Does Zenyatta’s Breeders’ Cup Classic Loss Diminish Her Greatness?
Added on Nov 06, 2010 by Jack Thurman in
9 Comments
By now everyone knows that horse racing’s superstar mare Zenyatta came up just short in her quest for perfection, finishing a close second to Blame in today’s Breeders’ Cup Classic. Before the race there were countless articles proclaiming that a victory would solidify her place as an all time great, but despite not getting a perfect Hollywood ending to what is likely her final race her effort in today’s Classic sure didn’t do much to diminish her legacy.
Full disclosure–I’m a huge Zenyatta fan. Watching her race over the past few years has been one of the most pleasurable experiences during my lifetime of following horse racing. Her 2009 Breeders’ Cup Classic win along with Secretariat’s 1973 domination at the Belmont are #1 and #1A on the list of greatest horse racing moments of my lifetime. Trevor Denman’s call of Zenyatta’s victory is downright iconic and as he said at the time ‘If she wins this she’ll be a super horse’. She definitely did nothing over the course of the 2010 season to diminish Denman’s assessment. Still, I wasn’t ready to put Zenyatta atop horse racing pantheon of legends before this year’s Breeders’ Cup and I wouldn’t have even if she’d won.
So where does she rank and should we even bother worrying about it? On one level, this kind of discussion is fascinating and part of what makes the fandom of any sport enjoyable. Wilt vs. Shaq. Ruth vs. Bonds. Howe vs. Gretzky. Ali vs. Tyson. Arnie vs. Nicklaus vs. Tiger. On another level, however, it’s always going to be a futile endeavor. The NFL Network recently profiled their Top 100 players of all time–Jerry Rice won ahead of Jim Brown, Lawrence Taylor, Joe Montana and Walter Payton. Rice was no doubt the greatest wide receiver that ever played the game and deserves to be in the ‘best ever’ conversation due to the sheer number of NFL records he holds–many of which will never be broken. He’s got a separate Wikipedia page just to list them all, and its worth a look for the sheer mind boggling volume of them.
I have no problem with Rice being #1 but the problems inherent in such a list are immediately obvious. Rice ran the most beautiful routes in the history of the game, but he also benefited from working with some top flight quarterbacks including Montana and Steve Young. Then again, you can make the case that Young and Montana benefited as much from having Rice catching their passes. But then again, Rice has benefited from the dramatic transformation of the game in recent decades and the greater emphasis on passing. Jim Brown deserves a mention, to be sure, but he opens the ‘problem with comparisons across different eras’ can of worms. He played against defenders that were slower and smaller than they are now. How would he have fared against today’s fleet footed monsters? How much better would he have been with the benefit of modern training and nutrition? And what about Taylor? He had no shortage of off field problems but, on the other hand, completely revolutionized how defense is played in the NFL. Rice may have been the beneficiary of a change in how the game is played, but LT was the catalyst and in his prime arguably the most unstoppable defensive force in league history. Walter Payton was not only one of the greatest running backs ever, but a member of in my opinion the greatest NFL team of all time–the 1985 Bears. Before that, however, he languished as the only offensive option for some forgettable Chicago teams. Should that elevate or diminish him? Does Peyton Manning–one of 8 active players to make the list–deserve to be ranked so high at #8 ahead of Roger Staubach, Dan Marino and Steve Young? Should Randy Moss and Fran Tarkenton be on the list at all?
You get the point–when you start trying to rank ‘the greatest ever’ you’re starting more arguments than you’re settling. Horse racing, with its long history, worldwide popularity and competition divided by gender, age, class and racing surface–among other things–may present an even greater challenge than the NFL. We can start with something simple–if you could make a case for Zenyatta ranking among the all-time greats yesterday when she had 19 wins in 19 races the fact that she now has 19 wins and 1 place in 20 races shouldn’t change that. Every great competitor in every sport not named ‘Rocky Marciano’ has tasted defeat.
Zenyatta provides the perfect example for another problem in determining ‘greatest ever’ not only in horse racing but any other sport–I call it ‘bias of advanced communication technology’. Many horse racing experts argue that Man O War is the greatest ever and he’s certainly in the discussion. Of course he raced in the early part of the 20th century and none of us were alive then or, at the very least, old enough to remember it. Even if we *had* been, it’s not like we had HD television with 24 hour horse racing networks or the Internet. Head over to YouTube and see how little footage of any kind you can come up with on arguably the greatest racehorse in history, let alone quality footage. Even the available footage of Secretariat’s 1973 Belmont domination isn’t particularly great.
Now contrast that with the coverage of Zenyatta. You can head over to YouTube and find every race she’s ever run, many in flawless high-def. You can see footage of her workouts, her post parades, even her just hanging out at the track. This is both a blessing and a curse for evaluation purposes. People–even experts in a given field–have a natural bias to that which they’ve personally witnessed. I’ve read about how great Man O War was, but I’ve got Zenyatta’s 2009 Breeders’ Cup win on my iPad. I’ve watched the footage of that race at least once a week over the past year and it still gives me chills. How can I objectively compare a performance that I’ve experienced on such an emotional and visceral level with what I’ve only read about? The upside, of course, is that future generations of equine enthusiasts won’t have to dig through grainy newsreel footage or second hand newspaper accounts to learn about Zenyatta and her contemporaries.
