In the spirit of March Madness, we are conducting a little experiment to determine how racing fans would evaluate the “best”, “greatest” or “most popular” (or any other criteria you think is applicable) horse of the last 5 or so years. Think of this as the “People’s Choice Awards” for racing. Use whatever criteria you think best determines which horses advance from round to round. Let us know how you arrived at your conclusions. How it works: Each day from March 16 through the end of the month, we will feature one matchup. We will post career specifics and some highlight races on our site to help you in your handicapping. Then you the fans will vote– favorite the tweet if choosing horse A, retweet if selecting horse B. Voting windows will close by 10:00 p.m. each night. The horse with the most votes will advance to the next round.
Here is the Bracket.
Today, we feature what looks like a lopsided matchup on paper. Zenyatta, the overall 1 seed, takes on the winner of the play-in round in Uncle Mo. This is more of a mismatch than Kentucky-Hampton. As good as Uncle Mo could be, he could also disappoint. Zenyatta was a miracle of consistency, 19 0f 20 with only a noce loss in the 2011 BC Classic to Blame. This would be the upset to challenge all upsets. Let’s break it down.
Zenyatta
In the world of horse racing, she needs no introduction. The overall Number one Seed, the Queen Z dominated Horse Racing in America for three years. Arguably the best race mare ever, Zenyatta not only brought dominance upon the sport, she brought style. She ran her races as a dead closer, nearly always managing to get up in time. The Queen alos knew how good she was, whic is perfectly displayed in her patented paddock prance. Her accolades are almost unnecessary to list. Winner of 19 of 20. Two time Breeders Cup champion, 2009 Distaff and 2010 Classic. 2010 Horse of the Year. 3x Champion Older Mare. Twice NTRA moment of the year.
See her royal highness’ 2010 Classic victory is attached for your viewing pleasure. Poetry in motion.
Uncle Mo After a dominating 2yo campaign, the racing world was convinced that Uncle Mo was its next superstar. However, injuries derailed him from the Triple Crown and a disappointing Breeders’ Cup Classic will always lessen his legacy. That said, how many other horses in the last five years had a New York Times article written about them which drew comparisons to Secretariat?
Uncle Mo’s PP’s can found here: Uncle Mo’s PP’s
And Uncle Mo’s BC Juvenile romp.
