Tough loss in Texas: Worldly Manner dead at 14

I'll take a minute this evening to offer my sincere condolences to an avid race fan, breeder and owner from one of my two Kansas "hometowns," Coffeyville.

Jim Percival, whose White Cat Farm partnered in standing Worldly Manner at David Bailey's Two B Rockin Ranch, near Bridgeport, Texas, lost that stallion today from an apparent heart attack while covering a mare. The good fella was just 14 years old.

I recall a couple of years ago when Jim lost his last stallion, Timetobewild, in the same fashion. That stakes-winning son of Flamingo Stakes-G1 winning Time for a Change was just 13 when he succumbed after covering a mare on Jim's own farm in Kansas. And Jim had not all that long before acquired Timetobewild to replace the late Arab Speaker, who had sired a stakes horse for Jim in Bonnie J before he passed along.

I scouted the field for stallion prospects -- on sales Web sites, in upcoming auctions and in claiming races, where so many pretty good (and intact) horses end up running out their long and successful careers when they aren't from powerhouse sirelines or the hottest-producing damlines. I made a few recommendations (including G2-placed Vinemeister, who could've been claimed on the cheap in the Mid-Atlantic at the time), but Jim opted to go into partnership on Worldly Manner.

I can't say that I blame him.

Worldly Manner was a heck of a 2-year-old. Under the guidance of Bob Baffert, he won the Del Mar Futurity-G2 and the Pest Pal S.-G3 during a stellar juvenile campaign.

Then he was bought by Godolphin and, honestly, wrecked, almost as surely as a drunk driver steering his Mustang into the ditch.

The Riverman colt (who I think might have been a better turf horse; his dam was a full sister to the dam of G1-winning grass horse River Flyer, also by Riverman) was the first of Sheikh Mohammed's big-dollar purchases (a reported $5 million) in an effort to win the Kentucky Derby after wintering in Dubai. Worldly Manner was shipped to the Middle East and inexplicably -- not to mention ill-advisedly, unwisely, insanely and just about every other negative term I can muster -- entered in the 1999 Kentucky Derby after exactly zero legit prep races at age 3. ... Nary a one. ... Other than a trial race in Dubai, Worldly Manner hadn't faced competition since winning the Del Mar Futurity in Southern California on Sept. 9 the year prior.

Yet he had talent, and guts, and as the field turned for home, Worldly Manner, ridden by Jerry Bailey, was on the lead at the top of the stretch at Churchill Downs, in America's biggest race.

Quite to be expected, he came up short, finishing seventh behind Charismatic. But he was only beaten a handful of lengths when it was said and done. Given a reasonable prep schedule coming up to the Derby, Worldly Manner might well have been a fit enough horse to finish the job.

Compounding the error, Godolphin entered him in the Preakness, and watched him finish 12th.

Sent back overseas, the horse failed to win again, making starts in Dubai and in England. His career ended with those three 2-year-old victories from 12 starts and earnings a little over a quarter-million.

After his racing career, Worldly Manner stood in Florida, California and Oklahoma prior to his acquisition by the partners who owned him at his time of death. He's sired a couple of nice horses, too, including $336K-earner Spot the Diplomat and stakes-winning hurdler Kilbride Rd.

And now Worldly Manner is gone before Jim and his partners can fully exploit his services to breed a few of their own (and for clients) to do battle among Texas-breds.

RIP, Worldly Manner. I have a hunch you were a much better horse than some of the handling you got along the way, and the reputation you were left with.

What mission next for Midshipman?

Midshipman, the 2008 Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner and Eclipse 2-year-old champion, made a successful return to the races Friday after a lengthy layoff.

The 3-year-old by Unbridled's Song was an impressive winner in allowance/optional claiming company at Belmont Park, his first try on a conventional dirt surface and first race since that B.C. Juvenile win.

