Starlet Series: Beholder

Starlet Series
Number 5: Beholder

Joseph Di Rienzi

This is the second of an occasional series on the careers of the six best female thoroughbred horses I have observed racing in the years 1959 to the present. I have chosen these females based on their performances in their respective races. This is my assessment alone and will undoubtedly differ with others’ opinions. This issue discusses the career of fifth ranked Beholder.

                  

(BENOIT PHOTO)

The compact bay was sired by Henny Hughes from the mare Leslie’s Lady making Beholder a half-sister on her dam’s side to major stakes winner and sire Into Mischief. Beholder was owned her entire racing career by B. Wayne Hughes, current master of storied Spendthrift Farm having purchased her at a yearling sale for $180,000. Unlike, my previous Starlet, Azeri, who did not make it to the races until late into her third year, Beholder was precocious from the beginning. A foal of 2010, she was placed in the care of Richard Mandella and made her racing debut in late June 2012, finishing a distant fourth to Executiveprivilege. The latter then assumed the leadership in the two year-old filly division with four consecutive stakes victories. During Executiveprivilege’s win streak, she faced Beholder again in the 7 furlong Del Mar Debutante Stakes, after the latter had broken her maiden in her second start, a sharp 3¼ length victory in a 5½ furlong maiden race at Del Mar Racetrack. In the Debutante, Executiveprivilege was just able to catch Beholder near the finish to win by a nose, indicating the difference between them had narrowed since their first meeting.

Rather than run against Executiveprivilege in the Chandelier Stakes, Mandella put his filly in a 6 furlong allowance race at Santa Anita, and she showed brilliant speed, winning by 11 lengths. In the interim, between her latest victory and the November Breeders’ Cup championship races, held in 2012 at Santa Anita, Mandella worked on harnessing Beholder’s brilliant speed with a series of gallops and extended workouts.

In the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, Executiveprivilege was the solid favorite over Beholder and East Coast invader Dreaming of Julia in the eight horse field. (Richard Mandella had initially targeted Beholder for the 6 furlong Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Sprint, but gaining confidence in his filly’s ability to reverse her previous loss to Executiveprivilege, he opted instead to enter Beholder in the 8½ furlong Juvenile Fillies.)

Breaking sharply from the no. 1 post position, Garrett Gomez used Beholder’s speed to gain a clear lead around the clubhouse turn. Pursued by Kauai Katie, a stablemate of Dreaming of Julia, Beholder set a fast pace while holding a 1½ length lead down the backstretch. Executiveprivilege was tucked in on the inside racing in third place, while Dreaming of Julia moved up down the backstretch to be fourth. Around the far turn, Beholder expanded her lead so that she came into the stretch a couple of lengths on top. Jockey Rafael Bejarano brought Executiveprivilege off the rail for the stretch drive and took chase after the leader. In mid-stretch, it appeared that Executiveprivilege would catch Beholder again, but the former lost some of her momentum when she drifted out in the last furlong. At the finish, Beholder held on for a 1 length victory over Executiveprivilege with Dreaming of Julia and Kauai Katie following in that order, several lengths back.

Wayne Hughes had a double reason to celebrate this Breeders’ Cup triumph. Beholder’s victory was a great endorsement of her half-brother Into Mischief who was raced by Hughes and stands stud at Spendthrift. Richard Mandella was recording his 7^th Breeders’ Cup victory, amazingly all at Santa Anita. Garrett Gomez whose career and life was about to take a tragic downturn was winning his 13^th Breeders’ Cup race. Despite the Juvenile Fillies being her only stakes win, Beholder was voted Champion Two Year-old Filly.

She made her 2013 debut in the Santa Ynez Stakes and was upset by Renee’s Titan, losing by ¾ of a length in the 7 furlong race. Treated for a throat ulcer, Beholder was back at her best winning in succession the Las Virgenes and Santa Anita Oaks, both by open lengths in front running style. Beholder’s main rival for juvenile honors, Executiveprivilege, was never able to duplicate her previous year’s best form. In the Kentucky Oaks, the main opponents to Beholder emerged from the Todd Pletcher barn such as Dreaming of Julia, Unlimited Budget, and Princess of Sylmar.

