Curlin to be Retired; Zenyatta to Continue Racing in 2009

by Patricia Woo | Nov 20 2008

Curlin's and Zenyatta's names have been mentioned in the same breath since musings began about who the winner of the 2008 Horse of the Year award should be. Horse bettors take note: Come the end of 2008, these two top contenders will be following very different paths.

On Saturday, Nov. 15, Curlin's majority owner Jess Jackson of Stonestreet Farms issued a press release stating that Curlin would be retired to stand at stud at the end of 2008. Known for his consistency and ability to run down rivals with his massive strides, Curlin will be missed in the horse betting and racing worlds.

Curlin's 4-year-old campaign picked up where it left off – spectacularly. Following his win in the 2007 Breeders' Cup Classic, Curlin continued to impress with a heady win in the world's richest horse race, the $5M Dubai World Cup, in March, and then the $1M Stephen Foster Handicap in June. Trainer Steve Asmussen then set his sights on the world's richest turf race, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, and sent Curlin to the $500,000 Man O' War Stakes in July to see how he would fare on a turf course against the 2007 Breeders' Cup Turf champion Red Rocks; Curlin came in second. As a result, Asmussen shifted Curlin's focus back to dirt and the Smart Strike colt found success in the $500,000 Woodward Stakes in August. He followed up that win with another Jockey Club Gold Cup title and was then sent to Santa Anita Racetrack to train up for the defense of his Breeders' Cup Classic title. During the race, Curlin briefly held the lead in the homestretch, but was passed by the trifecta of Raven's Pass, Henrythenavigator and Tiago, and finished fourth.

Whether Curlin will race once more before retiring has yet to be decided. "If an appropriate venue and purse are offered, we would consider once more race in 2008 for Curlin," said Jackson.

So fans may have one final race to look forward to – but the days of watching and betting on Curlin are numbered… and may, indeed, be over.

On the other hand, unbeaten 2008 Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic champion Zenyatta will almost certainly be racing in 2009, according to trainer John Shirreffs. Training plans so far are to simply walk the 4-year-old filly until the end of the year, and only then consider her next start – which could be as late as spring 2009. "It depends on how she is when she starts back," Shirreffs said. "It's hard to put a number on how long it will take to get ready. This is the time to give her time off. I don't want to pencil in anything."

The picture of consistency, Zenyatta has an incredible record of seven consecutive graded stakes wins. With her long stride and proven ability to win over dirt and tough Grade 1 competition, Zenyatta should be back in 2009 to thrill racing fans for another year.

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