It was a day of feel good stories at Santa Anita during Breeder' Cup Ladies day as European legend Henry Cecil picked up his first Breeders' Cup win from seven previous starts. Cecil has been the champion trainer in Britian nine times but fell on hard times around the new millineum with personal health problems and the loss of three major, long-standing owners who had died. So all of England must have celebrated when Midday took the Emirates Airline Filly and Mare Turf with Midday.
Trainer Dale Romans was a bit emotional after Tapitsfly won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf for owner Frank I. Jones Jr. Jones. Jones has been in horse racing for decades in the Midwest and has had only two trainers. Dale's father Jerry, who passed away in 2000, was the only other one.
Almost making the happy list was the nine-year-old Cloudy's Nite, who missed by the most narrow of margins in the Breeder' Cup Marathon. The tight photo finish also cost jockey Rosemary Homeister Jr. an opportunity to join Julie Krone as the only female to ever ride a Breeders' Cup winner. Krone won the 2003 Juvenile Fillies with Halfbridled.
Breeders' Cup Ladies Classic winner Life Is Sweet seemed happy to leave for the saddling paddock without stablemate Zenyatta along side for a change, but it appears she may have received some running instructions from the big mare. Losing to her stablemate in three of her previous four races, Life is Sweet's late running move down the middle of the Santa Anita stretch looked like a smaller version of Zenyatta coming to the wire.
We get to see the real thing Saturday.
Special get well wishes go out to Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel who has been battling cancer from his home in Southern California for the last six months while still managing his stable. Jay Privman reported on ESPN that Frankel has recently been hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles. You can send your well wishes to Frankel on Facebook on the Bobby Frankel Get Well Soon card.
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