Rachel Alexandra came from rocky beginnings before rising to greatness, culminating in an undefeated 2009 racing season and being named American Horse of the Year. Her amazing season in 2009 was one of the best ever seen from a 3-year-old filly, and she was the only 3-year-old filly to win the Horse of the Year award since the Eclipse Awards began in 1971. Out of 19 starts, she had 13 wins, five seconds, and just one major loss, when she took sixth in her first maiden race in 2008.
As a foal, Rachel Alexandra was rejected by her dam right after birth, and Rachel’s owner, Dolphus C. Morrison, described her as ““a little raw-boned and a little scruffy.” She was almost included in the 2006 Keeneland November Sale as a weanling due to her physical appearance. Fortunately, X-rays revealed a “minor development problem”, and Morrison scratched her from the sale, believing that she wouldn’t fetch the $125,000 that he thought she was worth. Instead, she was sent to Diamond D Ranch in Lone Oak, Texas, where Jimmy “Scooter” Dodwell broke her in. Morrison asked Dodwell if Rachel was ready to be entered in a Florida sale in 2007, and Dodwell described her as having “a ton of speed, with a long stride”, and recommended that she wasn’t sold. His judgement came at a crucial time and gave Rachel Alexandra the chance she needed to earn glory on the racetrack.
Rachel started her career with the jockey Brian Hernandez Jr., earning just two wins out of five races, before switching to the jockey Calvin Borel. Under Borel, her performance improved dramatically; he rode her to 9 consecutive wins, and she never finished below second place again. After her remarkable 2009 season, Rachel had a comparatively average record in 2010 with 2 wins and 3 seconds, and she was retired after 5 races that year.
In addition to being the first 3-year-old filly to receive Horse of the Year, Rachel Alexandra was also the first filly to win the Preakness Stakes race in 85 years (the last filly to win was Nellie Morse in 1924). She won races in six states (Kentucky, Louisiana, Arkansas, Maryland, New York, and New Jersey), on eight different tracks, against fillies and Grade 1 colts and older horses, achieving a long string of consecutive wins, including numerous Grade 1 stakes. She was inducted into the Fair Grounds Racing Hall of Fame in 2011 and the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2016.
Horse Profile
- Foaled: January 29, 2006
- Bred: USA
- Sex: Mare
- Debuted: 2008
- Retired: 2010
- Death: N/A
- Color and Markings: Bay with a distinctive upside-down exclamation point-shaped white blaze
- Sire: Medaglia d’Oro
- Dam: Lotta Kim
- Owner: Dolphus C. Morrison and Stonestreet Stables
- Breeder: Dolphus C. Morrison
- Trainer: Hal Wiggins and Steve Asmussen
- Regular Jockey: Calvin Borel
Characteristics
Rachel Alexandra is a dark bay mare, standing 16.2 hands. Although she is a big, robust mare, she is described as having a feminine head. Rachel had a long, light racing stride and preferred to cruise on or near the lead. She was at her best over 8 to 9 furlongs. She was said to be extremely sensible and professional in disposition. She enjoys peppermints as treats.
Historical Achievements, Honors Received, and Recognitions
- Eclipse Award, American Horse of the Year (2009). The first 3-year-old filly to earn the award.
- Eclipse Award, American champion 3-year-old filly (2009). A unanimous choice as American champion 3-year-old filly.
- National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame (inducted in 2016)
- Fair Grounds Hall of Fame (inducted in 2011)
Rankings
- Rated at 116 pounds on the Experimental Free Handicap for American juvenile fillies of 2008, 8 pounds below champion Stardom Bound.
- Rated at 127 pounds on the 2009 World Thoroughbred Rankings, 9 pounds below highweighted Sea the Stars (the European Horse of the Year) and 3 pounds below the brilliant miler Goldikova, who was top-weighted among fillies and mares. Her rating was also 1 pound below that of Zenyatta.
- Rated at 120 pounds on the 2010 World Thoroughbred Rankings, 16 pounds below highweighted Harbinger (who earned his rating with a win in King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, ENG-G1) and 5 pounds below the top-weighted mares, Zenyatta and Goldikova.