When the ten horse field went into the starting gate for the Kentucky Oaks, Dreaming of Julia was the post time favorite over Midnight Lucky, a lightly raced Bob Baffert trainee. Unlimited Budget was third choice with two other Pletcher trained entries, Princess of Sylmar at 38-1 and Silsta at 48-1, respectively. Beholder was held in low esteem at 9-1, the consensus being she would not be able to carry her speed the 9 furlong distance. The early pace was fast, and Beholder pressed early leader Midnight Lucky. Around the far turn, Beholder took over from Midnight Lucky as Unlimited Budget, Princess of Sylmar, and Dreaming of Julia mounted challenges. Beholder hung tough in the stretch, but Mike Smith was able to get the most out of Princess of Sylmar to catch and pass the leader for a surprising ½ length victory. Two lengths back was Unlimited Budget who out headed Dreaming of Julia for third place.

At 38-1, Princess of Sylmar was the second longest priced Oaks winner, but this was just the beginning of a campaign that would take her to the precipice of a championship. Lost in the tumult of the upset was the courageous performance of Beholder who fought off all but one of her challengers.

Through the summer and early fall, Princess of Sylmar assumed clear leadership of the three year-old filly division. The King of Prussia Stable star won both the Coaching Club American Oaks and Alabama Stakes against her own age group. In what appeared to be Princess of Sylmar’s sternest test to date, she faced two time champion Royal Delta in the Beldame Stakes. In the stretch, Princess of Sylmar under moderate urging, steadily drew clear of her older rival for a 2 length victory. With the sophomore filly championship, seemingly assured, Ed Stanco, principal owner of Princess of Sylmar, debated publicly whether he should take his filly to Santa Anita to race in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff or rest her for a 2014 campaign. In the end, Stanco felt it was the sporting thing to race her in the Distaff.

While Princess of Sylmar was dominating her rivals in New York, Beholder returned to the races in September. Under new jockey Gary Stevens, she scored an easy victory in the Torry Pine Stakes at Del Mar and then was a confident winner by 1¼ lengths in the 8½ furlong Zenyatta Stakes leading all the way in both races. With her strong record at Santa Anita (5 wins, a second in 6 starts), she appeared to be a threat in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff if she could carry her speed the races’ 9 furlong distance.

The Distaff had only a six horse field, but it boasted having the two time victress, Royal Delta, along with prominent sophomores Princess of Sylmar, Beholder, and Close Hatches. The dual champion was the post time favorite even though Princess of Sylmar had defeated her decisively in the Beldame Stakes. Beholder was the strong third choice, but there were lingering doubts about her ability to stay the Distaff distance considering the expected hot pace.

At the start, Mike Smith sent Royal Delta to the lead, but on the inside Authenticity out footed her to the first turn. Gary Stevens was content to rate Beholder back in third just to the outside of Close Hatches. Princess of Sylmar, who had stumbled slightly at the start, was settled in fifth. Down the backstretch, Authenticity clung to a narrow lead over Royal Delta as Beholder loomed outside of both of them. Around the far turn, Stevens sent Beholder up to challenge for the lead while Mike Smith did not get a favorable response from Royal Delta. At the top of the stretch, Beholder had a clear lead with only Close Hatches posing any threat. Royal Delta dropped back, and Princess of Sylmar after making a brief run around the far turn, faded in the stretch. At the finish, Beholder was a dominant 4¼ length winner over Close Hatches. The latter, in turn, was 1¾ lengths ahead of Authenticity. Royal Delta in the final start of her career was fourth and Princess of Sylmar finished sixth.

Richard Mandella was lauded by B. Wayne Hughes as a master trainer. This victory was another pinnacle for Gary Stevens’ comeback year. At year’s end, Beholder was voted an Eclipse Award for Three Year-old Filly over Princess of Sylmar who may have won the award if she had not run in the Distaff.

