BEHOLDER IS LIKE A PIECE OF CHEESECAKE
As we draw ever closer to the 25th running of the million dollar TVG Pacific Classic at Del Mar, let’s take a quick look at the probable post-time favorite and characterize her in a manner which all can understand. Of course the key word in that opening mumbo-jumbo is…HER!
The bedazzling Beholder is a fantastically fast daughter of Henny Hughes that will look to become the first female winner of the Pacific Classic. With 13 emphatic wins in 18 lifetime starts, this Richard Mandella trained mare can add to an already impressive resume that includes two Breeders’ Cup victories (2012 Juvenile Fillies, 2013 Distaff) and 6 grade 1’s. A versatile running style that has at times simply overwhelmed the opposition makes her ever so dangerous to the male opposition in the August 22 Classic.
So let’s pretend you don’t know anything about her and you need some kind of analogy to understand why she can make history at the Seaside Oval. Beholder is like a piece of cheesecake. Sweet as sweet can be and silky smooth for starters. Just watch her wins and you will see that she is simply breathtaking. As she stalks the pace and then cuts loose with a run as slick as the sheen on an uncut New York dessert, you begin to understand how special this sweet running thing is. Then, as her class exudes and she destroys the opposition, her stretch run leaves you giving the yummy sounds (mmmmm-mmmmm good) as if you had just swallowed that first tantalizing taste.
There are a lot of different kinds of cakes that could compare, so why cheesecake when talking about Beholder and the Pacific Classic? Someone from the inner circles of this fabulous athlete set me on my comparison trail. I thought a win over the boys could ice an already beautiful cake of a racing career, but I stand corrected.
“She doesn’t need any icing on her cake”, proclaims hall of fame rider and Beholder jockey Gary Stevens. “She does not have to prove anything to anybody because she has always answered every call. Beholder is a very professional runner that just needs me to put her where she should be and then she handles the rest. We are looking forward to running in a race like this and hats off to (owner B Wayne) Mr. Hughes for giving us the opportunity.”
So as I watched the replays of Beholder during her recent 4-race win streak I thought about what her jock said. Gary Stevens you are correct, Beholder needs no icing therefor there is no real pressure on her as she prepares to battle the boys. As a proven champion, Beholder does not need anything else to make her resume especially rich. Like the finest piece of cheesecake she is already there and that is why Beholder will be favored in the third leg of California’s handicap triple crown.
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