Zenyatta triumphs in Ladies' Classic

ARCADIA, California (AFP) - Sensational filly Zenyatta won the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic, powering home to remain, for all her imposing size and strength, a perfect lady.

Zenyatta's victory on Friday in the two million-dollar, 1 1/8-mile race at Santa Anita Park was her ninth victory in as many starts.

The biggest win of the four-year-old's career was an impressive one, as she made up a 10-length deficit from the half-mile mark, swept six-wide into the final straight and thundered to victory under jockey Mike Smith.

The triumph of the John Shirreff's trained Zenyatta delighted the crowd of 31,257 who turned out for the first day of racing in the two-day, 14-race, 25.5 million-dollar Breeders' Cup extravaganza.

All five of Friday's races were devoted to fillies and mares, with the newly named Ladies' Classic, formerly the Distaff, anchoring the action.

"She's just amazing," said Smith, who rode two winners on the day to take his Breeders' Cup total to 12.

"I've never seen a horse go past other horses like this filly can. She sets herself up to come to them, and she just blazes by them... I don't know if she has a bottom."

Saeed bin Suroor, trainer of second-placed Chilean-bred Cocoa Beach and third-placed Music Note, said his horses couldn't have done more.

"We're happy with how they ran. That's a star filly they ran behind," he said. "It's hard to beat a horse like that."

The two million-dollar 1 1/4-mile Filly and Mare Turf produced a frantic finish, with Forever Together flying into the straight to seize the victory over Canadian longshot Sealy Hill and Wait A While.

There was disappointment for a raft of European contenders on the tight, sun-baked turf course at Santa Anita.

Visit, trained by Sir Michael Stoute, was fourth, while Halfway to Heaven, saddled by Adrian O'Brien, faded to seventh under Johnny Murtagh.

Godolphin-owned Folk Opera, trained by bin Suroor and ridden by Frankie Dettori, jumped to the lead out of the gate, set the early pace and ended up ninth in the 10-horse field.

"She was relaxed, kind of behind a little bit, but she was very relaxed," said Julien Leparoux, who was aboard Forever Together. "Like usual, she made that kick at the end. She's amazing. It's a great privilege to ride this filly."

O'Brien, who has eight entries in this 25th edition of the Breeders' Cup, said fatigue was a factor for Halfway to Heaven, although he thought it was due less to the 1 1/8-mile distance than to the filly's gruelling 2008 season.

O'Brien's Heart Shaped, ridden by Murtagh, was nosed out by triumphant Maram in the Juvenile Fillies Turf. Laragh was third.

Smith's first winner of the day was aptly named Stardom Bound in the Juvenile Fillies, in which Dream Empress finished second and Sky Diva third.

Ventura, trained by Bobby Frankel and ridden by Garrett Gomez, captured the first victory of the 2008 Breeders' Cup with her triumph in the Filly and Mare Sprint.

Ventura denied last year's Juvenile Fillies winner, runner-up Indian Blessing, with Zaftig finishing third.

Amid the euphoria of Zenyatta's triumph, owners Jerry and Ann Moss were asked if they wished they could turn around and run their dazzling filly in Saturday's five million-dollar Breeders' Cup Classic.

"Well, I don't think so," Jerry Moss said. "You know, she's never run a mile and a quarter before. And to do it against the best horses in the world, that would be tough."

The Classic, in which North American Horse of the Year Curlin bids to repeat his 2007 triumph against field of global challengers, is the showpiece of Saturday's nine-race card.