On the 2014 Belmont Stakes undercard, the best sophomore fillies of 2013, Beholder, Princess of Sylmar, and Close Hatches faced off in 8½ furlong Ogden Phipps Stakes. They all came into the race undefeated in their initial 2014 starts with Close Hatches having won two graded stakes races, whereas her two rivals had only a single start each in restricted stakes races against inferior opposition. Whether it was her additional seasoning or the Belmont track surface, Close Hatches was able to gain the lead nearing the stretch and held on gamely to defeat the oncoming Princess of Sylmar by a diminishing head. Antipathy was just a neck back in third and Beholder, in a rare out of the money performance, was fourth but beaten only a total of about a length.

Beholder, who exited the Ogden Phipps with an injury, prepped for the Breeders’ Cup Distaff with a facile repeat win in the Zenyatta Stakes. However, she was withdrawn about 11 days before the Distaff due to a fever. Her absence removed any chance Beholder had of becoming older filly and mare champion. (Consequently, 2014 was the only year in her career she did not gain an Eclipse Award.)

It was her performances at ages five and six that earned Beholder her inclusion on my Starlet Series. In 2015 under Richard Mandella’s conditioning and Gary Stevens’ riding, Beholder was able to have a consistent campaign. She began in April with a facile victory in the restricted Santa Lucia Stakes at Santa Anita, then followed with a confident triumph in the Adoration Stakes over the same oval. Moving to Del Mar, Beholder came from just off the pace to win the Clement L. Hirsch Stakes by 7 emphatic lengths.

Facing males in the Pacific Classic Stakes and going 1¼ miles for the first time, Beholder was, nonetheless, made the favorite in a ten horse field that included 2014 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Bayern and consistent Hoppertunity (both trained by Bob Baffert). However, the Pacific Classic belonged to Beholder. After sitting comfortably in third position off the fast pace set by Bayern and Midnight Storm, the daughter of Henny Hughes made a scintillating sweep to the lead around the turn, mostly under her own power to cruise past the leaders. Beholder came into the stretch with a several length advantage and just expanded it under absolutely no urging by Stevens. At the finish, she was 8¼ lengths in front of another Mandella trainee, Catch a Flight, with Hoppertunity finishing fourth and Bayern and Midnight Storm, ninth and tenth respectively.

In preparing for a Breeders’ Cup race, Beholder won, for the third year in a row, the Zenyatta Stakes, this time by a handy 3¼ lengths. She was pre-entered in both the Distaff and the Classic, held this year at Keeneland Race Course, but when final entry time arrived, her connections opted for the Classic. As the race approached, Beholder, if she could repeat her phenomenal race in the Pacific Classic, appeared the major threat to Triple Crown hero American Pharoah, who was coming off a shocking loss in the Travers Stakes. The prospect of a head-to-head battle disappeared when it was announced that Beholder would be withdrawn due to an inflamed throat. (This was the second year in the row she was forced to miss the Breeders’ Cup.) In her absence, American Pharoah gained an easy lead and cruised to a 6½ length victory. Despite her Breeders’ Cup withdrawal, Beholder was able to gain the Eclipse Award as Champion Older Dirt Female Horse.

An unanticipated benefit to Beholder having to miss the 2015 Breeders’ Cup Classic was owner B. Wayne Hughes’ decision to defer her retirement one more year, and the three time Eclipse Award champion returned to the races as a six year-old.

