This Week in Racing: 2-year-old Engage could be a good one

I will never watch the Canadian International without thinking about the great horse. Big Red's final career race came north of the border, and it was a perfect way to go out. Secretariat was at his dominant best that afternoon at Woodbine, winning the 1973 edition the way a champion should. Controlled by European shippers the last several years, who whould have ever thought that an American-trained gelding would look just a little bit like the greatest horse I ever saw, while rolling down the E.P Taylor stretch yesterday afternoon? Bullards Alley took to the soft Canadian turf like a fish to water, and the result was stunning. The 5-year-old son of Flower's Alley won the big race by a pole at odds of better than 40-1, and in so doing, he earned one of the sport's good guys his first career Grade 1 victory. Tim Glyshaw is having a big October ... here's hoping the industry takes notice. Bullards Alley is ZATT's Star of the Week!

A few races back I opined that Rubilinda is my early selection for the 2018 Breeders' Cup Mile at Churchill Downs. When you pick a winner well more than a year out, it's clearly a bit of a shot in the dark, but more than anything, it was my way of saying that this young turf filly has a world of potential. Saturday at Belmont Park, she took another step forward by winning the Pebbbles Stakes. The daughter of the spectacular Frankel was forced four wide around the far turn while making an explosive burst to the lead. It looked like she might win for fun. Alas, that did not happen, as she was all out to hold off Party Boat on the wire. In earning her second stakes win for trainer Chad Brown, Rubilinda showed some of the potential I see in her, but she also demonstrated that she has a long way to go before she can beat the best. Only four races into her career, I remain strong in my conviction that the best is yet to come for her. It looks like the Grade 1 Matriarch could be next, which should give the talented filly a real test to close out her first season.

As the supporting feature to the Rubilinda win on Saturday at Belmont, the six-furlong, Grade 3 Futurity proved to be another example that the riches of trainer Chad Brown run deep. Off the strength of a maiden win last time at Saratoga, Engage was sent off a big favorite in a field of five. I like the way the juvenile son of Into Mischief waited back in last before dominating the field down the lane. Ridden to victory by Jose Ortiz, this $550,000 2-year-old in training purchase is improving with each start, and may be one to make some real noise moving forward. This field left much to be desired, but the second-place runner, Barry Lee, is a fast horse, and Engage made it look easy. Look for the son of the top Spendthrift sire to stretch out to a mile for the Nashua next. As a son of Into Mischief, you expect him to be fast, but he's a sire who's proven that his good ones can handle the distance, as well. He's now on my short list of juveniles who have really impressed me this year.

Speaking of impressive 2-year-old runners, and Chad Brown for that matter, Wednesday at Keeneland may have produced a Breeders' Cup winner. Rushing Fall romped past the big field with a strong turn of foot to win the Grade 3 Jessamine Stakes going away. The daughter of More Than Ready only made her career debut a month ago, but she looked good in rallying to victory that day at Belmont Park, as well. The $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf on November 3 at Del Mar will be next, and this one gives every indication of being able to make it three wins in three starts as she makes her way through New York, Kentucky, and California.

Horses for courses. In America's Grade 1 race of the weekend, a deep and competitive bunch of sophomore fillies lined up for the $500,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup at Keeneland. While the field represented horses from all over, it was the Kentucky fillies who stole the show. The well-traveled La Coronel is good wherever she runs, but she is especially good in Kentucky's bluegrass. The Mark Casse-trained filly took the lead early, and looked strong the entire way, while having plenty left to hold off a serious bid from the Kenny McPeek-trained Daddys Lil Darling. The half-length score was the biggest of four graded stakes wins for La Coronel. She is now perfect in three starts at Keeneland, with all three attempts coming in graded stakes.

The big weekend for the turf females stretched across the Canadian border, and in the Grade 1 E.P. Taylor, it was the Irish-bred mare, Blond Me relishing the soft turf at Woodbine. The race attracted a deep field of turf mares, but it was the course which chose the winner. Blond Me is a multiple stakes winner overseas, but had two losing tries in the States a few years ago. This time, and now 5 years old, she got a course with plenty of cut, and it was exactly what she needed to earn the big win. It doesn't work without fail, but when in doubt, on soft turf, always give an extra look at the horses bred in Ireland. As a rule, they like the wet turf.


The champion daughter of Curlin, Stellar Wind worked in company Saturday morning with Hall of Fame pilot Victor Espinoza aboard, and looked good doing it at Santa Anita. The Virginia-bred chestnut has never run a bad race while winning 10-of-15 lifetime, but unfortunately for her and her connections, she has suffered from bad luck in each of her two tries in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, resulting in 40 percent of her career losses. I fully expect that to change this time at Del Mar. Despite plenty of solid competition, look for the third time to be the charm for the classy mare, in what should be another good edition of the Distaff. This year, she has won each of her three starts, all of which came in Grade 1 company. Most recently she accounted for the Clement L. Hirsch Stakes, which came way back in late July ...

Having said all that, the Breeders' Cup Distaff is also a race I am disappointed in for 2017. The two top favorites in the race, Stellar Wind and Forever Unbridled, are marvelous mares, but combined have only run five times this year. They've been healthy. They just have not run much. While every horse is different, and I understand pointing for specific big races, the respective racing seasons of each top mare seem less than sporting, and certainly not good for the sport. Maybe it's time to institute a "minimum races run" rule for an Eclipse Award ... If you are 3 years or older, you need to run in at least five races to win a championship ... How does that sound?