Nashoba's Key races

[The Indomitable DrugS]

It's amazing that none of Nashoba's Key's synthetic races are on YouTube.

She's easily our 2nd best synthetic female of all-time and arguably our 2nd best Synthetic horse ever - male of female.

She was 4-for-4 lifetime on Syn - with two Grade 1 wins and two Grade 2 wins - all of which were stylish and came with very strong figures.

The big match-up with undefeated Zenyatta was supposed to come on March 9th 2008.

$300,000 Santa Margarita Invitational Handicap (gr. I, Race 9, 4:30 p.m.), Fillies & Mares 4 & Up, 1 1/8 Miles (All Weather)
PP. Horse, Weight, Jockey
1. Sweet Belle (KY), 114, Tyler Baze
2. Double Trouble (BRZ), 117, Rafael Bejarano
3. Good Mood (IRE), 113, Michael C. Baze
4. Say You Will (IRE), 114, Joseph Talamo
5. Dawn After Dawn (FL), 116, Victor Espinoza
6. Zenyatta (KY), 116, David R. Flores
7. Down (MD), 113, Martin Garcia
8. Nashoba's Key (CA), 122, Garrett K. Gomez

Nashoba's Key was the morning line favorite - but lightly raced Zenyatta was going to get 6lbs in a 9 furlong Handicap and I thought she was every bit as good as NK.

The match-up never happened.

March 10, 2008|Bob Mieszerski,

Those who were looking forward to a showdown between Nashoba's Key and the undefeated Zenyatta will have to wait for another day.

Saying the 4-year-old Street Cry filly wasn't 100% ready after missing some training, trainer John Shirreffs scratched Zenyatta, who is three for three for owners Jerry and Ann Moss, from the $300,000 Santa Margarita Handicap on Sunday at Santa Anita.

With no Zenyatta - Nashoba's Key took the Grade 1 race by 4.5 lengths - a big margin of victory considering Zenyatta's never won by more than 3.5 lengths in any one of her 15 lifetime synthetic wins.

I was tar and feathered after the race for saying Zenyatta probably still would have beat her anyway. Shirreffs just scracted because he wanted to prove to everyone he's more cautious than even Bobby Frankel.

Obviously Nashoba's Key died in a stall accident right after the race and the big match-up never happened.

Here are links to videos I found on DRF of two of Nashoba's Key's four syn wins.

* The Zenyatta-less 2008 Santa Margarita: http://www.drf.com/displayVideo.do?t...=D&country=USA

* Her amazing win over Zenyatta's half sister Balance at Del Mar. Victor Espinoza trapped her behind an impossibly slow pace and she rolled home despite a terrible setup: http://www.drf.com/displayVideo.do?t...=D&country=USA