They call her the “Black Flash.”
An imposing mare holding an undefeated record of 13-0 that has been grinding out victory after victory at top-level outings against every male challenger that sets foot in her domain.
They call her “The Horse that Stops a Nation.”
At least, The Australian newspaper coined that descriptor of the four-year-old racemare as the international racing community held their breath to see if she could maintain her undefeated record in her recent outing in the Group 1 BTC Cup at Brisbane’s Doomben racecourse.
And, the “Black Flash” did it with ease. As daylight stood between herself and her rivals as she approached the wire, Black Caviar clinched her thirteenth victory in a style that embodied all of the markings of being a wonder horse.
Today, Black Caviar has many racing enthusiasts in the international community wondering whether she may be one of the greatest racehorses of all time. And perhaps, she already has claimed her place in that rare territory among a few that have been struck by her majestic talent.
Yet, prior to the rise of Black Caviar on the international stage, there was the wonder of whether Zenyatta was one of the best racehorses of all time.
In a 60 Minutes segment, the crew visited her stable, where her rider Mike Smith stated, “I think she could arguably go down as one of the greatest, if not the greatest, racehorse of all time.” And in the eyes of many, Zenyatta does hold a firm place in the canon of the greatest Thoroughbreds to ever grace a race track with her presence.
Similar to Black Caviar, Zenyatta had many spectators holding their breath as she claimed victory after victory. And, in her final outing, Zenyatta concluded her consecutive nineteen-race winning streak with a heartbreaking defeat that demonstrated that immortality doesn’t necessarily mean invincibility.
Yet, with true class, Zenyatta stood before the crowd at Churchill Downs after her lone defeat and received an honor that is arguably greater than a victory could award – a standing ovation from the 72,000 spectators in the crowd as they paid homage to her racing career during its saddest moment.
And, despite her sole defeat, Zenyatta remains one of the greatest racehorses of all time in my view.
However, there is also a majestic quality to the racemares that have been defeated and strike back without missing a step in their race for immortality. Goldikova, the European record holder for the most Group 1/Grade I victories, doesn’t boast an undefeated record. However, defeat doesn’t detract from her immortal quality.
Since becoming the only racehorse to win three consecutive Breeder’s Cup outings, Goldikova is pointing toward a dramatic finish to an exceptional career – a fourth consecutive victory in the Breeder’s Cup this fall. And, like Black Caviar and Zenyatta, Goldikova is credited by many racing enthusiasts as being one of the greatest racehorses of all time.
In the past few years, the tracks have been graced with three racemares that arguably will be held in the canon of immortal Thoroughbreds. And, the qualities that make these racemares “immortal” are being drafted before our eyes through the endeavors of racemares like Black Caviar, Zenyatta and Goldikova.
Roughly four years ago, when Rags to Riches became the first filly to win the Belmont in over a hundred years, I thought I had just watched a historical moment in racing.
I was wrong.
It wasn’t a historical moment.
It was an important moment in racing. It was long-awaited moment in which a single filly took on the boys in the Belmont and beat them in their home court, a feat that had not been accomplished since 1905.
And, since that moment, the modern quest to hold a place among the canon of greats seems to be a “mare’s world” in racing.
Great post, Jennifer. As a devout, 100% fan of Zenyatta’s, and a recent fan of Black Caviar, I would still like to add Rachel Alexander’s name to the list…she also took on the boys in fine fashion. She represented the sport and her sex very well.
It’s more than passing strange that you left out Rachel and especially Zarkava.
Perhaps you are not aware of their accomplishments (most who don’t follow horse racing on a regular basis have never heard of them, but what they did gave of some of the finest moments in racing of this age.
It’s incomprehensible to me that you fail to even mention Rachel Alexandra! Her accomplishments as American Horse of the Year 2010 deserve inclusion in your otherwise interesting article. Failing to add her to the list of recent outstanding mares is a terrible omission.
Love this article. What has happened to the males??? Love all three of these horses.
Thanks for the comments. I am a Rachel Alexandra AND Zenyatta fan. By omitting Rachel for the article, I am not trying to undermine Rachel’s acheivements in any way. (There are plenty of fillies and mares that I think are wonderful and have made amazing contributions to the sport, including Rachel.) I think the fact that there are too many to put in one article is a good thing - it shows that the sport has been blessed with many exceptional female racehorses.
I do agree wholeheartedly about the plethora of immortal racemares to grace our presence in recent years. I would also add Rachel Alexandra to the trio. Her Horse of the Year 2010 status says it all, even though, ultimately I moved over to the Zenyatta camp as the true greatest U.S. distaffer ever in my opinion. But there are, indeed, other categories for turf annals and Goldikava surely towers above most who have ever run to me. It’s very fortutious for racing fans to have yet another superstar in our midst in Black Caviar Down Under!
Rachel Alexandra the great is missing..She accomplished more in one year than any other 3 year old filly ever…how could she not be on the list?
Thanks for the comments. I just want to clarify that the three racemares that I highlighted are examples of mares that raced at any point between November 2010 to Present that some consider among the best race horse ever (with the exception of Rags to Riches, who was used as the example of where the impression of “the modern filly” changed in my view.)
I have nothing against RA. I was standing at the finish line in person and watched her astounding performance in the Kentucky Oaks, and watched her races that followed. I was, and remain, a fan of RA.
I’m just want to clarify that I was not attempting to make a list of the best female racehorses of all time —- I just wanted to highlight a few that struck me personally in the past year. (There are PLENTY of wonderful racemares, including Rachel, that have been omitted from this article. I can’t list them all in one piece- It would take a book.)
Maybe we should make a list of all our favorite fillies and mares in the future on this blog to honor all of them!
I like that idea.
The Black Flash. She did it with ease you say? Then she’s one wicked racing horse. I mean really, Brisbane owns one of the best racing horse in the world.