Zenyatta may race again in 2010
Daily Racing Form writer Steve Andersen talked with John Shirreffs on Thursday, and Zenyatta's trainer said it's entirely possible the unbeaten 5-year-old mare could run a few times next year before heading off to the breeding shed in Kentucky.
So if you're one of the many fans still clamoring for a Rachel Alexandra-Zenyatta matchup somewhere down the road, don't lose all hope. It now appears to be a possibility once again.
Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to read Andersen's story:
http://www.drf.com/news/article/107510.html
Sorry Art, IMO the Woodward was Rachel's last race. I don't really think JJ ever wanted to race the mare in dirt, synthetic, grass or whatever. Besides, I don't really see Rachel repeating what she did this year. Hand picking her races in 2010 would be a lot harder. There would be clamor for her to go 10 furlongs and judging her Woodward (where she got 8 pounds from Macho) that might be a tall order. She is going to be 4 years old and she is not allowed to race in restricted 3 year old races. JJ will just announced that she is as good or better than Ruffian and off she goes as a broodmare. My 2 cents.
Sorry Art, IMO the Woodward was Rachel's last race. I don't really think JJ ever wanted to race the mare in dirt, synthetic, grass or whatever. Besides, I don't really see Rachel repeating what she did this year. Hand picking her races in 2010 would be a lot harder. There would be clamor for her to go 10 furlongs and judging her Woodward (where she got 8 pounds from Macho) that might be a tall order. She is going to be 4 years old and she is not allowed to race in restricted 3 year old races. JJ will just announced that she is as good or better than Ruffian and off she goes as a broodmare. My 2 cents.
Charles,
That's an interesting theory, and you may very well turn out to be right. But I think she'll race again, based mostly on the fact that JJ raced Curlin as a 4-year-old and he likes to be in the limelight with talented horses. Time will tell.
I do want to see Rachel Alexandra versus Zenyatta as much, if not more than, any other fan. But the main reason I don't like that Zenyatta may be retired soon is that I don't think she wants to yet. She's a ham for cameras and anyone can tell looking at her that she loves racing. The infamous mommy instinct that often presents itself in mares Zenyatta's age hasn't hit her yet. She has so much juice left! I think they would be doing her a great disservice if they retired her and bred her when she's not necessarily ready.
As for Rachel Alexandra, to breed her this year would be stupid. EVERY trustworthy expert says not to breed until the dam and sire have stopped growing themselves. Yes, they are sexually mature as 2-year-olds, but they do not stop growing until 4-5 years depending on the horse in particular. As a fifteen year old, I'm no expert (yet- I want to become an equine vet though) but I think Rachel still has a bit of growing left and breeding her at such a young age would be foolhardy. Even if they retire her now and wait until she is five, why waste a year? I say she should race at least one more year.
The human race greatly under-estimates the humanity to be founf in other animals. Horses are very close to humans, really, and they know what they want. Do you know how Calvin Borel says he has met such great success on Rachel Alexandra? He lets HER decide what pace to take, he just guides her. He has said this in numerous interviews. I think the same applies for when they're ready to stop racing. If they get injured, if they start showing the mommy instinct, if they lose motivation, those are signs it's time to yank the cord and move on... But Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra aren't at that point and won't be for at least a year or so, more for Rachel Alexandra.
Those are the thoughts of a fifteen year old, female, aspiring equine specialist. :) I hope I didn't sound foolish in this long winded comment. Thank you for the article! :)
Alex -- thanks for your comment. You do have to admit though that to send Zenyatta out on top, undefeated in 14 races and coming off the BC Classic victory, is a great time to retire her. There's nothing let for her to do. The Mosses already raced her as a 5-year-old, which is longer than we will most likely see Rachel, who will most certainly be retired after her 4-year-old campaign if she does continue to race. But she has a tough act to follow next year -- she needs to step up at the end of the year and beat the boys in the Classic at Churchill Downs.