Mark J. Terrill / AP

Jockey Mike Smith, left, rides Zenyatta to victory in the Ladies' Classic at the Breeders Cup on Friday.

“It’s the Classic, babe.  That’s where you have to go to win a championship,” advised Rick Dutrow Jr., trainer of Big Brown, this summer before the colt had to bow out.  But Breeders’ Cup champion Raven’s Pass, having won just a race on these shores, doesn’t merit Horse of the Year distinction. He will be, on the other hand, a Cartier Award winner for best 3-year-old in England.

Curlin was gallant in defeat, making a move around the turn that made fans gasp with admiration.  He looked massive running mid-pack past the grandstand the first time, with the fading sun casting that Kodachrome gleam on his perfectly-turned out coat.

Curlin, unfortunately, just flattened out in the stretch – the same as he did in the Woodward and Jockey Club Gold Cup.  The difference for him this time around is that he had two superior European-trained horses to contend with. By the way, various European horses won five Breeders’ Cup races out of nine, and various other European horses placed in five races also.

Curlin’s Achilles heel seems to be that he doesn’t favor tracks that aren’t dirt.  His only two losses came on the turf in the grade 1 Man O’ War at Belmont and here today at Santa Anita.  During the rest of his time in competition, he won the $6 million Dubai World Cup and the Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs, in addition to the two aforementioned races.

“I’m disappointed he lost, but obviously he’s done enough for us and our careers.  He’s the all-time American horse, so we can never knock him,” said Curlin’s rider Robby Albarado.  He praised Raven’s Pass and indicated the Pro-Ride is like turf which might have given the British invader an edge.

“It absolutely was the Pro-Ride surface,” Curlin’s trainer Steve Asmussen said ungraciously.  “He’s a great horse.  He’s won $10 million,” Asmussen said, as if needing to remind anyone.

Curlin’s a fan favorite, no doubt.  High praise goes to owner Jess Jackson for keeping the colt running.  The California winemaker deserves higher praise for testing his 2007 Horse of Year in the Classic, where he had everything to lose from defeat. The crowd backed Curlin to an unrealistic 4-5.  Now it’s better than even money that Zenyatta steals his crown away.  There’s a Queen at the top of the game, not a King.

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