Despite Covid-19 and a plethora of industry issues the horse racing world has successfully adopted and implemented a “the show goes on philosophy.” This weekend it proved to be a treat.
Another exciting weekend of thoroughbred racing is in the books during the age of Covid-19, and we were able to witness some great performances. None more so than the first and maybe last Preakness in October and the brilliant Swiss Skydiver, expertly piloted by Robby Albarado, holding off the Kentucky Derby winner Authentic the length of the stretch stirring memories of Sunday Silence and Easy Goer. What made this even more remarkable was that this was the second fastest Preakness ever! Now in fairness the race ran more than three months later in the year than the others so naturally the horses are more mature and stronger. That being said this one will be talked about for years to come as the modern day iron filly continues to amaze, running at her ninth different track for the year and delivering a scintillating performance to win the Triple Crown jewel.
We also were treated to the return of horse heaven, aka Keeneland where many promising youngsters continued the tradition of flaunting their talents. There were upsets galore in many of the stake races and in most instances, particularly the turf mile division, the waters are as murky now than before the weekend as I would be at a loss to name a leader of this division. This all adds to the intrigue of the Breeders Cup a month from now, and that will be exciting.
Those of us that got up early enough on Sunday got to witness the great Enable make a valiant effort at winning a third Arc de Triomphe, however it was not to be. The heavy ground seemed more than she could handle, and one particularly obnoxious rival appeared to try to savage the brilliant mare in the stretch. All in all she has had a wonderful career and we can all look forward to seeing her offspring on course in a few years. Sottsass won the race for US based owner Peter Brant. I hoped we’d get to see him here in Lexington for the Breeders’ Cup but his retirement was announced shortly after the impressive win.
Next weekend we have some wonderful races at Belmont that should be competitive and provide us with some great entertainment on the holiday weekend. Until next time, enjoy the races!
