Many racing fans are prepared to state emphatically that Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra are two of the best, if not THE best, fillies of the past half-century.
The list from which to chose, however, is longer than most think. Below is a reminder just how extensive that list is. With almost half the year still remaining to define Zenyatta's and Rachel's greatness and where they rank, this is a good time to see just who the two super fillies are up against.
If anyone wishes to submit their Top 10 in order, and there are enough submissions (from this blog and a Facebook link), I will tabulate a consensus Top 10 list and post the results on the next blog. If not, just enjoy the list of champion fillies below and their accomplishments. Feel free to express all opinions. If we get enough interest, I will provide my own analysis, having seen most of the fillies listed below.
Grass fillies are not included. They will have their moment at a later time. Because the list already is so long I also added an also-eligible list just to throw some other names out there. I'm sure someone will ask why so-and-so is not included. Most likely it is an oversight, so feel free to add your own favorite. Some excellent fillies were left off the main list because they might have gotten good for a while and didn't quite accomplish enough over a period of time or didn't do anything extraordinary, such as beating males or carrying weight or breaking records.
All mentions of the Filly Triple Crown are in reference to the NYRA series consisting the Acorn, Mother Goose, and CCA Oaks, which was the only officially recognized Triple Crown of this era, although an unofficial Filly Triple Crown was for many years the Kentucky Oaks, Black-Eyed-Susan, and CCA Oaks, designed to compliment the male Triple Crown run.
Affectionately
Pros - Won 15 stakes, beat colts in the Vosburgh, won Vagrancy
Handicap under 137 pounds, giving 26 lbs to runner-up
Cons - Won up to 1 1/8 miles but was predominantly a sprinter
Althea
Pros - Career cut short, but not before she destroyed colts in the
Hollywood Juvenile Championship, Del Mar Futurity, and
Arkansas Derby in track-record 1:46 4/5, also won Santa
Susana (now SA Oaks), Las Virgenes, Hollywood Starlet, and
Del Mar Debutante
Cons - Raced only once after 19th-place finish in Kentucky Derby
Ashado
Pros - Won 12 of 20 starts, grade I winner at 2, 3, and 4, won
Breeders' Cup Distaff, Kentucky Oaks, CCA Oaks, Ogden
Phipps, Beldame, Go For Wand, Spinaway
Cons - Never raced against males, well beaten in BC Distaff
Azeri
Pros - Horse of the Year, won 11 grade I stakes, including Breeders'
Cup Distaff, Apple Blossom 3 times, Vanity and Milady twice,
Spinster, Santa Margarita, won 17 of 24 starts
Cons - Out of the money in only two starts vs. males
Bayakoa
Pros - Won 21 of 39 starts, won Breeders' Cup Distaff twice, won
16 stakes, including 12 grade I's, won Santa Margarita twice,
Spinster, Ruffian, Vanity, Apple Blossom, group I winner in
Argentina vs, males
Cons - 0-for-2 vs. males in U.S., lost last three career starts
Bold ‘n Determined
Pros - Won 16 of 20 starts, including Acorn, CCA Oaks, Spinster,
Kentucky Oaks, Apple Blossom, Fantasy, Santa Susana (SA
Oaks), defeated champions Genuine Risk and Davona Dale, and
Alabama winner Love Sign in memorable Maskette Stakes
Cons - Head defeat in Mother Goose cost her Filly Triple Crown sweep,
never faced males
Bowl of Flowers
Pros - Won 10 of 16 starts, including Acorn, CCA Oaks, and Spinster,
beating Primonetta by 5 lengths, never out of the money
Cons - Defeated in Mother Goose and Alabama, never beat males
Chris Evert
Pros -- Swept Filly Triple Crown, stakes winner at 2, 3, and 4, won
match race with Miss Musket by 50 lengths, finished third in
Travers Stakes, won 10 of 15 career starts
Cons -- Never beat males, upset in Alabama at 1-2
Cicada
Pros - Won 23 of 42 starts, including 18 stakes, won 8 stakes at 2,
missed by half-length of becoming first Filly Triple Crown
winner, beaten a nose by Ridan in Florida Derby
Cons - Beaten as big favorite in several major stakes
Dance Smartly
Pros - Won 12 of 17 starts, swept Canadian Triple Crown, won
