Breeders' Cup Distaff: Monomoy Girl-Swiss Skydiver matchup would be one for the books
Talk about an unlikely showdown in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Distaff – a champion who was sidelined for a year and a half facing the winner of the Preakness Stakes.
Huh?
Monomoy Girl already has produced the greatest comeback of 2020, winning all three of her starts with sights on a repeat in the Distaff. She won the race in 2018, then disappeared. This year, Monomoy Girl is back, better than ever, and 2-1 favorite according to Daily Racing Form.
Swiss Skydiver’s upset in the Preakness under Robby Albarado stamped the iron filly as second favorite for the Distaff. That is, if she starts. Swiss Skydiver has not been not ruled out of the BC Classic.
Swiss Skydiver is 6-1 fourth choice in the 1 1/4-mile Classic on the DRF early line; she is 5-2 in the 1 1/8-mile Distaff.
Swiss Skydiver returned to Churchill Downs early this week and was scheduled to go back to the track Thursday. Trainer Ken McPeek said he and owner Peter Callahan are in no rush to decide which BC race she runs in.
“I do like the added distance of a mile and a quarter, but I also like maybe the Distaff comes up with a lighter group,” McPeek said Wednesday. “Monomoy Girl looks like she might be the favorite, and she’s definitely tough. If she’s the lone tough one to beat, we might lean there.”
McPeek confirmed that Albarado will ride Swiss Skydiver wherever she runs. It was part of the Preakness deal.
“I told [Albarado] going in – you win, you stay on,” McPeek said.
So, is it Monomoy Girl versus Swiss Skydiver in the Distaff?
“That would be fantastic for racing,” said Monomoy Girl’s trainer, Brad Cox. “It could be the best showdown of the Breeders’ Cup.”
It certainly would be among the most anticipated races Nov. 7 at Keeneland, but to be fair, the Distaff is more than a two-horse race. Contenders include Valiance and Ollie’s Candy, one-two in the Grade 1 Spinster at Keeneland, along with Harvest Moon and Fighting Mad, one-three in the Grade 2 Zenyatta at Santa Anita.
Horologist won the Grade 2 Beldame at Belmont Park, and on Wednesday her owners announced plans to make her Breeders’ Cup-eligible via a $100,000 supplement. Distaff contenders also may include Beldame two-three finishers Point of Honor and Dunbar Road, and Grade 1 winner Vexatious. The status of Miss Marissa and Bonny South, one-two in the Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan at Pimlico, is undecided.
Even though Swiss Skydiver’s upset in the Preakness ranks among the most exciting races of 2020, Monomoy Girl’s comeback ranks among the most unlikely considering lingering uncertainty for the 2018 Kentucky Oaks and BC Distaff winner. After she was voted the Eclipse Award as champion 3-year-old filly that year, Monomoy Girl was expected to be among the division leaders in 2019. It did not pan out.
First, her spring comeback was postponed by colic. Surgery was not needed, but the episode took a toll. She did not work for four months, then pulled a gluteal muscle while training in fall. Sidelined again, Monomoy Girl did not make a single start in 2019.
Would she ever start again? Even her trainer did not know for sure.
“It definitely crosses your mind – we may not get back to the races,” Cox said. “There are operations out there that would have pulled the plug and not brought her back. What does she have to prove, right?”
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Her owners – Michael Dubb, Sol Kumin, Stuart Grant, and Michael Caruso – rolled the dice and opted to give her a shot at age 5. Monomoy Girl was up to the challenge, more so as veteran mare.
“I haven’t seen her mannerisms change – she’s still feisty in the stall,” Cox said. “But the one thing I have noticed is in her training. She was a very good work horse as a 3-year-old, but as a 5-year-old she’s maybe a little more focused and gallops out a little better than she did as a 3-year-old.”
Monomoy Girl backed up her morning works with afternoon performance. An allowance win in May at Churchill Downs was her first start in more than 18 months, followed by the Grade 2 Ruffian at Belmont Park in which she earned a career-high 104 Beyer Speed Figure.
“The Ruffian was like, ‘Wow! She’s back,’ ” Cox said. “That’s when we thought we can get back to the Breeders’ Cup with a real shot.”
Monomoy Girl’s victory Sept. 4 in the Grade 1 La Troienne at Churchill Downs was the 13th time from 14 starts she crossed the wire first. She has faced 101 rivals in her career, and finished in front of 100. Florent Geroux is her rider.
Ollie’s Candy, the California mare who finished second in the Spinster, will remain at Keeneland to train for the Distaff. Ollie’s Candy was visibly uncomfortable racing inside and behind rivals in the Spinster.
“She doesn’t like that down-inside trip,” trainer John Sadler said. “Under the circumstances, I thought she ran a really good race.”
Harvest Moon, the 3-year-old who upset the Zenyatta, will ship from Santa Anita to Keeneland about 10 days before the Distaff.
“We plan to get at least one work over the track,” trainer Simon Callaghan said. Shipping early “gives her a little more time get settled and get a feel for that track.”
Harvest Moon has won her last four.
Fighting Mad is the likely Distaff pacesetter, if she starts. Third in the Zenyatta setting a slow tempo, Fighting Mad runs best when she runs fast.
“Her whole thing is her speed,” trainer Bob Baffert said. “You’ve got to get her running and make them chase.”
Her Distaff status depends on how she works this month at Santa Anita.