Champion mare Zenyatta came from last to win the 26th running of the Breeders' Cup Classic to conclude the two-day $25.5 million Breeders' Cup World Championships at Santa Anita Park on Saturday.
Undefeated in 14 career starts, Zenyatta was taking on male horses for the first time in the 1 1/4 mile climactic race. Zenyatta won last year's Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic on her way to becoming 2008 champion older female.
She was entered in the Classic this year in an effort to have her voted 2009 Horse of the Year. Three-year-old filly Rachel Alexandra did not run in the Breeders' Cup races because of Santa Anita's synthetic track.
The start of the Classic was delayed when Florida Derby winner Quality Road refused to go into the starting gate and then became very agitated once he was loaded. The colt was scratched from the race leaving a field of 12 to compete.
Regal Ransom set the pace with Rip Van Winkle in second while Zenyatta was racing last. Around the final turn jockey Mike Smith moved Zenyatta off the rail and into the middle of the track. The mare was six wide down the stretch.
Zenyatta, trained by John Shirreffs, recorded a three-quarter length victory over Arlington Million winner Gio Ponti with Twice Over finishing third.
The time for the Classic was 2:00.62.
Zenyatta, owned by Jerry and Ann Moss, pockets $2.5 million with the historic victory. The Eclipse Award winner now has lifetime earnings of more than $4.2 million.
Zenyatta, the 5-2 favorite, returned $7.60, $5.60 and $3.80. Gio Ponti paid $9.20 and $6.60, Twice Over paid $7.00 to show.
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