Rachel will Rock and Zenyatta will Roll

The days are being crossed off the calendar with careful precision. Hopeful fingers turn the page to peek at the month of April and more specifically at the circled date. Circled many times as to highlight the magnitude of what will happen on April 9, 2010. We are only four weeks away from an affair that can reasonably be called the most anticipated race in nearly four score. Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta have transcended their contemporaries on the track both male and female, and even more telling, they each compare favorably to any female horse to ever set foot on an American racetrack. They are racehorses who have each captured the imagination of racing fans worldwide and are so popular they are attracting new fans to the game on a daily basis. In four weeks, these titans of the track, these goddesses of great racing, will collide in an epic battle that will forever be remembered by millions. Judgement Day. We are close…but not quite there yet. The main hurdle to the magnificent meeting happens tomorrow. What do you call the day before judgement day? Perhaps March 13 will suffice for now. Tomorrow sees Rachel Alexandra make her first start in more than six months in the newly created New Orleans Ladies while thousands of miles away, Zenyatta returns after more than four months in the Santa Margarita Handicap. We all expect Rachel to rock and Zenyatta to roll, but what if they don’t? What if the unspeakable happens? What if some how, some way, one of them is beaten? I know…blasphemy, but after all these years of following the sport, you come to realize that there are no sure things. There is a precedent for this sort of thing to happen. In 1973, a new race was created to bring together Lucien Laurin’s two great stars. The race, called the Marlboro Cup, would pit the all-time great sophomore Secretariat, and the top older horse in the nation and his stablemate, Riva Ridge. A funny thing happened on the way to the super race though. Secretariat was shocked by Onion and Riva Ridge was surprised by Wichita Oil in their last race before the big one. It did take a little luster off the match-up, but nonetheless a great field was assembled and The Marlboro Cup of 1973 was run, and Secretariat proceeded to run a great race to beat Riva Ridge by 3 ½ lengths, crushing the previous world record for 1 1/8 in the process. Are there any Onions or Wichita Oils in tomorrow’s races? In the New Orleans Ladies, Rachel faces a small field of four. There are two fillies in the supporting cast that interest me. Clear Sailing is an impeccably bred and lightly raced four-year-old who has gotten better in each of her four starts. She is coming off an impressive late running win in the Pelleteri Stakes and continued improvement could see her become a major player in the older female division this year. The other contender of interest is none other than a John Shirreff’s trained six-year-old mare named Zardana. Zardana has shown marked improvement since a switch off the grass, including an easy win in the Grade 2 Bayakoa at Hollywood Park. Her connections must have high hopes for her on the dirt, to ship her cross country for this one and then probably the Apple Blossom. Real threats to Rachel? Only if the great one is not near her best. In the Santa Margarita, Zenyatta faces a bigger field than Rachel and will also have to spot her rivals 12 pounds or more. Much as in the New Orleans Ladies, her competition appears up to be up against things, but there are a few fillies with some merit. The first three finishers in the recent Grade 2 La Canada are back to see if they can build on their recent success. Striking Dancer ran her best race to date in taking home the win in the La Canada, but it is the fillies who ran 2nd and 3rd that day, that may offer the big Z the most resistance. Second place finisher Gripsholm Castle made her first appearance stateside in the La Canada. Any improvement at all for the English import could make her the horse for Zenyatta to beat. The filly who finished third that day, Floating Heart, has yet to win a stakes race, but is still relatively lightly raced and had some traffic to deal with last time. She may be ready to run her best race yet, and against Zenyatta, they will all clearly need to their career best to have a chance at upset. Will either of the stars lose? Highly unlikely in my experienced eyes. I expect them each to show us why we all hold them in such very high regard. Wins by both Rachel and Zenyatta would make the Happening at Hot Springs that much closer to reality. Let’s sit back and watch greatness tomorrow. My prediction: Rachel will rock and Zenyatta will roll.