Rags To Riches - History In The Making The filly most likely to be the best of her sex on the planet made history on Saturday night taking the 139th running of the Belmont Stakes in outstanding fashion. Owned by Coolmore connections Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith the daughter of A.P.Indy has won her last five starts including four Gr1 victories. The sole defeat for Rags To Riches came at her only 2yo outing over an unsuitable six furlongs. That was her only race as a juvenile.
At Belmont the race had been billed as a battle of the sexes with Rags To Riches taking on the colts and Preakness winner Curlin. A huge crowd turned up to witness the possibilty of a filly taking the New York classic for the first time in over 100 years. They were almost disappointed in the style of heavyweight title fight ticket holders when Rags To Tiches stumbled and almost fell as she left the gates. It would have amounted to a TKO in round one.
The filly recovered quickly though and didn't lose a lot of ground on the back of a steady leader gallop. After the slow pace up front the race opened up again in the same style of every Triple Crown event this season. Hard Spun made the first move but was being tracked all the way by Rags To Riches. Curlin was ridden quietly along the rail and he soon joined that pair on their inside. Naturally the speedster Hard Spun had been dislocating his jockeys arm sockets throughout the race and he soon gave up the fight. This trip was never likely to suit him. A mile looks the go for the son of Danzig.
Rags To Riches swept up four wide and drew a clear margin on Curlin in the straight but the game colt kept on coming. It may be the first campaign for the son of Smart Strike but he's a real pro. The fans roared as the margin narrowed lifting the roof off the Belmont granstand. There was barely clear daylight between the pair on the wire but the filly had certainly won and the crowd was ecstatic. The NY fans had finally received what they had often come to see over the years - history in the making.
It wasn't a Triple Crown winner saluting, something much rarer had been achieved and the paying customers loved it. Trainer Todd Pletcher was a happy and relieved man. He had baulked at running his star filly in the Kentucky Derby so she was left to lap her own sex in the Oaks instead. Pletcher had a huge team in the Derby anyway but none managed a placing. The decision to run at Belmont had been left to Pletcher alone by his high profile clients. The leading handler waited until four days before the race to make his mind up. Pletcher finally gave the green light and the filly became his first Triple Crown winner after twenty eight failed attempts.
Better Than Honour ( by Deputy Minister ) the dam of Rags To Riches has created history of her own. She now has consecutive foals winning the Belmont after her son Jazil took the race last year. That's no mean feat on its own. The US$1.9 million paid for the Rags To Riches now looks relatively cheap. I suspect the next sibling to hit the auction ring will make substantially more.
Rags To Riches has the name and the profile to attract the attention of sports fans in the USA. It's a great story for racing. The battle now looks set to continue in the build up to the 2007 Breeders Cup Classic. Round one belongs to the superstar filly. Folks will be milking this race for months to come. Real life drama always provides the best publicity. One suspects many single ladies a la Sex In The City were rampant in Manhattan on Saturday night but the battle of the sexes had already been run and won at Belmont. Round two promises a lot. I hope it can deliver.
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