Love and Pride beats west’s best in Zenyatta

Love and Pride led throughout to underscore the strength of the East Coast distaffers (Benoit Photos) Coming off a stunning upset of eastern heavyweights Royal Delta and It’s Tricky in the Grade 1 Personal Ensign Handicap, Green Hills Farm’s Love and Pride showed that win was no fluke by traveling to Santa Anita and knocking out the West Coast’s leading older fillies and mares in Saturday’s Grade 1, $250,000 Zenyatta. Under Martin Garcia, the Todd Pletcher trainee set a modest pace of :23 4/5, :48 2/5 and 1:12 2/5, and kicked clear in the stretch to the win by 3 1/4 lengths in a time of 1:43 for 1 1/16 miles over the fast main track. The 4-1 third choice in a field of nine, Love and Pride returned $10.20, $5.20 and $4. “This filly, when she gets a chance to settle into a rhythm, she’s obviously able to finish off her races. I think you saw that today,” said Mike McCarthy, assistant to Todd Pletcher. Love and Pride’s victory in the Zenyatta, formerly known as the Lady’s Secret, came hours after Royal Delta rebounded from her Personal Ensign defeat with a 9 1/2-length demolition of It’s Tricky in the Grade 1 Beldame at Belmont Park. Both Love and Pride and Royal Delta are now on track to meet again for a third time this season in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Ladies’ Classic at Santa Anita on November 2.

Midwest import Joyful Victory, who tracked in third early, improved her
position one slot in the stretch and edged Include Me Out for place honors by a
half-length. The latter, California’s leading older filly this term, nosed out
sophomore Via Villaggio for the show. Farther back was 2-1 favorite Amani, Star
Billing, Switch, Love Theway Youare and Miss Mittagong.

“You just can’t close on this track the way it is. Speed’s holding, and they
didn’t go very fast,” said Ron Ellis, trainer of Include Me Out. “We’ll do
better next time. It’s just the way the track is now. Unless you’re on the lead,
you can’t win.”

Love and Pride opened her career at Delaware Park in 2011, taking her maiden
debut by three parts of a length, and two races later recorded an 8 1/4-length
victory against allowance company. She made her first foray outside the confines
of Delaware when shipped to New York for Saratoga’s Proud Spell  and
triumphed on that day by 6 3/4 lengths.

The dark bay lass wouldn’t visit the winner’s circle again until making her
four-year-old bow on January 28, capturing the Affectionately at Aqueduct by
seven lengths. In the interim she placed in the Grade 1 Gazelle and two
overnight stakes.

Following her season-opening win, Love and Pride finished second in the Grade
2 Top Flight Handicap to It’s Tricky and just missed by a head in the Grade 3
Allaire duPont Distaff two races later. She finally recorded her first graded
score in the Grade 3 Obeah, appropriately enough back at Delaware Park. A fading
fourth behind Royal Delta in the Grade 2 Delaware Handicap after setting a hot
pace, Love and Pride upset both that rival and It’s Tricky in the nine-furlong
Personal Ensign. This second straight top-level triumph elevates her career mark
to 16-7-2-4, $925,760.

Bred in Kentucky by Stud TNT, Love and Pride was a $380,000 Keeneland April
two-year-old in training RNA. She is out of the Grade 1-placed Storm Cat mare
Ile de France, making her a three-quarter sibling to classic-winning champion
and top sire Bernardini. That stallion and Ile de France are both out of
Broodmare of the Year and Grade 1 victress Cara Rafaela, who also produced the
dam of multiple Grade 3 scorer Thiskyhasnolimit. Cara Rafaela is herself a
half-sister to dual Grade 3 hero and sire Abaginone.

Love and Pride’s fourth dam is the Grade 3-winning Northern Dancer mare
Northern Fable.

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