Havre De Grace to do it for the ladies in the Breeders Cup Classic

Zenyatta was seen as a bit of a one-off when becoming the first female to triumph in the Breeders Cup Classic in 2009, but it is a she that could upset the men again this year.

The previous general consensus in the US was that, even with a weight allowance, fillies were unable to compete with male horses.

However, Zenyatta knocked this suggestion on the head with her triumph and came within a head last year of securing back-to-back Breeders Cup Classic victories.

Now that she has retired from the racetrack, the onus is on another female to follow in her footsteps and Havre De Grace is placed towards the head of the Breeders Cup betting this year.

Havre De Grace has had close to a perfect 2011, winning on five of her six starts with her only blip coming when narrowly failing to beat Blind Luck by a nose in July.

Three of these victories have been in Grade One company and she will be certain to scoop horse of the year honours if she lands the Breeders Cup Classic, which is an outcome that can be backed at 4/1.

Also potentially in her favour is that she has experience of the hype surrounding the Breeders Cup meeting, having finished third 12 months ago in the Breeders Cup Ladies’ Classic.

The draw may also not have been too bad for Havre De Grace as stall ten is just inside leading contender Uncle Mo and means that the 7/2 favourite could potentially be held wide.

Havre De Grace’s trainer Larry Jones is certainly bullish of his horse’s chances and has stated: “I seriously think this is the closest I’ve ever witnessed to the perfect racehorse.”