Superstar mare Rachel Alexandra will be inducted into the racing Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, NY next month but her ‘on track legacy’ hasn’t fared especially well. Her first foal is four year old Jess’s Dream who has been hampered by a series of minor injuries throughout his career. The other is three year old filly Rachel’s Valentina who started her racing career with great promise but has disappointed this year. She had definitely underachieved as a three year old but that alone doesn’t explain the somewhat surprising announcement by owner Stonestreet Farm that Rachel’s Valentina had been retired from racing.
Stonestreet is owned by Barbara Banke who announced the retirement with this statement on the farm’s website: “We want to announce that Rachel’s Valentina will now retire from racing sound and injury-free. We look forward to sharing her babies with you, carrying on the legacy of ‘Rachel the Great.’ ” No other context for the move was provided though it is obvious from that statement that a career as a broodmare is next for Rachel’s Valentina.
Rachel’s Valentina’s career began positively enough–after her debut win she was victorious in the Grade 1 Spinaway Stakes before finishing second in 2015 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies. Since she was beaten by Songbird–now known as undoubtedly the best three year old filly in the sport–that’s not exactly a huge rap against Rachel’s Valentina.
Her three year old campaign was a profound disappointment. She opened the year by finishing second to Weep No More in the Grade 1 Ashland Stakes at Keeneland. She was favored in her next two races but finished well off the pace–fifth in the Kentucky Oaks and sixth in the Grade 1 Mother Goose. There was talk that trainer Todd Pletcher didn’t know exactly what the problem was and needed to to ‘back to the drawing board’ but no one expected the immediate retirement.
The obvious explanation is a simple one–Rachel’s Valentina is worth more as a broodmare than she is as an active competitor. Stonestreet Farm’s Banke has said that Rachel Alexandra will not be bred again after she suffered severe complications during her pregnancy and after delivery. This required surgery and a lengthy clinic stay.