Look for Zhukova to show up at Breeders' Cup this fall

Zhukova, the filly who dominated the boys by six lengths in Saturday’s Grade 1 Man o’ War at Belmont, is due to fly back to Ireland on Thursday. However, her connections are intending a return trip to the U.S. in the fall and the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf.

Mark Weld, the assistant to his father, Dermot, trainer of Zhukova, said the filly “deserves a shot” at the Breeders’ Cup, which will be held this year at Del Mar.

“We’ve always wanted to go Del Mar,” Mark Weld said. “The Pacific Classic has always been a race dad would have liked to have a horse good enough to run in. So we might not get there for the Pacific Classic but we’ll get there for the Filly and Mares Turf. We’ll have a go. Why not?”

Zhukova relished the yielding ground at Belmont on Saturday, sitting just behind Charming Kitten, who set hard-to-believe slow fractions - the six-furlong time was 1:24.16. But when John Velazquez sent Zhukova after Charming Kitten, the filly “responded right away” Velazquez said. The Hall of Fame jockey added that he was told by Weld to keep riding the filly through the stretch because she has a tendency to ease up when she thinks her job is done.

Weld said that Zhukova would get a month on the farm when she returns home. A race she will target prior to the Breeders’ Cup is the Yorkshire Oaks on Aug. 24 at 1 1/2 miles.

Zhukova was assigned a 107 Beyer Speed Figure for her Man o’ War victory in which she ran 1 3/8 miles in 2:25.31 over a yielding turf course.