INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Of the many things that can be said about Zenyatta, this one is certainly true: She has never needed an excuse. Track surface, pace, weight, distance, trip – none of it has mattered, for nearly three years running, a truly remarkable feat. She ran her record to a perfect 19 for 19 on Saturday at Hollywood Park in the Lady’s Secret Stakes, which for the third straight year has set her up for a start in the Breeders’ Cup.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Da-DING Ding.

Mike Smith’s cell phone sat on a table in the Hollywood Park press lounge late Saturday afternoon and seemed to come alive every minute with a chime, indicating the arrival of a new text message.

Less than two hours earlier, Smith had ridden Zenyatta to a win in the $250,000 Lady’s Secret Stakes, extending her unbeaten streak to 19 races. Across the nation, Smith’s friends were offering near-constant modern-day congratulations. By the time he was done riding on Saturday, he had 84 messages.

INGLEWOOD, CALIF. - Zenyatta made history Saturday, scoring her 19th consecutive victory and equaling the longest winning streak in the modern history of U.S. horse racing. As usual, she didn't make it look easy.

After trailing her four rivals on the backstretch, she unleashed a surge in the final sixteenth of a mile to catch the pacesetter Switch and win the Lady's Secret Stakes at Hollywood Park by a half-length. It was typical of the heart-stopping rallies that have defined her career.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Zenyatta was on a personal public-relations mission on the Hollywood Park backstretch Sunday, a day after she extended her unbeaten streak to 19 races with a thrilling finish in the $250,000 Lady’s Secret Stakes.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Zenyatta stretched her unbeaten streak to 19 in Saturday’s $250,000 Lady’s Secret Stakes at Hollywood Park.

Fortunately for the well-being of her backers, not all of her wins have been as dramatic as Saturday’s race.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Not that it is apparent in her undefeated 18-race career, but Zenyatta has a time of year when she may be better than ever, jockey Mike Smith insists.

The autumn, he said, seems to bring out the best in the wildly popular mare.

“She seems to get good at this time of year the last few years,” he said. “The way she’s going, she seems like she can do it again this year.”

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - The cast of fillies and mares who will challenge Zenyatta in Saturday's $250,000 Lady's Secret Stakes at Hollywood Park includes a mare who gave her a test in the Grade 1 Clement Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar in August and four others who face the toughest challenges of their careers.

Zenyatta will be heavily favored to extend her unbeaten streak to 19 races in the Grade 1 Lady's Secret, a race she won in 2008 and 2009. Zenyatta will be ridden by regular rider Mike Smith and has drawn post 5 in a field of six.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Zenyatta worked six furlongs in 1:13.80 on Saturday at Hollywood Park, the final workout before the 6-year-old mare will seek to extend her unbeaten streak to 19 races in the $250,000 Lady’s Secret Stakes next Saturday.

Zenyatta worked six furlongs in 1:13.80 at Hollywood Park on Saturday as she continues to target the $250,000 Lady’s Secret Stakes Oct. 2 during the Oak Tree meet there.
The Grade 1 Lady’s Secret, a 1 1/16-mile Cushion Track race, is likely to be the second-to-last start of Zenyatta’s career. She is expected to defend her title in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs on Nov. 6.

William Hill rates defending champ Zenyatta and Preakness and Haskell winner Lookin At Lucky as 4-1 co-favorites for the Breeders’ Cup Classic as the British bookmakers opened for Cup business on Tuesday. Hill offers Whitney winner Blame at 6-1, with Whitney runner-up Quality Road at 8-1, followed by Travers one-two Afleet Express and Fly Down both at 12-1 along with Rachel Alexandra.