A Canadian Champion and A World Champion Retire On Same Day

The horse racing communities in both Canada and the United States saw two great champion horses retire today. Moments after the racing world found out that Zenyatta would be retired to Lane's End farm in Kentucky, the Canadian racing community also learned that former Queen's Plate winner Not Bourbon was going to be retired. Both horses have had outstanding careers and I, for one, will take a great interest in what their offspring will be able to do on the track in a few years time.

It's pretty certain that everyone within horse racing knows the story of Zenyatta. The six-year-old mare has captured the hearts of many racing fans, including mine, over the years, winning 19 consectutive races that included two Breeders' Cup wins. Zenyatta was the first female to win the Breeders' Cup Classic, winning the 2009 edition at Santa Anita in fascinating fashion. Going for her third Breeders' Cup win and 20th win in a row overall, Zenyatta was beaten by a nose by Blame in this year's Breeders' Cup Classic just 11 days ago. Despite the loss, many believe Zenyatta's legacy only increased as she proved she could run with the best on dirt. Zenyatta earned $7,304,580 over her career that included 17 Grade I wins.

Although he doesn't have quite the resume of Zenyatta, Not Bourbon was a terrific horse on the Woodbine circuit. Not Bourbon began making noise in Canada as a two-year-old when he set the six furlong track record of 1:08.84 in the Bull Page Stakes. Coming back in his three-year-old season, Not Bourbon had a sensational year, winning the Queen's Plate and the Queenston Stakes and four of six stakes starts overall, while also winning the Sovereign Award for top three year old male horse. The five-year-old won seven races over 16 starts and earned $1,085,309 for owner Charles Fipke and trainer Roger Attfield. Not Bourbon will stand at Norse Ridge Farm in King City, Ontario for a fee of $5,000, with special consideration for approved mares.

Fipke is already excited about the racing prospects of Not Bourbon's sons and daughters. "I am really looking forward to racing Not Bourbon's sons and daughters," he said. "I am confident that he is going to be an outstanding stallion, and we have selected several grade I winners and producers for his first book. He loved the Polytrack and with his outstanding race record, conformation, and pedigree, he should sire some outstanding Canadian runners."

As a fan still learning about horse racing, I have enjoyed watching these two horses race over the course of their careers and hope that the horses they produce can bring even more excitement to this industry for years to come.

Posted in: US Tracks,Woodbine