LOUISVILLE, Ky. – There were 172 horses entered in the 14 races in this year’s Breeders’ Cup at Churchill Downs, 94 of them in the eight BC races on Saturday. There are champions competing from the United States, Europe, and Asia. As good as they all are, though, everyone has a back seat to the magnificent mare Zenyatta. She is the one driving this bus.

Obsessive, reverent, laid back, indulgent -- the team behind the unbeaten mare reflects her quirky brilliance.

David Sweazy has worked behind the scenes at Churchill since 1968 and has been the vice president of operations since 1991, so he has a pretty good feel for what to expect on big days. Sweazy said the presence of Zenyatta is helping “considerably” to boost the prospective attendance for Saturday, when cold weather might otherwise limit the crowd.

“We’re geared up for 60,000 and up,” Sweazy said. “If not for Zenyatta, I’m sure we wouldn’t have that many.”

Sweazy said his projection for the Friday crowd was between 30,000 and 35,000.

Perhaps more than most, trainer Shug McGaughey has an idea of what the connections of Zenyatta are attempting to do in Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Classic.

It was 22 years and one day ago that Personal Ensign capped an undefeated career with a dramatic victory over Kentucky Derby winner Winning Colors in the 1988 Breeders’ Cup Distaff (now called Ladies’ Classic) at Churchill Downs. Personal Ensign retired unbeaten in 13 starts.

Obsessive, reverent, laid back, indulgent -- the team behind the unbeaten mare reflects her quirky brilliance.

Obsessive, reverent, laid back, indulgent -- the team behind the unbeaten mare reflects her quirky brilliance.

Obsessive, reverent, laid back, indulgent -- the team behind the unbeaten mare reflects her quirky brilliance.

Perfection is elusive, even for the very best.

Affirmed never figured to have a perfect record, what with Alydar breathing down his neck every time he turned around. And even if Spectacular Bid had somehow sidestepped those two losses to inferior creatures at age 2 and then found a way to overcome the human errors weighing him down the day he failed in the Belmont Stakes, he could have tried the 1979 Jockey Club Gold Cup a thousand times, and still he would have lost to Affirmed.

Obsessive, reverent, laid back, indulgent -- the team behind the unbeaten mare reflects her quirky brilliance.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Hail, hail, the gang’s all here. The best mare, and most popular horse, in the country in Zenyatta. The top three older dirt horses: Blame, Haynesfield, and Quality Road. The best 3-year-old male, Lookin At Lucky. They are the leading candidates for 2010 Horse of the Year, and they will all meet for the first time in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Saturday at Churchill Downs.