Richard Mandella picked the Adoration Stakes in May at Santa Anita (a race she won in 2015), as Beholder’s initial 2016 outing, and under regular rider Gary Stevens, she had no trouble recording a handy 2½ length victory. In Beholder’s next start, the 1 mile Vanity Mile Stakes, she faced a formidable foe in last year’s sophomore filly champion, Stellar Wind, who was making her four year-old debut. In the Vanity, Beholder was able to gain the advantage around the stretch turn and then without undue pressure held off Stellar Wind’s rally by a comfortable 1½ lengths. The pair returned in the 8½ furlong Clement L. Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar in late July.  Just as in their previous encounter, Stellar Wind was carrying 2 lb. less than Beholder. More so, the former benefited greatly in fitness from her Vanity effort, and under Victor Espinoza’s hustling, she was able to keep within a length of Beholder in the early going. Making her challenge around the far turn, Stellar Wind drew alongside her older rival and in a stirring stretch duel was able to prevail by ½ length.

Beholder next tried for a repeat in the Pacific Classic, but the field she faced in the 2016 edition was much stronger, headed by 2014 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner California Chrome, who at five years-old, was having a sensational year having won in March, what was at the time the richest race in the world, the Dubai World Cup. Also in the field were the Bob Baffert trained entry of the highly regarded Dortmund and the reliable Hoppertunity. From the no. 1 post, Victor Espinoza sent “Chrome” right to the lead angling out from the rail and out footing both Beholder and Dortmund, respectively. These positions held the entire journey with Chrome bounding clear without being pressured at all. At the finish, the popular chestnut was 5 lengths in front of Beholder who was 2¼ lengths ahead of Dortmund. Hoppertunity finished a length further back in fourth place. This dominating victory over a top class field was perhaps California Chrome’s greatest performance in his illustrious career, but this in no way diminished Beholder’s game effort.

Racing against her own sex, Beholder had her final prep for the Breeders’ Cup Distaff in the Zenyatta Stakes, attempting to win the race for the fourth straight year. Just as in the Clement L. Hirsch, she was locked in a fierce duel with Stellar Wind (this time at equal weights), and, at the finish, Beholder was a neck short.

In her final race, the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, Beholder faced seven foes highlighted by the undefeated three year-old Songbird (11 for 11) and Stellar Wind. Indicative of the depth of quality among Distaff entries were multiple major winners Curlina, I’m a Chatterbox and, Forever Unbridled. The betting public made Songbird the solid favorite with Stellar Wind the second choice over Beholder.

In a vintage renewal between two outstanding horses ridden by two Hall of Fame riders, the Distaff was a thriller. Songbird, with Mike Smith, broke alertly from her no. 1 post and seized the lead with I’m a Chatterbox in closest pursuit. Beholder came out of the gate well from her outside post position, and Gary Stevens let her run up on the outside around the clubhouse turn to settle in third place down the backstretch. Unfortunately, Stellar Wind hopped in the air at the start and was last in the early going. Down the backstretch, Songbird, running comfortably, had a 1½ length lead with I’m a Chatterbox and Beholder poised to challenge. Around the far turn, the last two mentioned ranged up against the leader, but of the two, only Beholder sustained her rally. At the top of the stretch, Songbird and Beholder were head-to-head, and they remained so as both Smith and Stevens, using all their respective guile and experience urged their mounts forward. In a desperate finish, Beholder proved the better of her younger rival by a nose. Finishing third was Forever Unbridled just 1½ lengths behind the embattled pair. Stellar Wind, who rallied wide around the stretch turn, had no final kick in finishing fourth another 2½ lengths back.

After missing the Breeders’ Cup the past two years, this was a great victory for Beholder and her connections: owner B. Wayne Hughes, trainer Richard Mandella, jockey Gary Stevens. They all agreed she was the best horse they were associated in their respective long racing careers. Indeed, Wayne Hughes’ decision not to retire Beholder at the end of 2015, allowed the mare to carve her name in Breeders’ Cup history as the only horse other than Goldikova to win three Breeders’ Cup races. Eclipse Awards were given to the first two finishers in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff: Beholder for Older Dirt Female (her fourth Eclipse) and Songbird for Three Year-old Filly.

So Beholder was finally retired to Spendthrift Farm. In 2017 she was bred to Uncle Mo and produced a bay colt on January 23, 2018, named Q B One. If this son shows a portion of the class, hardiness, and courage of his mother, he will have indeed a bright racing future.