I have to admit I'm not sure what to think of this horse. Clearly he's talented, as are so many of the Unbridled's Song line. But it's disquieting that so many of them, including Midshipman, struggle with their soundness. Is he back for a good while, or will he unravel again sooner rather than later or never?

Midshipman was taken off the Kentucky Derby trail at the end of February after suffering a reportedly minor soft tissue injury while training at Godolphin's Al Quoz Stables in Dubai. Having missed the Derby -- which is tough enough to win by going wide to circle the field on the far turn and which Godolphin keeps trying to win by circling the globe -- the connections were obviously in no real hurry to push the horse on his return to the races. And that was no doubt in Midshipman's best interests.

So, what next for Midshipman?

It isn't impossible for the horse to be ready for the Breeders' Cup again in November. With a win on Sept. 18, he could race again in mid-October, and have three to four more weeks between that start and the big weekend. The Breeders' Cup would be his third race off the layoff, often viewed by handicappers as a horse finally primed to make his best effort.

If he emerges from this comeback win in stellar shape, I wouldn't rule out an appearance out west at Santa Anita in the Oct. 10 Goodwood Stakes, a Grade 1 race also targeted by this year's Kentucky Derby winner, Mine That Bird. It's a huge step up from A/OC company to G1, but certainly Midshipman -- when "right" -- is a Grade 1 horse. His Del Mar Futurity win and the B.C. Juvenile last year proved that. If he were entered and ran well in the Goodwood, there should be little fear of trying to run back in four weeks over the same course in the Breeders' Cup Classic among an older handicap division that has been debated as suspect.

Another possibility, should Midshipman stay in the east and on conventional dirt, might be the G2 Meadowlands Cup in New Jersey, won last year by Arson Squad. That 9-furlong race in what could or should be lesser company might be an easier second-race-back for Midshipman.

If I were among the connections, either course would likely be fine with me; again, provided the horse is "right" and stays that way.

Any thoughts from my fellow members of the peanut gallery?

With all others fleeing Rachel, Zenyatta might fill void

Last week, it looked for all the world like a showdown between unbeaten 5-year-old mare Zenyatta and seemingly world-beating 3-year-old filly Rachel Alexandra might never happen.

Weeks ago, trainer John Shirreffs said Zenyatta would be staying in California all the way through the Breeders' Cup at Santa Anita. And this week, Jess Jackson of Stonestreet Stables, primary owner of Rachel Alexandra, said his filly would be skipping the Breeders' Cup rather than run on the "plastic" Pro-Ride surface in California.

Collision averted. Regrettably.

But on Saturday morning, even before Zenyatta carried 129 pounds in defending her title in Hollywood Park's Grade 1 Vanity Handicap and Rachel set stakes records for time and margin of victory in the Mother Goose S.-G1 at Belmont Park, Zenyatta's owner, Jerry Moss, said his desire for his mare to be named Horse of the Year (she lost out to Jackson's Curlin in 2008) might well send her on the road to hunt down the upstart Rachel.

"There's a good chance," that Zenyatta would leave California despite Shirreffs' earlier statements, Moss said in an interview during the program "Down the Stretch" on XM Satellite Radio, reported by The Daily Racing Form. "... If the two horses are ready and at the top of their form, I would very much like to see a race between the two of them."

Wouldn't we all?

Sending his senior Zenyatta out to meet Jackson's saucy sophomore is something Moss doesn't exactly have to do. I've written that I believe Rachel needs to beat Zenyatta -- not just rest her laurels on a gutsy Preakness win over males or even beat boys again in the Haskell or Travers -- if Jackson wants her to be Horse of the Year. It would be a weak link in Rachel's case for the title to leave a lifetime-unbeaten Zenyatta with a pair of Breeders' Cup victories on the table, unchallenged. No matter how good Rachel has looked -- and there isn't a superlative that fits her at the moment -- Zenyatta seemed to be in the position of strength so far as dictating where, when and whether a clash of the two female titans would take place.

