|
Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Meadowlands
Posts: 1,908
|
ThoroughbredZone’s Best Of 2009 | Rachel Alexandra & Zenyatta Both Horse Of The Year
ThoroughbredZone’s Best of 2009
2-Year-Old Colt – Lookin at Lucky is ThoroughbredZone’s top 2-year-old colt of 2009. Lookin at Lucky was a three time Grade I winner in 2009. He just missed winning The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (GI) at Santa Anita running second to Godolphin’s Vale of York in a very tight finish. Noble’s Promise had a fine year and was runner-up to Lookin at Lucky in The Cash Call Futurity (GI) at Hollywood Park and finished third behind Lookin at Lucky in The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (GI). Buddy’s Saint won all three of his career starts in 2009—including The Remsen (GII) at Aqueduct and The Nashua (GII) at Aqueduct. D’ Funnybone won The Saratoga Special (GI) at Saratoga and The Futurity (GII) at Belmont Park.
2-Year-Old Filly – She Be Wild is ThoroughbredZone’s top 2-year-old filly of 2009. She Be Wild was a winner four times in her five career starts in 2009. She was The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Filly (GI)winner. Blind Luck was a two-time Grade I winner in 2009. Blind Luck captured The Oak Leaf (GI) at Santa Anita and The Hollywood Starlet (GI) at Hollywood Park. Hot Dixie Chick won The Schuylerville (GIII) at Saratoga and The Spinaway (GI) at Saratoga.
3-Year-Old Colt – Summer Bird is ThoroughbredZone’s top 3-year-old colt in 2009. Summer Bird had a solid 2009 campaign. A year that included wins in The Belmont Stakes (GI) at Belmont Park, The Travers Stakes (GI) at Saratoga and The Jockey Club Gold Cup (GI) at Belmont Park. He ran second to Rachel Alexandra in The Haskell (GI) at Monmouth Park and was a solid fourth in The Breeder’s Cup Classic behind Zenyatta. Speedy Quality Road was plagued by quarter crack issues in 2009 that forced him to miss The Kentucky Derby. He came back to break two track records at Gulfstream Park in The Florida Derby (GI) and Saratoga in The Amsterdam (GII). Blame surged late in the season to win The Fayette Stakes (GII) at Keeneland and The Clark (GII) at Churchill Downs. Pioneer of the Nile won Robert Lewis (GII), The San Felipe (GII) and The Santa Anita Derby (GI) all at Santa Anita Park.
3-Year-Old Filly – Rachel Alexandra is ThoroughbredZone’s top 3-year-old filly in 2009. She put together one of the most impressive campaigns of any 3-year-old filly in history. She was a perfect 8 for 8 and defeated colts on three separate occasions in 2009—The Preakness Stakes (GI) at Pimlico, The Haskell (GI) at Monmouth Park and the Woodward (GI) at Saratoga. Careless Jewel was a winner five times in her seven races in 2009. She won The Delaware Oaks (GII) at Delaware Park and The Alabama (GI) at Saratoga. Flashing was two-time Grade I winner in 2009—winning The Test (GI) at Saratoga and The Gazelle (GI) at Belmont Park.
Fillies And Mares 4 and Up – Zenyatta is ThoroughbredZone’s 2009 Top older female. She capped her perfect career by winning The Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI) at Santa Anita with a stunning last to first move—becoming the first mare in history to win the race. She was five for five in 2009, which included four Grade I wins. Zenyatta won The Vanity Handicap (GI) at Hollywood Park, The Clement L. Hirsch (GI) at Del Mar, The Ladies Secret (GI) at Hollywood Park. She will retire with a perfect record of 14 wins in 14 races. Simply put—she was super again in 2009. Life is Sweet was able to break through finally with the absence of Zenyatta by winning The Breeders’ Cup Ladies Classic (GI) with a strong effort. Music Note was a two-time Grade I winner in 2009. She won The Ballerina (GI) at Saratoga and The Beldame (GI) at Belmont Park. Seattle Smooth was a perfect three for three in 2009. She won The Bed O’ Roses (GII) at Aqueduct, The Shuvee (GII) at Belmont Park and The Ogden Phipps (GI) at Belmont Park. All of her wins were early in the year.
Turf Male – Gio Ponti is ThoroughbredZone’s 2009 top male turf horse. Gio Ponti was a four time Grade I winner in 2009, and placed twice in two other Grade I races. He won The Fred Kilroe (GI) at Santa Anita, The Manhattan (GI) at Belmont Park, The Man o’ War (GI) at Belmont Park and The Arlington Million (GI) at Arlington Park. Gio Ponti also ran a solid second in The Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI) Zenyatta. Presious Passion had another busy 2009—running 9 times in total. He was a repeat winner of The United Nations Handicap (GI) at Monmouth Park. He was an impressive front running winner in The Clement Hirsch (GI) at Santa Anita in his final race before The Breeders’ Cup Turf (GI) where he ran a strong second to Conduit. Conduit repeated as the Breeders’ Cup Turf (GI) winner. Midships was a winner of The San Luis Rey (GII) at Santa Anita, The San Juan Capistrano (GII) at Santa Anita and The Charles Wittingham Memorial (GI) at Hollywood Park.
