Blame (right) beats Zenyatta in the Classic at Churchill Downs

  PICTURE: Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)  

Blame denies Zenyatta Hollywood ending

WORLD CLASS: an analysis of the international scene according to RacingPost Ratings

FOR those who have become used to the sleek, formulaic stories produced in her home town of Hollywood, a first defeat for Zenyatta on her 20th and most important start was unthinkable.

It might be the way Mike Leigh would convey bitter reality in a sepia-toned British drama and it would certainly fit into some unfathomable and disturbing world created by David Lynch, but this seemed an entirely unsuitable ending for the fairytale of Zenyatta, with a target audience of pre-teen girls. Her arguably unlucky second-placing was a most unwelcome addition to a hitherto flawless careerrecord and it was received with a reserved disbelief by all but a handful of the huge Churchill Downs crowd.

The loss of an unbeaten record is not for recapturing. There are no do-overs. As soon as Zenyatta passed the line a head behind Blame she dropped off that exclusive list of undefeated horses, never to return. The crowd was stunned. What had happened? The reality of defeat hit home in a flash. Answers were needed. How could we attain closure on the back of a loss? This was the girl who can't lose . . . Couldn't lose.

By the time Mike Smith optimistically asked Garrett Gomez who had won, the autopsy had already begun. A case could bemade that, with only a head separating her from Blame, fractionally different timings from Smith might have delivered a different result.

On the face of it, his ride looked outlandish. Zenyatta even appeared set to pull-up passing thewinning post for the first time, languishing 20-lengths off the hot pace. But Smith can't take full responsibility for the defeat, as Mine That Bird won the Kentucky Derby round here under an almost identical ride and the 20-length gap was exacerbated bythe four scalded cats who tore off in front and eventually filled the last five places (along with rank outsider Pleasant Prince).

Ignoring the four who set the pace, this was, in the most part, a conventional Zenyatta-style performance. She rolled out of the stalls in her own time. She was detached early, but not by an unattainable distance. She gradually closed on the main pack, latched on the back, and as they turned for home she was cruising, just waiting to pounce. The only slight differences before the home bend were that she did not travel with quite the fluidity she normally achieves in the early stages and Smith suggested she didn't appreciate the kickback – something she has seldom hadto face, having raced on dirt just twice before.

But this was her time to shine. It was the final two furlongs of the race. The two furlongs in which she has made a name for herself. No matter what had gone on up to that point, she was the fastest finisher in the game, she was within striking distance and at the top of the stretch she looked ready to rock and roll.

Smith found a relatively trouble-free passage to the outside and with 300 yards to go he struck daylight, a clean path to the line, and she let down in pursuit of Blame. What happened next was an unforgettable moment that will be replayed for years to come, not only on broadcast media, but in the minds of everyone who saw it. On occasion you'll watch it back and think she's going to get up, but the result never changes.

This was a strong renewal of the Breeders' Cup Classic. All the best dirt horses in America featured and it produced an above average winner, and, for that matter, an above average runner-up. Blame had proved himself a progressive horse in the top division this season and on Saturday he climbed the final pass to the top of the handicapping ranks with an RPR of 131.

Zenyatta, in receipt of a 3lb mares' allowance, matched her previous best ease-adjusted RPR of 128+ from last year's Classic. On the raw figures, this was the best performance of her life. Visually, ditto. Could she rate higher? Quite possibly. Could she have won on Saturday? Quite probably. Did she come up against a good one? Most certainly. Will she finally receive the Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year? Indubitably. Will her fans ever get over this defeat? Eventually. But what exactly is the moral of the tale of Zenyatta? Well, unlikethe glittering Disney ending that was anticipated, some yarns just end like this.

Perhaps Zenyatta's story tells us that winning is not everything. The narrative of her life certainly includes much more than just her near unfaltering ability to win. Indeed, her most important success probably came off the track, as she single-handedly revived the flagging interest in US racing – building up a following the sport's rulers can only hope is retained on her retirement. She gained fans around the world with her charm and style. She achieved emotional investment from people previously unassociated with the sport. As a showgirl, she danced for the crowd. As a female in racing, she was a bastion for the under-represented sex, coolydefeating the boys in her first Breeders' Cup Classic and narrowly failing in her second.

As a media superstar she had her own popular website, earned tens of thousands of followers on social networking sites, featured in CBS's 60 Minutes and on Oprah Winfrey's 'Power List' of influential women. She exceeded everything expected of a racehorse. And with all of that achieved she moves on to pastures new.

The conclusion to her story does not offer instant closure, butperhaps that means it is one to ponder. Though the tight finish to the Classic ultimately left the result in the hands of fate, the winning or losing at Churchill Downs should not really matter to her legion of fans, because this was more than just the ending to an over-simplified movie. It was real life. Emotional and unforgettable. And it begs the question, what is more important: an unbeaten record or touching the lives of so many?

No matter how the race played out, the winner, had it not been Zenyatta, was always bound to play a bit part in the post race analysis, but Blame's connections won't be worried about that. They could not have asked for more publicity for this race, or for his gutsy victory, and his immediate retirement from racing ensured plenty of attention on his impending stud career. He's tough, consistent, has a great winning record and he hails from one of the most important dam-lines in racing, his third dam being Special, dam of Sadler's Wells. There's no need to worry about Blame. He'll do all right.

In the big turf races of the night, the Mile and the Turf, European raiders Goldikova (125) and Dangerous Midge (121) needed only to run to this season's best RPRs to come out on top.

The tight seven furlong oval at Churchill Downs is not conducive to producing world class performances. It is just too tight for horses to maintain a good rhythm at a decent pace – as a point of reference,Chester is a mile around.

Paco Boy had trouble with the tightness of the turns, being unable to handle the final bend in the Mile and dropping back to last before running on again in the straight, while Behkabad was unable to find a comfortable stride during the many turns of the Turf before failing to quicken from a crawl in the sprint up the short straight.

This style of turf racing is entirely unlike that which top class Europeans are used to and the real assetsrequired here are an ability to handle tight tracks and a killer turn of foot – a necessity for the inevitable sprints to the line.

Goldikova now holds the record for Breeders' Cup wins (3) and the European record for Group/Grade 1 race victories (12). She is also the holder of the highest rating for a filly or mare in RPR history, having posted a 131 for that amazing six-length success in last year's Prix Jacques Le Marois.

TOP OF THE CLASS: Blame 131 Al Stall Jnr (US) (Breeders' Cup Classic, Churchill Downs, 1m2f, November 6)

Overall World Top Ten

Top Dirt Performers

Top Turf Performers

Top AW Performers

Comments

Log in to post comment

Show all comments