Stellar Wind Takes One Race Advantage Over Rival Beholder with Zenyatta Win

The budding rivalry between champions Stellar Wind and Beholder produced another thrilling contest on Saturday when the two distaffers met for the third time in their careers, squaring off in the $300,000 Zenyatta Stakes (GI) at Santa Anita. In their two previous meetings, Beholder won one and Stellar Wind won the other, but, on Saturday, it was Stellar Wind who emerged victorious by a neck over her chief rival in the 1 1/16-mile Breeders’ Cup Distaff (GI) “Win and You’re In” event.

As expected, the top pair put on quite a show, with Beholder setting all the pace in splits of :23.55, :46.23 and 1:09.75 with Stellar Wind glued to her outside at every call. As the pair made the turn for home, Stellar Wind made her challenge to the winner known and the two barreled down the stretch in tandem with Stellar Wind successfully emerging the narrow victor. After posting a mile in 1:35.06, she stopped the clock in 1:41.80.

Vale Dori crossed the wire another 11 ¾ lengths farther back in third and was followed by Tara’s Tango and Off the Road.

At odds of 2-1, Stellar Wind was good for $6, $2.20 and $2.10. Beholder, the 2-5 favorite, was worth $2.10 and $2.10. Vale Dori returned $2.40. The exacta was worth $3.90 and the $.50 trifecta $4.55.

“It’s a great day,” Espinoza said after winning his third graded stakes on the card. “I worked harder in her last race, the Clement Hirsch, than I did today. It’s always good to be next to Beholder, next to the queen. It’s always a plus. To be able to pull away the last eighth, it’s not easy. It’s hard, but Stellar Wind is an incredible mare and she will continue to be good.”

Next stop for both of the top-two finishers will be the distaff, according to their connections where racing fans may see the final race from the three-time champion Beholder.

“We’ll go to the Distaff from her,” Beholder’s trainer, Richard Mandella said. “My mare didn’t’ look like she ever gave up and those two finished well clear oft the rest of them. We didn’t’ really intend to go to the lead, but with a five-horse field what are you gonna do? Not to make excuses, but yes, I think a full field will help us next time.”

Margaret Ransom

California native and lifelong horsewoman Margaret Ransom is a graduate of the University of Arizona’s Race Track Industry Program. She got her start in racing working in the publicity departments at Calder Race Course and Hialeah Park, as well as in the racing office at Gulfstream Park in South Florida. She then spent six years in Lexington, KY, at BRISnet.com, where she helped create and develop the company’s popular newsletters: Handicapper’s Edge and Bloodstock Journal.

After returning to California, she served six years as the Southern California news correspondent for BloodHorse, assisted in the publicity department at Santa Anita Park and was a contributor to many other racing publications, including HorsePlayer Magazine and Trainer Magazine. She then spent seven years at HRTV and HRTV.com in various roles as researcher, programming assistant, producer and social media and marketing manager.

She has also walked hots and groomed runners, worked the elite sales in Kentucky for top-class consignors and volunteers for several racehorse retirement organizations, including CARMA.

In 2016, Margaret was the recipient of the prestigious Stanley Bergstein Writing Award, sponsored by Team Valor, and was an Eclipse Award honorable mention for her story, “The Shocking Untold Story of Maria Borell,” which appeared on USRacing.com. The article and subsequent stories helped save 43 abandoned and neglected Thoroughbreds in Kentucky and also helped create a new animal welfare law known as the “Borell Law.”

Margaret’s very first Breeders’ Cup was at Hollywood Park in 1984 and she has attended more than half of the Breeders’ Cups since. She counts Holy Bull and Arrogate as her favorite horses of all time. She lives in Pasadena with her longtime beau, Tony, two Australian Shepherds and one Golden Retriever.