Filly And Mare Turf – Ventura is ThoroughbredZone’s 2009 Top Filly and Mare Turf horse. The fabulous mare finished her racing career with a win in The Matriarch (GI) at Santa Anita—a win Bobby Frankel would have been proud of. She was a three time Grade I winner in 2009—winning The Santa Monica (GI) at Santa Anita and shipped north of the border to defeat colts in The Woodbine Mile (GI) at Woodbine with a powerful rally. In her three losses of 2009 she was solid—finishing behind the top male turf horse in the country Gio Ponti in The Fred Kilroe (GI) at Santa Anita and was runner-up to the speedy top rated filly and mare sprinter in the country Informed Decision twice in The Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (GI) and The Madison (GI) at Keeneland. Magical Fantasy had a superb 2009 campaign winning three straight Grade I events in California—The Gamely (GI), The John Mabee (GI) and The Yellow Ribbon (GI). Goldikova was fabulous again as she went on to win The Breeders’ Cup Mile (GI) for the second consecutive year in a row with a powerful late rally. She will try for three in a row in 2010. Diamondrella was a two time Grade I winner in 2009. She won The Just A Game (GI) at Belmont Park and The First Lady (GI) at Keeneland.
Sprinter – Kodiak Kowboy is ThoroughbredZone’s 2009 sprinter of the year. This was one of the tougher categories to choose a winner. Kodiak Kowboy had a strong year. He was a three time Grade I winner in 2009. Kodiak Kowboy won The Carter (GI) at Aqueduct, The Vosburgh at Belmont Park (GI) and The Cigar Mile (GI) at Aqueduct. Zensational reeled of three straight Grade I wins in California—winning The Triple Bend Handicap (GI) at Hollywood Park, The Bing Crosby (GI) at Del Mar and The Pete O’Brien (GI) at Del Mar. He was fifth in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (GI) as the odds on favorite. Dancing In Silks was The Breeders’ Cup Sprint (GI) winner—making that his fourth straight win in 2009—the other three were California state bred races. Fabulous Strike won a pair of Grade II races—The True North (GII) at Belmont Park and The Vanderbilt (GII) at Saratoga. He finished a close second twice to Kodiak Kowboy in The Carter (GI) at Aqueduct and The Vosburgh (GI) at Belmont Park.
Filly And Mare Sprinter – Informed Decision is ThoroughbredZone’s 2009 top filly and mare sprinter. She had a dominant year, winning three Grade I stakes at three different tracks. She won The Madison (GI) at Keeneland, The Humana Distaff (GI) at Churchill Downs and capped the year with a strong win over a determined Ventura in The Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf (GI). Informed Decision only lost once in 7 starts in 2009 over a sloppy track at Saratoga in The Ballerina (GI). Game Face had a solid 2009 campaign. She was a winner of fours sprint stakes in 2009 that included The Princess Rooney (GI) at Calder and The Honorable Miss (GII) at Saratoga.
Horse Of The Year – Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta are both ThoroughbredZone’s 2009 Horse of the Year. These two very special horses dominated their competition in 2009 like no other filly and mare ever have. Rachel Alexandra was a perfect 8 for 8 in 2009. Rachel Alexandra was a winner of 8 races at 7 different tracks including five Grade I stakes races. Rachel Alexandra had the most dominant 3-year-old filly campaign in history. She captured The Kentucky Oaks (GI) at Churchill Downs, The Preakness Stakes (GI), The Mother Goose (GI) at Belmont Park (GI), The Haskell (GI) at Monmouth Park and capped 2009 with a win against older males in The Woodward (GI) at Saratoga. She became the first filly in 85 years to win The Preakness Stakes (GI) and the first filly ever to win the Woodward Stakes (GI) against older males. No other 3-year-old filly has ever accomplished what Rachel Alexandra has in 2009. Zenyatta won five races in 2009, including four Grade I stakes races. She won The Vanity Handicap (GI) at Hollywood Park, The Clement L. Hirsch (GI) at Del Mar, The Ladies Secret (GI) at Hollywood Park and capped her perfect career by winning America’s richest race The $5 Million Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI) at Santa Anita with an unbelievable rally from last to first. She finished her career with a perfect undefeated record—winning 14 races out of 14 starts. To choose between either one of these two great champion thoroughbreds is nearly impossible. Neither one of these great champions deserves to come in second—when they always come in first. They had a combined record in 2009 of a super 13-0! They both put together history making years that we might not ever see again in our lifetimes. Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta were simply the best of the best in 2009.
Older Male – Gio Ponti is ThoroughbredZone’s Top male turf horse of 2009. Gio Ponti put together a super year that included four straight Grade I wins. Gio Ponti won The Fred Kilroe (GI) at Santa Anita, The Manhattan (GI) at Belmont Park, The Man o’ War (GI) and The Arlington Million (GI) at Arlington. He also ran a game second to Zenyatta in The Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI), although that was not run on turf. Presious Passion had another busy and productive year in 2009. He found his best form yet in 2009 by winning two Grade I stakes races. He was a repeat winner in The United Nations (GI) at Monmouth Park and ran a super race in The Breeders’ Cup Turf (GI) finishing second to repeat winner Conduit. Presious Passion earned over 1.5 million on the sod in 2009. Conduit came back to do it again—win The Breeders’ Cup Turf (GI) at Santa Anita. Furthest Land won The Kentucky Cup Classic (GII) at Turfway Park and The Breeders’ Cup Dirt/Poly Mile. Furthest Land won 6 races in 2009.
