COURTESY BREEDERS’ CUP (Edited)
Smile Wins Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1)
Frances A. Genter’s homebred Smile, a highly-accomplished and versatile 4-year-old colt with jockey Jacinto Vasquez aboard, broke sharply from the rail in the 1986 Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Santa Anita and immediately had company on the outside from 4-year-old filly Pine Tree Lane. The duel went on to deep stretch before Smile edged away to score by a length-and-a-half.
Remarkably, Smile went into the Sprint at liberal odds of 11-1 after a dull effort on a sloppy track at Philadelphia Park after competing in longer races in his three previous starts. The victory earned Smile Eclipse champion sprinter honors.
By In Reality, out of Sunny Smile, by Boldnesian, Smile began his career with seven straight victories at Calder Race Course for trainer Frank Gomez, becoming the first horse to sweep the Florida Stallion Stakes, taking the 1984 Dr. Fager, Affirmed and In Reality.
After winning the 1985 Carry Back at Calder for Gomez, he spent the rest of his career between Genter Stable trainers Carl Nafzger in the Midwest and F.S. “Scotty” Schulhofer, the latter his trainer for the Breeders’ Cup.
Smile ended his career in 1987 with $1,664,027 in earnings from 14 wins, four seconds and three thirds from 27 starts.
Brave Raj Takes Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1)
Florida-bred Brave Raj – ©Four Footed Fotos/Breeders’ Cup
Dolly Green’s Brave Raj was sent off third choice in the Juvenile Fillies at Santa Anita with jockey Pat Valenzuela aboard for veteran trainer Mel Stute and drew off in the stretch for a commanding five-and-a-half-lengths victory, her fifth consecutive tally.
The winning streak began with at Del Mar the $50,000 Sorrento (G3) going seven furlongs on Aug. 18 and the $125,000 Del Mar Futurity at a mile on Aug.31. Stute returned Brave Raj to her home state and Calder Race Course to win the seven-furlong Susan’s Girl on Sept. 21 and the mile-and-one-sixteenth My Dear Girl on Oct. 12 before head back to Southern California for the Breeders’ Cup.
Earlier that year, Stute was at Garden State Park to run Preakness-hero Snow Chief in the Jersey Derby (G2) and watched Brave Raj win her debut by seven-and-a-half lengths that week, soon after making a deal to buy her privately for $300,000 on behalf of longtime client Green.
Brave Raj made one more sporting start after the Breeders’ Cup that season, finishing a respectable fifth against colts in the Hollywood Futurity. She was voted Eclipse champion 2-year-old filly.
Brave Raj was by Rajab out of Bravest Yet, by Bravo and was bred in Florida by Dr. W. S. Karutz. She retired with six wins from nine starts with one second and earnings of $933,650.
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