Breeders' Cup Distaff, Molson Million, won 5 of 6 starts against
males, only defeat by a nose
Cons - Did not win a major stakes in the U.S. at 2 or 4, beaten 6 lengths
in BC Juvenile Fillies
Dark Mirage
Pros - First filly to sweep the Filly Triple Crown, winning Acorn, Mother
Goose, and CCA Oaks by combined 28 lengths, added Monmouth
Oaks and Delaware Oaks, won 10 straight races, 9 of them stakes
Cons - Was only good at 3 and one race at 4 before breaking down,
mediocre 2-year-old
Davona Dale
Pros - Swept two Triple Crowns (Acorn, Mother Goose, CCA Oaks by
combined 20 ¼ lengths), (Kentucky Oaks, Black-Eyed Susan,
CCA Oaks by combined 16 ¾ lengths), won 11 of 18 career
starts
Cons - Never beat males, upset in Alabama at 1-5, lost 5 of her last 6
starts
Desert Vixen
Pros - Won eight straight races, all graded stakes, at 3 by an average
margin of 5 ½ lengths, won Alabama by 8, Beldame by 8 ½
in record 1:46 1/5 (broken race after by Secretariat), won 2nd
Beldame at 4 by 12 ½ in 1:46 3/5, 2nd in D.C. International
Cons - Didn't get good until 3, never beat males, lost first 4 starts at 4
Gallant Bloom
Pros - Won 12 races in a row at 2, 3, and 4, easily defeated two future
Hall of Famers in Shuvee and Gamely, champion at 2 and 3, won
stakes from 6 furlongs to 1 1/8 miles, won Santa Margarita under
129 lbs, won 16 of 22 career starts, beat Shuvee 3 out of 4 times
Cons - Defeated twice by males late in career (injured in latter), suffered
3 bad losses at 2 after inexplicably losing her form
Gamely
Pros - Won 10 stakes at 3, 4, and 5, including Alabama, Beldame twice,
Santa Margarita, beats males in Inglewood Handicap, finished 2nd
to Dr. Fager in Californian, 2nd to Nodouble in SA Handicap,
finished no worse than 4th in 24 consecutive starts vs. fillies
Cons - Won only 2 of 11 starts against males
Genuine Risk
Pros - Won Kentucky Derby, first filly since Regret, and finished 2nd
in the Preakness and Belmont Stakes, won Ruffian, Demoiselle,
finished third in the Wood Memorial
Cons - Concluded her career in three allowance races, beaten a nose by
Bold ‘n Determined in Maskette Stakes
Glorious Song
Pros - Won 17 of 34 starts, beat males four times, including the
Michigan Mile and an Eighth, finished 2nd to Spectacular Bid in
Amory Haskell Handicap, won Spinster, Santa Margarita, La
Canada, Top Flight
Cons - Lost 5 of her last 6 starts, raced mostly in Canada early in her
career
Go For Wand
Pros - Won 10 of 13 starts, won 7 grade I stakes, including Alabama,
Beldame, Mother Goose, Test, BC Juvenile Fillies, won Test in
1:21, Beldame in 1:45 4/5, Alabama in 2:00 4/5
Cons - Never raced against males
Inside Information
Pros - Won 14 of 17 starts, including 13 ½-length win in Breeders' Cup
Distaff, 11-length win in Ruffian, and 11-length win in Acorn,
also won grade I Spinster, Shuvee, and Ashland
Cons - Never raced against males
Lady's Secret
Pros - Horse of the Year, won 25 of 45 starts, including 22 stakes,
defeated colts in the Whitney, placed in 3 grade I stakes vs.
males, won Breeders' Cup Distaff, won stakes from 6 furlongs
to 1 ¼ miles, ran in 15 stakes as a 4-year-old, 13 of them grade I
and 4 vs. males, and was never out of the money, won Ruffian
under 129 lbs
Cons - Won only two allowance races in five starts at 5
Mom's Command
Pros - Swept Filly Triple Crown, setting :44 1/5 half in Acorn, :45
half in Mother Goose, and :46 1/5 half in 1 ½-mile CCA Oaks,
won Alabama by 4 lengths, setting :46 4/5 half, won 6 other
stakes, won 11 of 16 starts
Cons - Never faced males
My Juliet
Pros - Won 24 of 36 starts, defeated Kentucky Derby winner Bold
Forbes in Vosburgh in 1:21 4/5, won Michigan Mile and an
Eighth defeating JC Gold Cup winner On the Sly, finished
2nd in Omaha Gold Cup, beating Preakness winner Master
Derby, won total of 17 stakes at 14 different racetracks
Cons - Lost only time she ran in a grade I stakes (Vosburgh was
Grade II, Test was grade III)
Numbered Account
Pros - Won 14 of 22 starts, won 9 of first 10 starts, including Spinaway,
Matron, Frizette, Selima, and Gardenia, won Spinster, Test, and
Maskette at 3
Cons - Beaten in several major stakes at 3, never quite showed the
brilliance she showed at 2.