Steeplechase – Mixed Up is ThoroughbredZone’s top jumper in 2009. He had a solid year winning four races out of eight starts in 2009 and led all jumpers with earnings of $184,495. Left Unsaid was a winner of three races from six starts and was third in earnings with $ 137,700.
Race Of The Year – There were several great races in 2009 in the world of Thoroughbred Horse Racing. 2009 was truly the year of the filly and mare. A few races stand out in particular in 2009. Rachel Alexandra became the first filly in 85 years to win the Preakness Stakes (GI) in a thrilling front running win at Pimlico holding off Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird. She went to the lead with speedy Big Drama and put him away. She ran through solid fractions all the way to the wire in a very impressive performance. The Woodward (GI) was one of the most exciting races of the year, and one the most exciting races in memory. Saratoga erupted when she crossed the finish line first. Rachel Alexandra became the first filly to ever win The Woodward in an absolutely thrilling ding-dong battle over Macho Again. She was on the lead most of the way as usual—ripping off snappy fractions. It was a game win for the 3-year-old filly as she defeated older males. The Breeder’s Cup Classic will go down as one of the most thrilling races in Breeders’ Cup history. Zenyatta, the home town hero was far behind in the early stages of the race and throughout and looked like she was seemingly out of it. She then began to commence a stunning rally from last to first as she gobbled up ground with her huge stride. Zenyatta rallied down the middle of the track to the roar of the crowd at Santa Anita as she went on to win. Her win in the Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI) was her biggest, most impressive wins of her career. Both the Woodward and Breeders’ Cup Classic are ThroughbredZone’s races of the year for 2009.
Top Trainer – Steve Asmussen is ThoroughbredZone’s top trainer in 2009. He led the nation in earnings with $21,821,225 and wins with 648. The Asmussen train rolled on in 2009. Todd Pletcher was second in the earnings department with $15,358,011. Scott Lake was second to Steve Asmussen in the win department with 307.
Top Jockey – Ramon Dominguez and Julien Leparoux are both ThoroughbredZone’s top jockeys in 2009. Julien Leparoux had a super year. He was second in the nation in earnings with $18,560,565. Ramon Dominguez was third in the nation in earnings with $18,256,045 and was second in the nation in wins to Russell Baze with 388. He dominated almost all year in New York. Garrett Gomez—led the nation in earnings again with $18,571,171.
Top Apprentice Jockey – Luis Paez is ThoroughbredZone’s 2009 Top Apprentice jockey in 2009. He won 104 races out of 472 mounts and earned $1,715,887. Luis Paez won at an impressive rate of 22%.
Breeder – Juddmonte Farms is ThoroughbredZone’s top breeder of 2009. They had a stellar year that saw them win 6 GI stakes races in 2009 and amassing $4,413,243 in total purses. Frank Stronach’s Adena Springs had another big year. Adena Springs led all Breeders in starts, wins and earnings. They had 3825 starters in 2009—with 550 winners and earnings of $12,721,458.
Top Owner – Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s Godolphin Stable is ThoroughbredZone’s top owner of 2009. Godolphin captured 8 Grade I stakes in 2009 and amassed $3,768,896 in total purse money. WinStar Farm had a big year. They won 41 races out of 231 starters and led the nation in total purse money with 7,138,456.
Top Sire – Birdstone is ThoroughbredZone’s 2009 top sire. He produced the Kentucky Derby (GI) winner Mine That Bird and The Belmont Stakes (GI), Travers Stakes (GI) and Jockey Club Gold Cup (GI) winner Summer Bird. He became the first sire in history to accomplish this.
Best Moment in 2009 – 2009 simply put was the year of the filly. Four special fillies and mares proved they were champions by etching their place in the history books in 2009. Rachel Alexandra, Zenyatta, Ventura and Goldikova all defeated males in Grade I stakes competition in 2009. In no other year in memory have we seen such dominating fillies and mares compete in the same year. They were all sensational and accomplished things we may never see again on the track. They all produced memorable moments in 2009 that will most certainly last a lifetime. Each time one of these special ladies stepped onto the track, they gave us all something to remember in 2009. Mine That Bird pulled off one of the most improbable upset wins in Kentucky Derby history. He rallied along the rail to win at odds of 50/1 to become the 2nd-biggest longshot to ever win the roses.
Better Talk Now was retired in 2009 at the ripe old age of 10. He was a true warrior and a great champion. He won a total of 11 Grade I races in his career and was a Breeders’ Cup Turf Champion. He earned $$4,356,664 on the track.
Last edited by PaceAdvantage; 01-03-2010 at 06:25 PM.
Reason: Edit request
|
