Breeders Cup Chat : Horse of the Year

Horse of the Year Debate--Why Do We Care So Much?

jshandler — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:05:00 GMT

It is a shame that Horse of the Year could not be settled on the racetrack......(read more)

Q&A With Zenyatta Trainer John Shirreffs

jshandler — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 21:16:00 GMT

Now that the dust has settled on Zenyatta's marvelous Breeders' Cup win, I thought it would be a good time to catch up with her trainer, John Shirreffs, who is one of the nicer guys in racing. Admittedly, my motives were a bit self-serving, as I wanted to inquire about two of the hot-button topics surrounding Zenyatta: Her future and of course, the Horse of the Year debate.

If nothing else, at least we found out there is reason to hope Zenyatta will race as a 5-year-old.

JShan: It's been a little more than week since Zenyatta won the Ladies Classic, which also gave you your first Breeders' Cup victory. Has it all sunk in yet?

JShirr: It's been such a thrilling season with her and there was so much riding on the Breeders' Cup, not only for me but all the connections. There was an Eclipse Award hanging in the balance and just so much at stake on one race. When she finally won it was just one of those magical moments I will never forget. It was really such a thrill. You only have so many opportunities with horses like this. She has done so much for all of us.

JShan: Like you said, the Eclipse Award was hanging in the balance. Now that you locked up at least one of them, how does that feel?

JShirr: It's going to be so much fun getting that award. To be able to see her name on the Distaff Eclipse Award is going to be such a tremendous honor. It's going to be something I'll always treasure.

JShan: The debate has already begun as far as Horse of the Year honors. It seems it may come down to a two-horse race between Zenyatta and Curlin. Make your case for Zenyatta.

JShirr: Well, I think when you look at the quality of fillies she ran against and beat, she has to be considered. She had to step up every race, and she did. Running against who she did, she had to improve on a monthly basis to keep winning, and she did.

JShan: What do you say to people who think a filly should have to beat the boys to earn Horse of the Year?

JShirr: It's already been proven that you don't have to; look at Azeri. (Zenyatta) went undefeated against a very tough group of fillies this year and had to overcome a lot of adversity. Now, of course, she didn't have run against any Wanderin Boy's...

JShan: Also playing devil's advocate, what about the people who say she only raced outside of California once?

JShirr: The race she won at Oaklawn was a stellar field. I think every horse that came out of that race either won or placed in a stakes. Also, she shouldn't be penalized for racing in California. Remember, she was racing on surfaces she didn't even really like. She preferred dirt. But the Breeders' Cup was in California this year, so there was no reason to ship her anywhere else.

I think it's great to have a Horse of the Year debate. However it comes out, I'll be OK. We're going to be thrilled just getting the Distaff award.

JShan: The other thing people want to know is what the future holds for Zenyatta. Has anything been decided yet?

JShirr: We're going to take our time and do a lot of diagnostic work on her, head-to-toe. We'll give her a little break and then map out a plan.

JShand: Is there any chance she races again this year?

JShirr: No chance.

JShan: Even though you and the Mosses have not made a decision on her future yet, I get the feeling from the things I've been reading and hearing there is a better than 50-50 chance she will race as a 5-year-old?

JShirr: If we're leaning one way, I'd say it's towards running her. We'll announce that a little later.

JShan: Nobody could have predicted how great Zenyatta has been, but looking back to the beginning, how early did you know she had the potential to be something special?

JShirr: Very early on. When she was being broken in Ocala there were a lot of 2-year-olds there. They always told us she was the best one at the place.

JShan: And yet she only fetched $60,000 as a yearling?

JShirr: It was just perfect timing. Balance (her multiple graded stakes winning half-sister) hadn't appeared yet and there were no grade I winners. And it was Street Cry's first yearlings. We were very fortunate.

JShan: What was the biggest challenge in training Zenyatta?

JShirr: When you have a horse as talented as she is, it's just making sure we didn't make any mistakes. We didn't want to get in her way. We wanted to do what was best for her and take care of her the best way we knew how. Everything has been so magical.

Clark Would Be Perfect Way For Curlin to Go Out

jshandler — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 17:00:00 GMT

Now that the Breeders' Cup is in our rearview mirror and it feels as though racing comes to a screeching halt for the rest of season, there is one topic that seems to be on everyone's mind: Horse of the Year.

Curlin vs. Zenyatta. Who will it be?

It's been less than a week since the Breeders' Cup ended and I've already been asked the same question countless times: Who are you going to vote for? Although my standard response has been, "I'm not sure yet," if I'm honest with myself I will admit that I'm leaning towards Zenyatta.

I'm not one of those traditionalists who feels a filly needs to beat the colts to earn Horse of the Year honors. I think what Zenyatta has done is enough to merit strong consideration for the award. Her undefeated season and scintillating Ladies Classic victory over a quality field makes her worthy of the honors.

I will not go into detailed reasons why either Curlin or Zenyatta deserve the award; my colleague Steve Haskin already did a very good job of summing that up. A strong case can be made for either; they were both sensational in 2008. I do respectfully disagree with Steve on the fact that Big Brown deserves to be in the mix. I thought his second half campaign was a bit of a joke, between bypassing Saratoga and having a glorified allowance race written for him. But I digress...

The one thing I will say for sure is this: Right now, I am leaning towards Zenyatta, but I can still be swayed. How? If Curlin runs in the Nov. 26 Clark Handicap and beats Commentator. In my mind, that would push Curlin over the top.

Don't get me wrong. I can see why Jess Jackson would not want to run Curlin in the Clark and I would not penalize him if he chose not to. It's already been a long campaign for him and I have no idea how Curlin came out of the Breeders' Cup. It could very well be that he needs more rest. Jackson did the commendable thing by bringing Curlin to California and he deserves a lot of credit already.

All that being admitted, if Curlin won the Clark it would be the perfect exclamation point. As great as he has been these last two years, I would have to think the Classic loss leaves a bit of a sour taste in Jackson's mouth. If that was indeed his final race, it can't be the way he wants his career to end. A victory in the Clark, on his home track, would be such a fitting way to go out. And to beat a quality horse like Commentator, who has run the highest speed numbers of any horse all year, would quiet anyone who said Curlin hasn't beaten much this year.

It's probably a longshot at this point, but a victory in the Clark would be enough to sway this voter.