So the answer is that there is no answer. Zenyatta definitely ranks among the all time great race horses based on a number of metrics. I still consider Secretariat ‘the best ever’ but as many others will argue his record outside of his Triple Crown win isn’t overly impressive. In the big picture, the discussion is the important thing–its something that horse racing fans should enjoy and not get too worked up about. Zenyatta brings positive publicity and media attention to the sport and that’s great. If the question of her place within the historical context of racing greatness inspires new fans to dig into the fascinating history of the sport all the better. Hunter S. Thompson once said ‘Buy the ticket, take the ride.’ Jack Thurman would like to add ‘Enjoy the ride, and don’t worry too much about what it means.’
9 Comments
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November 6, 11:46 pm
in no way is her greatness diminished! This is a true, beautiful champion and will always be one of the best to take the field ever! What a fabulous horse!
November 7, 1:33 am
No argument here. One of the more amazing things about Zenyatta is how much she resonated with people who otherwise don’t follow horse racing. My mom probably never watched a horse race in her life before this year and she became a huge Zenyatta fan. She’s definitely ‘one for the ages’.
November 7, 8:26 am
The winning time was 2:02 and 1/5 for 10 furlongs yesterday in the Breeder’s Cup Classic. Even if Zenyatta had won by a head (instead of losing by a head), considering that 1/5 of a second equates to a length, that would put Zenyatta FOURTEEN LENGTHS behind Secretariat, the Greatest Horse Ever, who ran it in 1:59 2/5 in the 1973 Derby, on the same track, even while giving up ground on the turn to circle the field……
November 7, 3:57 pm
Secretariat was the fastest horse the world ever witnessed and his triple crown performance was and still is without doubt in the top few most dominant performances in sport’s history. But to argue that Zenyatta is not as great as Secretariat because she was not as fast is to miss the essence of what makes her one of the greatest horses in thoroughbred history.
Zenyatta has perhaps the greatest heart of any racehorse any of us will ever see. There was never a challenge put before her that she didn’t rise to magnficently, and NINETEEN OUT OF TWENTY TIMES, she defeated all her challengers. Last night she rose once again to that challenge. Her nose didn’t finish in front, but it didn’t need to. She put on a show that was fantastically thrilling.
Zenyatta isn’t satisified with just putting on a show in her races. She shows heart to every person who is privileged to spend time in her presence. And when the spotlight is shining upon her and the crowd is roaring, again she doesn’t let us down. She prances and preens and revels in her glory. Zenyatta never needs an opening act. From the opening of the track on is all there is. This wasn’t a manufactured stardom. She earned every bit of it.
In the history of thoroughbred racing, no one will remember the good horse that edged out Zenyatta. What they will remember is the great filly who won and won and won, and danced, even in defeat.
I am sorry to see Zenyatta retire for one reason. I think she really knows that the cheering is for her, and there will be no cheering on the farm. I cannot help but believe that she will miss it.
They can give the Horse of the Year award to Blame. It doesn’t matter. Zenyatta is one of a kind, and like Secretariat, we will never see another like her.
November 7, 4:55 pm
She probably run the best race of her life, three more strides and she would have been the winner instead. You could see she wasn’t used to get the dirt kicked in her face and it took her more than a half a mile before she started to level off. You can’t compare the times, because the dirt track varies so much from day to day and depending on if they tightening it up or not to make it slower or faster. Years ago they didn’t care as much about the safety of the horses and tightened the track up just to set new track records. Far as I concern she is defenitily on the same level as Secretariat. Two super horses with enormous big heart.
November 8, 10:09 am
If Zenyatta had run in the 1973 Belomt Stakes, she would have had an awesome view of the Greatest Horse Ever, as she followed him around the track
November 8, 12:56 pm
It’s amazing to me that Secretariat’s track records, world records, titles, and championships are somehow not much much greater than a horse who generated a lot of excitement, has some nifty dance moves, and won a lot of races against so-so competition. If style is somehow on a par with substance in horse racing history, then I would like to add Mister Ed, Trigger, and that diving horse in Atlantic City for consideration as the greatest ever
November 8, 6:19 pm
Now, Dave, I fundamentally agree with you–I have a hard time putting any horse above Secretariat certainly in my lifetime (though I was too young to remember it firsthand)–but let’s not diminish what Zenyatta has done. You’re obviously a horse racing enthusiast as am I, and I don’t know how anyone can watch Zenyatta’s 2009 Breeders’ Cup classic and not get chills. Secretariat’s 73 Belmont is IMO the most dominant performance in racing history, but Zenyatta’s BC win is IMO the most exciting. I have a hard time calling the horse she edged out for the victory, Gio Ponti, and horses like Mine That Bird, Quality Road among others as ‘second rate competition’.
As someone who loves horse racing, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed Zenyatta’s rise to superstardom over the past couple of years. You’re right that she’d have had a great view of ‘Big Red’s’ business end had she been in the 73 Belmont, but so would every other horse that has ever lived. Speed figures weren’t in use then, but Andrew Beyer–who essentially invented them–has calculated Secretariat’s 73 Belmont as a 139–a figure that no horse has come close to since. If memory serves, there’s only been one horse to post a 130+ Beyer and it wasn’t in a Grade 1 stakes race.
I’d agree that Zenyatta doesn’t come close to surpassing Secretariat’s accomplishments, but she’s fun to watch, great for the sport and a hell of competitor in her own right. Don’t let the hysterical rush by some to proclaim her ‘the best ever’ keep you appreciating her for what she is.
November 8, 6:29 pm
I was rooting for her Jack.