For those scoring at home, the title is a bit intriguing. Thorpedo Anna is the wonderful filly that won both the Kentucky Oaks and Acorn Stakes in dominant fashion. So what did the Derby, Preakness, and Belmont say about this fleet-footed female when she ran in nary?
During this, her three-year-old season, all this daughter of Fast Anna has done is win a grade 2 (Fantasy Stakes) and two grade 1 races (Kentucky Oaks, Acorn Stakes) at three different tracks by a combined 14 lengths. At the same time, the boys in the three-year-old division have seen a different horse win the “big three” races. Mystik Dan was brilliant at game plan execution in the Kentucky Derby but lacked his kick in the Preakness and was empty in the Belmont. Seize The Grey was gate-to-wire dominant in the Preakness but belittled in the Belmont. Dornoch was the best in the Belmont but not eye-catching after disappointments in the Florida and Kentucky Derby. The only major player among the males that is unbeaten in 2024 is Muth and he is two for two (San Vicente, Arkansas Derby) but did not run in any of the Triple Crown races because of an illness.
So, once again…what’s the point?...Thorpedo Anna is the top three-year-old in the United States right now. As a voting member of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association poll in recent weeks our ballot has reflected that. This week’s vote will again affirm what we thought we already knew. Her dominant display on the dirt should leave no doubt as to who the best horse is in the three-year-old division is today. The males get more of the hoopla, but the facts tell us this female has flat toted the mail in the Spring of 2024.
Moving forward, it may not be surprising to see Thorpedo Anna take on the boys in some of the big Summer races. Trainer Kenny McPeek has done it before with Swiss Skydiver in 2020 and 2021. Given the current void of a dominant male, could Anna compete with the boys in an event like say the Travers Stakes? A quick perusal of the past performances provides an emphatic YES. To summarize, the current three-year-old division is much like my household…girls rule
