2021 Eclipse Awards: Pizza Bianca

Ahead of the 2021 Eclipse Awards, it was widely felt that Pizza Bianca was very unlikely to be voted the honor of outstanding 2-year-old filly in light of what Echo Zulu accomplished in four starts on dirt.

Knowing, however, that comparison is the thief of joy, the Eclipse results should not be allowed to diminish the joyful scene that unfolded at Del Mar when Pizza Bianca won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf on Nov. 5 in dramatic fashion.

Bobby Flay, who has invested untold millions in the sport, was at the center of a raucous celebration after his homebred Pizza Bianca rallied from dead last in a field of 14 to prevail under a brilliant ride from Jose Ortiz.

“I’m delighted for Bobby Flay,” said Christophe Clement, who trains Pizza Bianca for the celebrity chef. “He deserves this, absolutely.”

Pizza Bianca was sired by the Australian-bred Fastnet Rock and is the first foal produced by White Hot, an unraced Galileo mare that Flay bought as a yearling in England in 2014 for about $2 million.

:: Full list of 2021 Eclipse Awards finalists, including profile stories

White Hot “has one of the best pedigrees in the stud book,” Flay said. “I always say the blood shows up eventually. I didn’t think it was going to show up in her very first foal, but obviously [Pizza Bianca] is a great filly.”

Pizza Bianca raced just twice before the Breeders’ Cup, winning a two-turn maiden turf race at Saratoga in July before finishing second in the Grade 1 Natalma on the Woodbine turf in September, both with Joel Rosario up.

With Rosario opting for another mount in the one-mile Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, Ortiz allowed Pizza Bianca to bide her time after breaking cleanly from post 1. Still trailing more than halfway through, the dark bay filly began picking off rivals one by one with Ortiz deftly guiding her through a couple of tight spots. The ride was lauded as one of the best of the 2021 Breeders’ Cup.

“It was a great ride for Jose Ortiz,” said Clement, who was winning a Breeders’ Cup event for the first time after failing with his first 41 starters.

The lengthy Breeders’ Cup drought was never a major concern, Clement said.

“I don’t wake up in the morning thinking I need to win a Breeders’ Cup,” he said. “I’ve never had a fixation to win the Breeders’ Cup. Every day, we’re trying to win the next big one.”

“I’m glad that story is over,” Flay said.

Pizza Bianca earned $637,635 with her two wins and a second. After a short break, she returned to Clement at Payson Park in Florida in early January to be pointed toward the major turf events for 3-year-old fillies later this year, those being the Belmont Oaks, Saratoga Oaks, and Jockey Club Oaks.