Racing Career
| Record | Earnings |
|---|---|
19: 13-5-0 | $ 3,506,730 |
| WON RACES | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date | Distance | Race | Grade | Track | Finish | Winning Time | Winning Margin | Jockey |
2008 – Two-year-old season | ||||||||
June 13, 2008 | 5 Furlongs | Maiden | Churchill Downs | 1 | 0:57.40 | 1 ¼ lengths | Brian J. Hernandez, Jr. | |
October 17, 2008 | 6 Furlongs | Allowance | Keeneland | 1 | 1:09.60 | 3 lengths | Brian J. Hernandez, Jr. | |
November 29, 2008 | 1 1⁄16 Miles | Golden Rod Stakes | II | Churchill Downs | 1 | 1:43.80 (set record) | 4 ¾ lengths | Calvin H. Borel |
2009 – Three-year-old season | ||||||||
February 15, 2009 | 1 Mile | Martha Washington Stakes | Listed | Oaklawn Park | 1 | 1:36.40 | 8 lengths | Calvin H. Borel |
March 14, 2009 | 1 1⁄16 Miles | Fair Grounds Oaks | II | Fair Grounds Race Course | 1 | 1:43.55 | 1 ¾ lengths | Calvin H. Borel |
April 5, 2009 | 1 1⁄16 Miles | Fantasy Stakes | II | Oaklawn Park | 1 | 1:43.35 | 8 ¾ lengths | Calvin H. Borel |
May 1, 2009 | 1 1⁄8 Miles | Kentucky Oaks | I | Churchill Downs | 1 | 1:48.87(a) | 20 ¼ lengths (b) | Calvin H. Borel |
May 16, 2009 | 1 3⁄16 Miles | Preakness Stakes (c) | I | Pimlico | 1 | 1:55.80 | 1 length | Calvin H. Borel |
June 27, 2009 | 1 1⁄8 Miles | Mother Goose Stakes | I | Belmont Park | 1 | 1:46.33 (d) | 19 ¼ lengths (e) | Calvin H. Borel |
August 2, 2009 | 1 1⁄8 Miles | Haskell Invitational (g) | I | Monmouth Park | 1 | 1:47.10 (f) | 6 lengths | Calvin H. Borel |
September 5, 2009 | 1 1⁄8 Miles | Woodward Stakes (h) | I | Saratoga Race Course | 1 | 1:48.29 | Head | Calvin H. Borel |
2010– Three-year-old season | ||||||||
June 12, 2010 | 1 1⁄8 Miles | Fleur de Lis Handicap | II | Churchill Downs | 1 | 1:48.78 | 10 ½ lengths | Calvin H. Borel |
July 24, 2010 | 1 1⁄8 Miles | Lady's Secret Stakes | Listed | Monmouth Park | 1 | 1:49.78 | 3 lengths | Calvin H. Borel |
Legend: (c) Rachel Alexandra was the first horse to win the Preakness Stakes (USA-G1) from the 13-post position. The first filly to win the Preakness Stakes since Nellie Morse in 1924 and the fifth in the race's history. (d) broke the stakes record; (e) broke the record margin victory of 13 ½ lengths set by Ruffian in (1975). (f) was 0.21 seconds off the stakes record and 0.41 seconds off the track record. Her Beyer Speed Figure rating of 116 was the highest in North America in 2009. (g) Her Beyer Speed Figure rating of 116 was the highest in North America in 2009. (h) The first-ever filly or mare to win the stakes. She is also the first 3-year-old filly to win a grade I route dirt race against older males in New York since Lady Primrose won the Manhattan in 1887. | ||||||||
| LOST RACES | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date | Distance | Race | Grade | Track | Placement | Time | Losing Margin | Jockey |
2008 – Two-year-old season | ||||||||
May 22, 2008 | 4+1⁄2 Furlongs | Maiden | Churchill Downs | 6 | 0:51.25 | (8 ¼ lengths) | Brian J. Hernandez, Jr. | |
June 28, 2008 | 6 Furlongs | Debutante Stakes | III | Churchill Downs | 2 | 1:11.00 | (½ lengths) | Brian J. Hernandez, Jr. |
November 1, 2008 | 1 Mile | Pocahontas Stakes | III | Churchill Downs | 2 | 1:34.60 | (3 ¾ lengths) | Brian J. Hernandez, Jr. |
2010– Three-year-old season | ||||||||
March 13, 2010 | 1+1⁄16 Miles | New Orleans Ladies Stakes | Listed | Fair Grounds Race Course | 2 | 1:43.55 | (3/4 length) | Calvin H. Borel |
April 30, 2010 | 1+1⁄16 Miles | La Troienne Stakes | II | Churchill Downs | 2 | 1:42.97 | (Head) | Calvin H. Borel |
August 29, 2010 | 1+1⁄4 Miles | Personal Ensign Stakes | I | Saratoga Race Course | 2 | 2:04.49 | 1 length | Calvin H. Borel |
Top 100 Rankings (Since 2000)
- Ranked 61st by Earnings – 2010
- Ranked 8th by Wins – 2009
- Ranked 2nd by Earnings - 2009
Fun Facts
- Rachel Alexandra was named for her breeder’s granddaughter. She is known to her fans as “Alexandra the Great” or “Rachel.”
- Following Rachel Alexandra’s retirement in September 2010, the Fair Grounds racetrack renamed its Silverbulletday Stakes in her honor. Currently a Grade 2 event for 3-year-old fillies, the Rachel Alexandra Stakes is contested on dirt at 8.5 furlongs as of 2020.
- “Rachel Alexandra” is the eleventh chapter in Horse Racing Divas: From Azeri to Zenyatta, Twelve Fillies and Mares Who Achieved Horse Racing’s Highest Honor. The book was written by the staff and correspondents of The Blood Horse and was released in 2011.
- Six Weeks in Saratoga: How Three-Year-Old Filly Rachel Alexandra Beat the Boys and Became Horse of the Year was written by Brendan O’Meara. The first edition of the book was published by the State University of New York Press on July 1, 2011.
- She was featured in a book, Alexandra the Great: The Story of the Record-Breaking Filly Who Ruled the Racetrack, written by Deb Aronson.