Jerome & Ann Moss's Zenyatta didn't disappoint the gathering of 44,973 fans at Oaklawn on Friday afternoon
as the big champion daughter of Street Cry lagged behind her four rivals until the final turn, then looped the field to gain command at the head of the stretch and ease her way clear to a four-and-a-quarter lengths victoy in the $500,000 Apple Blossom Invitational at a mile-and-an-eighth.
In perhaps the most popular victory in Oaklawn history, the John Shirreffs trainee put on a spectacular show from the outset. She did her famous strut in front of the grandstand when she first arrived to the paddock, then performed the most unpredictable bow to the introduction of track announcer, Terry Wallace, that any of the veteran racetrackers pressed up against the rail to view, had ever seen.
The issue was truly never in doubt. Although her competition managed to back up the pace to a leisurely :24, :48, 1:12.3 for the first six furlongs, they were no competition for the charge of the champion and her jockey Mike Smith as they raced down the middle of the track. Sanders & Hirsch's Taptam, who dueled on the lead with Westrock Stable's Be Fair through the early fractions, did finish best of the rest, topping Be Fair by a length-and-a-half at the wire. Be Fair, Just Jenda and War Echo followed the others home without menacing at any point.
Sent postward as the 1-20 favorite, Zenyatta returned payoffs of $2.10 and $2.10. There was no show wagering. The $2 exacta combining Zenyatta and Taptam was worth $18, while the $1 trifecta of Zenyatta, Taptam and Be Fair returned $24.30.
For the undefeated Zenyatta the win was her sixteenth straight, equalling the record she now jointly holds with Cigar and Citation, for wins in unrestricted racing without defeat.Zenyatta established a stakes record of 1:50.3, since this was the first time in its 45-year history that the Apple Blossom was run at a mile-and-an-eighth.
(Oaklawn Park)