Distance no question for Zulu Alpha in Breeders' Cup Turf

ARCADIA, Calif. - Zulu Alpha went from beating Arklow by 3 1/4 lengths in the Grade 3 Kentucky Turf Cup at Kentucky Downs on Sept. 7 to finishing sixth behind that rival by the same margin in the Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont Park on Oct. 5.

The result of the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic, run at a slow pace, left trainer Mike Maker convinced he did not see the best from Zulu Alpha.

“We threw the race out,” he said on Monday.

The focus is now on Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Turf at 1 1/2 miles at Santa Anita. Zulu Alpha will be an outsider in a field that includes Bricks and Mortar, the top turf horse in the United States this year who will be trying 1 1/2 miles for the first time; Anthony Van Dyck, the winner of the English Derby in June; and Arklow, who was fourth in the 2018 BC Turf at Churchill Downs.

:: BREEDERS’ CUP 2019: See DRF’s special section with fields, odds, comments, and more

Jose Ortiz is booked to ride Zulu Alpha, who has won 3 of 8 starts this year, all for owner Michael Hui.

While Bricks and Mortar is unbeaten in five starts this year at distances ranging from 1 1/8 miles to 1 1/4 miles, there has not been a dominant runner in the U.S. in big stakes at 1 1/2 miles on turf.

“The Americans have taken turns beating each other,” Maker said.

Aside from the $1 million Kentucky Turf Cup at 1 1/2 miles, Zulu Alpha won two turf stakes at Gulfstream Park last winter – the Grade 3. W.L. McKnight Stakes at 1 1/2 miles on Jan. 26 and the Grade 2 Mac Diarmida Stakes at 1 3/8 miles on March 2.

Maker is hopeful that Zulu Alpha can have another trip to the winners’ circle in the $4 million BC Turf, the richest grass race in the country.