Rachel Alexandra (116 Beyer for Haskell)

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by freddymo

Oh the scary sports writers who focus on racing 20 minutes a year are going to write nasty uninformed and mostly unread editorials.. Imagine that.. Come on bro if you are going to rep something can you get a little more into it then Bill Rhoden is going to tell America racing sucks!
The real reason trainers don't run fillies against colts is because 99% of the time they aren't good enough to beat them and financially it doesn't make sense. When the sport does have a filly that truly is extraordinary we do tend to see them against colts. There just isn't a SUPER filly every year. If you had a colts like Easy Goer and Sunday Silience or maybe even Hard Spun, Street Sense, and Curlin you might not even have seen Rachel against those types..

The sport needs Zenyatta vs. Rachel on dirt at 9f's period. This Breeders Cup is a dead issue..The b team from Europe is going to win whatever it needs to. You are trying to make chicken salad from Chicken sheat.. Poly is a third surface..It shouldn't be treated as dirt. Dirt horses shouldn't be forced to run on it.. Why not just run all the races on grass?

Running Rachel on Pro ride is not in the best interest of Rachel and running her on it doesn't prove or help anything.. You want some half assed grass horse that is 6 and a Group 2 winner to come her and beat Rachel on the line?? For what to prove it isn't her best surface?

The problem with the modern race fan is your last statement. For some reason fans have bought into the bs that a great horse never loses. The fact is that the great horses are the ones that accomplished great things. If Rachel Alexander were to win the BC on the "third surface" against whatever they throw at her she actually would have a claim to being a historically great horse unlike Curlin who was never more than a good three year old and decent handicap horse regardless of the BC result. If she were to lose you are going in with a built in excuse. If she were to win she would be a legend. And no she isnt one yet by beating a couple of 2nd rate Birdstones and a three horse field.