last year, she again won every race, and, at the end, the Mosses entered her in the Breeder's Cup Classic. The three Triple Crown races might be the most famous, but to horsemen, the Classic is the biggest. She stayed there for the first half of the Classic, finally moving up a bit, 10 or 11 lengths behind the leaders. Next-to-last place. Click here for full coverage of the Breeders' Cup , including Zenyatta's arrival at Churchill Downs, a blog from jockey Mike Smith and analysis of the draw for the Classic.
Jockey Mike Smith picked up the reins. That's all he has to do. The horse is responsive, ready. Tighten just a bit and she's gone. Her strides are so long, she moves like a jump-cut movie. Horses are in front and, zoom, zoom, they're not. There's a famous photo of an opposing jockey looking behind him moments after Zenyatta passes. You can feel her hit a gear. When she hits one, you're like, whoa. He began looking for a hole, easing the horse to the right. With a horse like Zenyatta, it's almost like skiing.
To turn, you mostly just need to think about turning. The fans rose to their feet. The pitch of the announcer's voice rose, too: "If she wins this, she'll be a superhorse. Smith could feel the power, legs hitting like pistons. Zenyatta swung outside, which is big-race suicide. It's simple math: more ground to cover as ground becomes the most precious and nonrenewable resource. Everyone leaned into the rail, but Zenyatta went all the way wide, steadily accelerating.
The sound of the hooves was like thunder. These were the best race horses in the world, giving everything they had.
Most were slowing down. Not Zenyatta. She took the lead, and nearing the line, she was getting faster; Smith says she's never been full speed. Nobody was catching Zenyatta. Not today. The television reporters found Shirreffs by the rail, trying not to cry, a tough Vietnam vet looking up at the crowd and gushing "I love everyone here. One we'll never forget! That's no joke. Watch the clip. We've embedded it here. It will make your heart pound when the horse makes her move, and if you feel like that watching it a year later, imagine how Jerry Moss felt in the moments after?
Well, blood pumping, Moss went into the press conference with his wife and John and Dottie. He was flying. What more could the horse prove? A funk spread over Barn The horse writers wrote the eulogies, and the owners celebrated a perfect career, but down in the shadow of exercise track, Shirreffs felt rudderless.
One day, Moss went out to see his horses. He noticed the new feeling in the barn. When he got home, he told Ann that John seemed sad. Soon everyone started in on Jerry. Ann pointed out that Zenyatta didn't look tired. Dottie made sure to mention, "You know how cold it is in Kentucky?
She never failed to finish powerfully. Shirreffs attributed the slow start to her concerns with a starting gate that could barely contain her massive frame. Shirreffs was criticized for racing her largely in California, which then featured synthetic surfaces.
In taking her first 19 starts, Zenyatta passed Cigar , Citation and Mister Frisky — all winners of 16 races in a row — in the North American record books for most consecutive victories in the modern era in races not restricted to state-breds. She later equaled Peppers Pride for the modern North American record for consecutive wins with 19, a record subsequently broken by Rapid Redux.
She provided a fitting encore the following year by becoming the only female to win the Classic for Mike Smith , who replaced David Flores as her rider for her final 17 starts. It was not to be. She endured an exceptionally slow start, even for her. Shirreffs estimated that it took her at least an eighth of a mile to find any rhythm. Later in the race, she swerved when Quality Road hesitated in front of her. Her mighty charge down the stretch left her a beat behind Blame at the finish line.
Zenyatta and her groom Mario Espinoza were constant companions during her racing career. Eclipse Sportswire.
0コメント