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Rachel Alexandra to face four in New Orleans Ladies
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| Rachel will make her long-awaited seasonal debut this weekend
(Lou Hodges Jr./ Hodges Photography) |
The reigning queens of American racing, RACHEL ALEXANDRA (Medaglia d'Oro) and
Zenyatta (Street Cry [Ire]), will both make their highly-anticipated seasonal
debuts on Saturday, with Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra up first in the
$200,000 New Orleans
Ladies S. at Fair Grounds. In part created as a potential meeting point for
the two champions, the New Orleans Ladies will instead serve as Rachel
Alexandra's prep for the actual clash between the two in the April 9 Apple
Blossom Invitational (G1) at Oaklawn Park, which will carry a purse of $5
million if both start.
The historic campaign turned in last season by Rachel Alexandra, who will
face four others over 1 1/16 miles on Saturday, has been well documented. A
thorough domination of her own division, which included a 1 3/4-length victory
in the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) in her only previous New Orleans appearance, and
three wins against males in the Preakness S. (G1), Haskell Invitational (G1) and
Woodward S. (G1), swayed a majority of Eclipse Award voters toward her candidacy
in the hotly-debated Horse of the Year race. In winning racing's most
prestigious award, she became the first three-year-old filly so honored since
Busher in 1945.
On paper, the New Orleans Ladies does not appear as if it will be too taxing
for the champion, who will tote 123 pounds including regular rider Calvin Borel.
Despite the unavailability of graded black type and the minimal weight
concessions on offer, which range from two to six pounds, there might be just
enough quality among the remaining four entrants to ensure that Rachel Alexandra
will get something meaningful out of the race as she looks forward to her most
daunting task to date next month.
John Shirreffs, who has trained Zenyatta to an undefeated mark of 14 wins in
a row and two Eclipse Awards as champion older female, is sending his Bayakoa H.
(G2) winner ZARDANA (Brz) (Crimson Tide) to Fair Grounds from California.
Unraced on dirt since competing in her native Brazil several years ago, the
six-year-old mare has already had one outing this year in the Santa Maria H.
(G2), where she made the lead around the far turn before fading to fourth inside
the furlong. A wet track would enhance her chances as she is a perfect
three-for-three over dirt tracks not labeled fast.
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CLEAR SAILING (Empire Maker), who maintained her perfect mark over the Fair
Grounds strip with a neck victory over FIGHTER WING (Empire Maker) in the
February 13 Pelleteri S., showed class in overcoming a moderate pace in that
outing. The four-year-old, who has only one other start in addition to her three
during the current winter meet, has loads of potential but would need lots of
things to go wrong for the champion in order to upset. The speedy Fighter Wing
will provide a target, if only for a short time, for Rachel Alexandra if Borel
chooses to take her back in the early stages.
The multiple stakes-winning UNFORGOTTEN (Northern Afleet), who has placed
twice at the Grade 2 level during her 32-race career, is completely void of
speed and will make her bid from the tail of the field. The six-year-old veteran
has been win-shy throughout her career, with more than twice as many minor
placings than wins, and occasional nondescript efforts like the one she turned
in at the Sunshine Millions Distaff in January have been common over the past
year.
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