Rachel is gonna RUN!

Finally! After the sale! After the jockey decision! After all the drama! All the ridiculous "collusion" and "plots" to keep her out of the race! It looks like she really is gonna make it to the Preakness on Saturday! Which means the BOYS had better WATCH OUT!

I honestly cannot imagine a horse on this EARTH - male, female or "other" LOL - beating this filly! Seriously. I have NEVER seen a horse like her in my lifetime! That's saying a lot! Granted I was not around when the ill-fated Ruffian ran, or Secretariat, or Seattle Slew or even Affirmed. But I think Rachel Alexandra might be right up there with that crowd - for sure!

Now I may be over hyping her just a bit because she didn't have a lot of competition in the Oaks on May 1st. Had Stardom Bound or Justwhistledixie made it maybe it wouldn't have been such a HUGE victory (I mean, 20 1/4 lengths is INSANE for ANY race ... let alone a race like the Kentucky Oaks!). We don't know if she could beat a proven mare like Zenyatta even ... boy would I pay good money to see that race! I'd fly across the WORLD to see it in person if I could!

But just as we saw Rags to Riches spin in the almighty Curlin's face on Belmont day two years ago ... I think we are going to see Rachel absolutely RUN AWAY from these boys in a few days. If not, I will gladly eat my words! I think the whole industry will. She is a freak. A tank. She is bigger than most of these colts (and geldings - counting the Derby winner, Mine that Bird). No reason at all to think she can't run with them ... and past them!

I cannot wait for Saturday afternoon! The sport needs this, desperately! A breath of fresh air! It's going to be great!! GO RACHEL!!! I just wish she had run on May 2nd instead of May 1st, because I swear ... not only would we be potentially looking at a superstar filly, we would be looking at our first Triple Crown winner in 29 years and our first Triple Crown winning FILLY in the history of the sport!

Just wait and see! :)

Calvin will be looking over his shoulder again on Saturday ... but it will be his Derby winning mount Mine that Bird, and the rest of the boys, who will be BEHIND him this time!

Speaking of Calvin, he's on Jay Leno tonight! Can't wait to see him ... love it when he gets this kind of recognition. The man is a legend, truly. Too underrated in our sport and I'm thrilled that he's getting the limelight again, just like he did in 2007 with Street Sense. Couldn't happen to a better guy!

Derby less than 20 hours away ... but today was all about the LADIES (and WOW)!

All I can say is ... Oh. My. GOD!

Rachel Alexandra might just be the best horse of my lifetime (so far). Just. WOW. There are no words. I knew she was good but ... holy crap! You just have to see for yourself! YOU REALLY HAVE TO SEE IT TO BELIEVE IT!!



The next Ruffian. Maybe even better. She is an absolute FREAK (for those who don't know, in horse racing, that is a GOOD thing)!

To win by 20+ lengths without Calvin Borel even TOUCHING her is just ... indescribable. Truly! Un-be-liev-able! We probably haven't seen anything that impressive since Secretariat's 31-length romp in the Belmont Stakes and that was 36 years ago!!! It's not the distance by which she won, it's HOW she won. Completely in-hand, with no urging at all. I swear she didn't even break a sweat! To win by that much with so little effort is almost frightening!

Calvin is always a joy to watch anyway, but to see him on this filly is even more exciting because she is just so ... above and beyond anything we've seen in so long! Can't imagine there is anything she CAN'T do!

Wow!

I highly doubt any of the colts running in a few hours in the Derby will come close to matching this performance. In fact, I can almost guarantee they won't touch what she has done here. That, my friends, is the safest bet you can make today - for certain!

As for the Derby itself ... the track conditions are screaming for Friesan Fire to waltz home with the roses. But I'm not giving up on Dunkirk, I Want Revenge or even Pioneerof the Nile quite so easily. I just wish all of my earliest favorites hadn't been pulled out of the race because I have NEVER been this indecisive about a Derby - at least not in recent memory. In 9+ years, not since FuPeg, have I not had a pick for the Derby on the night before. This is rare. We'll see what happens tomorrow!

More girl power?

The more I watch Stardom Bound, the more I wonder whether or not they will point her toward the Derby or the Oaks.

Just look at this flawless workout she had yesterday:



She is maturing beautifully. She has a fantastic closing style, just like Zenyatta. She was brilliant in the BC Juvenile Fillies and just as spectacular in the Oak Leaf. Never out of the money (never worse than 2nd)!

Granted. She'd have to get the perfect trip in order to take the Derby ...

Then again, considering so many of the top three-year-olds seem to be front runners, she might be able to just sit at the back of the pack all by herself and wait for the huge wall to just break down in front of her!

It's been 21 years since a filly has taken the Derby (RIP my beloved Winning Colors). We almost saw it last year, but witnessed tragedy instead with Eight Belles collapsing after her impressive second place finish. Of course we had Rags to Riches winning the Belmont in 2007, not sure anything can ever top that brilliant moment - especially considering she beat the "almighty" Curlin in that thrilling stretch duel! Zenyatta was, and is, a pleasure to watch - but sadly she missed out on the fame of the Triple Crown races.

Who knows. Maybe Stardom Bound can get the job done. What would be really something is if a filly could go ALL the way. Whether she heads to the Oaks or hits the Triple Crown trail, one thing is for sure. The greys are looking mighty strong this year!!

Looking forward to her three-year-old debut this Saturday! Let's see what this girl can do!