To Disqualify or not to Disqualify

A huge holiday weekend of racing is near complete, and like it or not the overriding them of the big races was the unenviable decisions needed to be made by the stewards. The biggest race of the weekend worldwide was certainly the Japan Cup, and the result was a disqualification. Buena Vista was taken down after impeding the path of 2nd place finisher Rose Kingdom. Meanwhile back in the States, one of the key stakes was Friday’s Grade 1 Clark Handicap, and that one also featured a horse being handed the top spot by the stewards. Taking a closer look at the two situations reveals the difficult decisions left to the stewards. Top European jockey Christophe Soumillion piloted the great Japanese filly Buena Vista to a seemingly easy victory in the Japan Cup. Not so fast my friends, for after the race a lengthy inquiry ensued. Eventually the review resulted in a disqualification of the impressive winner. It was determined that she had impeded the progress of Rose Kingdom, also of Japan, and ridden by Yutaka Take, as she was sweeping to the lead in the stretch. To the credit of Rose Kingdom, he did come on strong to get up for 2nd on the wire, after checking briefly from the incident. This photo became important when the inquiry sign went up. More than 100,000 on-track fans would find just how crucial some 24 minutes later when the decision was finally announced. The $5.8 million dollar race had been reversed. Rose Kingdom was declared the Japan Cup winner and favored Buena Vista was placed 2nd. In the Clark, Successful Dan was a handful the entire race, fighting with jockey Julien Leparoux from the very beginning. Clearly he was a horse who was not happy being restrained. Eventually he would cause major trouble and he wasn’t the only one. It looked like it was going to be a fantastic finish until Demarcation, holding a slim advantage nearing the eighth pole, suddenly made a left turn. He sharply squeezed off his Paul McGee trained stablemate, Dubious Miss, causing a dangerous situation near the rail. Meanwhile, Successful Dan just behind the leading pack, and still full of run, swerved to the outside, solidly bumping Redding Colliery. Once clear, Successful Dan went on to a game win over late-running Giant Oak, best by a head at the wire. After a long delay, the stewards ruled a double DQ, and Successful Dan and Demarcation both came down. Giant Oak became the winner, Successful Dan was placed 3rd and Demarcation went to last. Big races and tough decisions. Made tougher because the best horse hit the wire first in both the Japan Cup and the Clark. Should Successful Dan and Buena Vista have been taken down? My answer is yes and no. Successful Dan’s number should have dropped because of the rather severe bumping of Redding Colliery. I am leery of taking down a horse in a grade 1 race, when it is pretty clear the best horse won, but in this case, the infraction was obvious enough to declare Giant Oak the winner. The punishment fit the crime, and jockey Julien Leparoux has since been suspended. In the Japan Cup, however, I am not nearly as agreeable with the steward’s decision. Did Buena Vista come over and impede Rose Kingdom to some extent? Absolutely. Was it enough to take down an easy winner of one of the biggest races in the world. Not by a long shot. If I owned Buena Vista I would be sick right now (luckily they owned the horse who was put up as well). She was much the best in the rich and prestigious Japan Cup. After 24 minutes the decision makers got it wrong. Taking Buena Vista down for her petty crime was nothing short of criminal.

Rachel, Zenyatta, Goldikova, Ventura, and Vodka

2009 will forever be known as the Year of the Filly and the Mare. The final year of the century’s opening decade has included the greatest string of performances by the female set in the history of racing. Today in Japan, it was more of the same, as Vodka won a thrilling edition of the Japan Cup. Yet another example of female domination that has been visible everywhere you look this year. Rachel Alexandra has proven to be the best three-year-old of either gender in America. Her undefeated season included historic wins in the Preakness, Haskell, and Woodward. In each of those races she bested a loaded field of males and in the Haskell she defeated the soon to be champion three-year-old colt, Summer Bird, by an eye-catching six lengths. Zenyatta, the five-year-old supermare, became racing’s Queen, by capping her season with an impressive score in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. The win likely ended the career, of the daughter of Street Cry, in spectacular and perfect fashion. Her 14 for 14 career record will go down in the annals of racing. Goldikova proved once again that she is the finest miler in the world as she repeated her smashing success of last year in the Breeders’ Cup Mile. The French mare reportedly will come back for one more year and try to become the first ever three-time Breeders’ Cup champion. If anyone can give Goldikova a run for her money at a mile, it very could well be a mare, not a male. Ventura’s win in the Woodbine Mile was the most impressive middle distance turf race run in North America, save Goldikova in the Breeders’ Cup. Yesterday Ventura put a gold stamp on her marvelous career with an impressive win in the Matriarch Stakes at Hollywood Park. Today in one of the world’s richest races, girl power was in full force once again. The wonderful five-year-old mare, Vodka surged in mid-stretch and then held off a furious rally by her younger male opponent Oken Bruce Lee and won Japan’s most prestigious race. Great success is nothing new for the daughter of Tanino Gimlet. In 2006, Vodka was the champion juvenile filly in Japan. The following year she became the first filly to win the Japanese Derby in 64 years. In 2008, Vodka was named Japan’s Horse of the Year, a title she very well may defend after yesterday’s stirring victory. Sent off as the favorite in front of nearly 100,000 fans, many whom were there to root on the mare they adore, Vodka needed every ounce of her talent and courage to get the job done. Vodka stalked the early pace and waited patiently to make her move until mid-stretch. She displayed an explosive turn of foot and opened up a quick daylight lead and the race was hers to win. Distance loving Oken Bruce Lee, the second choice in the 18-horse field, suddenly appeared in the middle of the track and it was soon clear that Japan’s heroine would be in for an immense struggle. Oken Bruce Lee was flying and gaining on Vodka with every powerful stride. As they hit the wire, it was too close to call. Vodka and her younger male counterpart and everyone watching would have to wait for the photo decision. It was Vodka, by a desperate nose. The Japan Cup was the biggest of her seven grade 1 wins and the great mare has now won 10 of her 25 races, a record that was compiled against the best Japan racing has to offer, including consistently running against the males. For her career, Vodka has now won more than $13 million, with approximately $2.8 million coming from today’s victory. The win was sweet redemption for Vodka who was 4th and 3rd in the previous two runnings of the Japan Cup. This is most likely her final race, leaving a tremendous void for the Japanese race fans. Her popularity is to such a point that there is serious talk that Vodka will replace Sake as the national drink in Japan. Today we do what we have been doing all year long … raise your glass with me to toast Vodka and all the wonderful female champions of 2009.