Zipse: Thorpedo Anna is lionhearted in Travers nailbiter

Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Billed as the race of the year, the 2024 Travers Stakes more than lived up to the hype. The winner Fierceness proved his mettle with a championship performance in the Grade 1, $1.25 million blockbuster. Already a champion, it’s a victory that puts him in great position to win a second consecutive Eclipse Award.

As good as the champion male was, however, it was the runner-up, Thorpedo Anna, who stole the show.

Fierceness holds off Thorpedo Anna in Travers thriller.

I’ve believed for decades that great horses often can show more in defeat than in victory. Perhaps the greatest example of this was Seattle Slew. His herculean effort in the 1978 Jockey Club Gold Cup was the crowning performance of a Hall of Fame career. His effort at Belmont Park that day was the definition of bravery.

Much can be said about the way Zenyatta ended her career. The great mare may have tasted defeat for the first time in her career in the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Classic, but my respect for her never was more than it was following her great stretch run at Churchill Downs.

To say Thorpedo Anna ran a good race or proved she belonged falls short of describing her Travers performance.

We saw the good Fierceness on Saturday, and he got the jump on her at a key juncture. It appeared he was home free, but then Thorpedo Anna displayed just what kind of filly she is.

In another jump or two of this epic 1 1/4-mile race, she was in front. Her performance under regular rider Brian Hernandez Jr. exceeded my high expectations.

Lucky enough to be in attendance for all three, they are on a short list of my most memorable races in a lifetime of following the sport.

Exceller, Blame and Fierceness were excellent and deserving winners, but it was the performance of the three second-place finishers that made each race so remarkable.

To put her performance in further context, Thorpedo Anna was only the second filly in more than 40 years to run in the Travers, and she found a particularly strong edition to try. Wonder Gadot faced a weaker group in 2018 and finished 10th in last.

Her connections deserve credit on multiple levels for being there. Trainer Kenny McPeek and team have maintained her at an elite level all year, and five races in, she only seems to be getting better.

They could have taken the simple route by letting Thorpedo Anna roll to another easy victory in the prestigious Alabama Stakes (G1), but instead they believed in their filly enough to give her the biggest possible test. It not only validated her class, but it was a shot in the arm for the sport.

The connections of Thorpedo Anna also deserve kudos for their transparency and availability of their soon to be champion. By sharing her with the people, they have made new fans and revitalized more experienced ones.

To the victor go the spoils, and Fierceness deserves all the credit in the world. The 2-year-old champion of 2023 is clearly the best male of the bunch when he runs his race, and he was at his best Saturday. But there were two winners of this great race.

My takeaway from this year’s edition of the Travers will be more about the filly than anything. I do believe what we saw at Saratoga was the race of the year, and it’s largely because of the presence and performance of Thorpedo Anna.

The Kentucky Derby was very good this year, but it falls short of the palpable emotion that was on display Saturday. Nearly 50,000 fans erupted into a frenzy as the sensational filly made her prolonged stretch run at the champion male Fierceness.

The Breeders’ Cup menu in a few months at Del Mar will be hard pressed to deliver anything that comes close to this epic battle.

Sierra Leone and Dornoch, who are Grade 1 winners and obviously top sophomores in their own right, deserve a mention as well. The big four showed their domination over an interesting bunch of long shots. But this one really came down to the top two.

Fierceness will move on to the Breeders’ Cup Classic likely as America’s best hope to defend the home turf. If the son of City of Light can string together a third top efforts, he will have a big shot at Del Mar.

As for Thorpedo Anna, she came out of the race well and deservedly will get a reprieve from the boys for now.

Following the Travers, McPeek said the original plan of running her two more times this year is still in play, and they will be against the girls.   

Her schedule includes the $1 million Cotillion Stakes (G1) at Parx on Sept. 21 followed by the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Distaff on Nov. 2 at Del Mar. The latter will be her first start against older horses.

It’s also important to note that McPeek has stated that his stable star will race in 2025 as a 4-year-old.

After four dominating wins in the biggest races against her own sex, Thorpedo Anna proved herself a very special filly by going outside the box and making the Travers something to remember.

Thorpedo Anna is much more than the best sophomore filly in the land and the bridesmaid of the Travers. Even in defeat she showed it on the biggest stage on Saturday.

She is a star.