Meanwhile Rachel's ridiculous run Saturday, while it added another Grade 1 victory and $270,000 earned to her resume, actually turned up the pressure a bit on Jackson. Only two other 3-year-old fillies showed up to race: Edward P. Evans' Malibu Prayer, who finished second beaten 19 1/4 lengths; and Godolphin's Flashing, who was third beaten roughly 32. The connections of Don't Forget Gil and Hopeful Image scratched them out Saturday morning due to "elevated temperatures."

Rachel Alexandra set records for the Mother Goose for time when run at 9 furlongs, 1:46.33 (besting Lakeway's 1:46.58 in 1994), and margin of victory (shattering the 13 1/2-length margin set in 1975 by the sublime Ruffian).

And that presents a conundrum for Jackson and Rachel's trainer, Steve Asmussen, when considering where Rachel goes next. Earlier in the week, while ruling out the Breeders' Cup this fall, Jackson listed several potential "next starts" for Rachel after the Mother Goose.

If she enters the Coaching Club American Oaks-G1 at Belmont on July 25 or the Aug. 22 Alabama S.-G1 at Saratoga -- each restricted to 3-year-old fillies -- either might become a walkover at the rate fillies are fleeing Rachel. She could face colts and geldings again in the Aug. 2 Haskell Invitational H.-G1 at Monmouth or the Aug. 29 Travers S.-G1 at Saratoga. Both would be much bigger challenges.

But management of one Mid-Atlantic track has to be drooling over the prospects that perhaps both top females will decide to muss-up their hair and lipstick in a donnybrook at their own Delaware Park on July 19. The Delaware Handicap is but a Grade 2 race, yet the purse this year has been set at $1 million. That's considerably more cash than either of the Grade 1 opportunities at Saratoga for a Zenyatta vs. Rachel Showdown, the $300,000 Go For Wand on Aug. 2 or the $400,000 Personal Ensign on Aug. 29.

Both girls have earned plenty of G1 blacktype. Beating the other one -- whether in a Grade 1 race or a 400-yard dash at Los Alamitos -- is just about all that matters now.

I think the Personal Ensign is least likely. For Zenyatta particularly, who could win and then go home (or lose and do the same to recuperate in time for the Breeders' Cup) I think the earlier a collision with Rachel, the better. Shirreffs has hinted he doesn't necessarily want Zenyatta going 10 furlongs, so asking her to cover an untried distance, on conventional dirt (over which she's only raced once), while also making the sporting gesture of shipping cross-country to where Rachel is training at The Spa, is one concession too many for the California connections.

With the Go For Wand being the least lucrative matchup (not that either camp is hurting for cash), the Delaware Handicap begins to look even more attractive. It's mile-and-a-sixteenth course is Zenyatta's most-frequently raced distance (six of her nine graded wins), and the slightly shorter distance and huge purse (meaning a hundred-grand for third) might help attract a few more mares to the party than the 9 furlongs of the Go For Wand, which went off with only six entries last year when champion Ginger Punch cast a long shadow over the entry box.

While I'm wanting to see Zenyatta vs. Rachel, I'm not asking for a one-on-one race. And a deep-closer like Zenyatta is going to want some pace to run at, which I think she'll more likely get with a few more mares in the mix and a shorter distance to travel. Plus, from Zenyatta's perspective, at least the Delaware Handicap would require Rachel to be vanned away from Saratoga, where she'll be training the next few months.

It makes me wonder, though, whether Saratoga might try to up the ante. "Back in the day," namely when tracks were trying to land the Seabiscuit-War Admiral match, bids came in from across the country. Might the New York Racing Association and Saratoga be able to scrounge up a title sponsor to contribute a huge chunk of change and bump the Go For Wand's purse to match Delaware's bankroll?

After all, a title sponsor for this race is going to get plenty of attention. If Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra are nominated to the same race, all eyes will be on that venue from the moment the showdown is announced until at least a day or two after the dust has settled.