Old Hat
Pros - Stakes winner at 4, 5, 6, and 7, won Spinster, Delaware Handicap,
defeated Horse of the Year Roman Brother in Michigan Mile and
One Eighth, won 35 career starts
Cons - Didn't win first stakes until age 4, beaten 45 times in 80 starts
Open Mind
Pros - Won 12 of 19 starts, swept Filly Triple Crown, CCA Oaks on a
DQ, won 10 races in a row, including BC Juvenile Fillies,
Kentucky Oaks, Alabama
Cons - Lost her final 5 starts, never faced males
Paseana
Pros - Won 19 of 36 starts, won 11 grade I stakes, including 5 in a row,
won Breeders' Cup Distaff and beaten a nose in BC Distaff,
group I winner in Argentina, won Santa Margarita, Spinster,
Vanity, Apple Blossom, won stakes at 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7
Cons - Well beaten in only try against males, won 1 of 6 starts at 8
Personal Ensign
Pros - Retired undefeated in 13 starts, defeated Kentucky Derby winner
Winning Colors in Breeders' Cup Distaff and Maskette, defeated
eventual sprint champion Gulch in the Whitney, also won grade I
Beldame, Shuvee, and Hempstead
Cons - Only raced 13 times
Primonetta
Pros - Won 17 of 25 starts, including first nine races of her career, won
Alabama, Spinster, Delaware Oaks, ran 6 furlongs in 1:08 2/5 at
Monmouth, beat Bowl of Flowers by 6 lengths in Alabama
Cons - Never ran against males, beaten favorite in stakes six times
Princess Rooney
Pros - Won 17 of 21 starts, ended her career with 6-length win in the
Spinster and 7-length romp in the BC Distaff, won first 10 races
of her career, including wins by 8, 9 ½, 10, 11, 12, and 18 lengths,
also won Kentucky Oaks, Ashland, Vanity, and Frizette
Cons - Only faced males once, in 7f allowance race, winning by 1/2
Rachel Alexandra
Pros - Horse of the Year, won 12 of 17 starts, defeated colts in
Preakness, Haskell Invitational, and Woodward, won Ky. Oaks
by 20 ¼ lengths, Mother Goose by 19 ¼ lengths in stakes record 1:46
1/5, won Haskell by 6 lengths in 1:47 1/5, defeated winners of the
Kentucky Derby, Preakness, Travers, JC Gold Cup, Whitney
Cons - Has only grade II win and two narrow defeats at 4
Rags to Riches
Pros - Defeated eventual 2-time Horse of the Year Curlin, as well as
Hard Spun and Tiago in Belmont Stakes, first filly in 102 years
to win Belmont, won Kentucky Oaks, Santa Anita Oaks, Las
Virgenes, champion 3-year-old filly
Cons - Didn't race past September of 3-year-old year, didn't break
maiden until 3
Ruffian
Pros - Won all 10 starts in which she finished, broke down in match race,
her average margin of victory was 8 ½ lengths, ran in 9 stakes at 7
different distances from 5 furlongs to 1 ½ miles and set or
equaled a stakes record in all of them, swept Filly Triple Crown
Cons - Never defeated males
Safely Kept
Pros - Won 24 of 31 starts, finished first and second in BC Sprint, won
21 stakes, including Test, Prioress, Genuine Risk
Cons - Strictly a sprinter, third in only two-turn race
Serena's Song
Pros - Won 18 of 38 starts, won 16 graded stakes, defeated colts in the
Haskell Invitational and Jim Beam, beaten a neck in the Whitney,
won Beldame, Gazelle, Mother Goose, Santa Anita Oaks,
Hollywood Starlet
Cons - Lost last 7 starts of her career - 6 seconds and a third, well-
beaten in Ky. Derby and SA Handicap
Shuvee
Pros - Swept Filly Triple Crown and won Alabama at 3, won back-to-
back runnings of the 2-mile Jockey Club Gold Cup, won a total
of 15 stakes, won major stakes at 2, 3, 4, and 5, including Beldame,
Diana twice, Ladies Handicap, Frizette, and Top Flight
Cons - Beaten in 3 of her 4 meetings with Gallant Bloom, including
Gazelle for 3-year-old filly honors
Silverbulletday
Pros - Won 15 of 23 starts, won Alabama, Kentucky Oaks, Gazelle,
Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, Ashland, won from 5 ½ furlongs
to 1 ¼ miles
Cons - Lost 6 of last 7 starts, beaten badly in BC Distaff and Belmont
Stakes in only start vs. males
Sky Beauty
Pros - Won 15 of 21 starts, swept Filly Triple Crown, won grade I
Alabama, Ruffian, Matron, Shuvee, Hempstead, and Go For
Wand, won Ruffian under 130 lbs
Cons - Winless outside of New York, beaten twice in BC Distaff, never
raced against males
Straight Deal
Pros - Raced 99 times, won Spinster, Delaware Handicap, Santa
Margarita, 10 other major stakes, finished 3rd in the Whitney to
Stupendous and 3rd in the Aqueduct Stakes to Damascus
Cons - Lost 78 times and never defeated males
Susan's Girl
Pros - Won stakes at 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, won a total of 22 stakes, including
Spinster, Beldame, Delaware Handicap, Matchmaker, and Apple
Blossom as a 6-year-old alone, won Kentucky Oaks, Acorn,
Beldame, and Gazelle at 3
Cons - Winless in 6 starts against males
Ta Wee
Pros - Won 15 of 21 starts, defeated colts in the Vosburgh and Fall
Highweight on two occasions, once carrying 140 lbs, won
Interborough Handicap under 142 lbs, won Miss Woodford in
1:08 3/5, won 7f Vosburgh in 1:21 3/5
Cons - Strictly a sprinter
Tosmah
Pros - Won 23 of 39 starts, defeated males in the Arlington Classic and
John B. Campbell Handicap, 2nd to Hedevar in world-record-
equaling Equipoise Mile (1:33 1/5, beaten three-quarters), won
first 7 starts of her career
Cons - Raced in very few major New York stakes, mostly in New
Jersey
Turkish Trousers
Pros - Won 12 of 18 starts, won 8 straight stakes, including Hollywood
Oaks, Del Mar Oaks, Santa Susana, won Santa Margarita and
Santa Maria, won of 10 of 12 starts, all stakes, from Jan. '71 to
March ‘72
Cons - Never faced males, never raced outside California, lost last two
career starts
Winning Colors
Pros - Won Kentucky Derby, Santa Anita Derby by 7 ½ lengths,
finished 3rd in Preakness, won Santa Anita Oaks by 8 lengths,
beaten a nose by Personal Ensign in memorable BC Distaff
Cons - Won only 8 of 19 starts, beaten 41 ¾ lengths in the Belmont.
24 ¼ lengths in BC Distaff
Xtra Heat
Pros - Won 26 of 35 starts, 25 of them stakes, defeated colts in Phoenix
BC, 2nd, beaten half-length, in Breeders' Cup Sprint, 3rd in
Golden Shaheen vs. colts in Dubai
Cons - Strictly sprinter, finished 6th in BC Sprint, well-beaten in only
two-turn race
Zenyatta
Pros - Undefeated in 17 starts, first female to win the Breeders' Cup
Classic, defeated 8 grade/group-I winning males, champion older
mare twice, won BC Ladies Classic, Apple Blossom twice,
Vanity three times, won 11 grade I stakes, won Vanity under 129
pounds, first horse to win two different Breeders' Cup races
Cons - 15 of 17 starts have been on synthetic surfaces
Also-eligible
Airman's Guide, Ajina, Ambassador of Luck, Banshee Breeze, Beautiful Pleasure, Berlo, Caesar's Wish, Cascapedia, Chou Croute, Christmas Past, Cum Laude Laurie, Dainty Dotsie, Dearly Precious, Escena, Flanders, Fleet Indian, Forward Gal, Furl Sail, Ginger Punch, Gold Beauty, Goodbye Halo, Happy Ticket, Heavenly Prize, Hidden Lake, Hollywood Wildcat, Jewel Princess, Lady Pitt, Lakeway, Lamb Chop, Landaluce, La Prevoyante, Late Bloomer, Life's Magic, Lite Light, Meadow Star, Moccasin, Office Queen, Open Fire, Optimistic Gal, Our Mims, Politely, Priceless Gem, Princessnesian, Relaxing, Revidere, Riboletta, Sacahuista, Sharp Cat, Sightseek, Spain, Summer Guest, Surfside, Tempest Queen, Terlingua, Tizna. Track Robbery, Typecast, Versailles Treaty, What a Summer, What a Treat, Yanks Music
Regional (non-stakes) heroines: Hallowed Dreams (won 16 straight, 25 of 30 in La.), Peppers Pride (19 for 19 all in New Mexico vs. N.M.-breds).
