Tulsa World: Oklahoma horse retires

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Oklahoma horse retires

By RICHARD LINIHAN Horse Racing
Published: 11/15/2009 2:30 AM
Last Modified: 11/15/2009 6:06 AM

IN THE aftermath of one of the greatest Breeders' Cup Classic victories of all time comes some disturbing news for Oklahoma race fans.

Not long after Zenyatta became the first female horse to win the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic beating one of the classiest fields ever, virtually solidifying her hold on 2009 Champion Horse of the Year, we learned that Oklahoma's all-time winningest horse Kip Deville has been retired after a couple of months of health problems.

The big gray 6-year-old son of Kipling and winner of the 2007 Breeders' Cup Mile and runner-up in 2008, was not retired for stud duties as so many great champions are at the end of their careers, but because of a laundry list of ailments that may prove to be touch and go.

Owner Michael Iavarone of IEAH said that Kip Deville, winner of $3,325,489 in his career with 12 victories from 30 starts, has had multiple colic surgeries in the past two months and that he also is suffering from laminitis, the same disease that took the life of such legendary horses as Secretariat and more recently Barbaro.

"All we're worried about is making sure he gets the best treatment and comes through all this," Iavarone told Blood-Horse magazine.

Kip Deville was bred by Dr. Warren Centers of Center Hills Farm, but was foaled at Mighty Acres Farm just outside of Pryor.

"Yeah, I remember when he was a yearling," said Mighty Acres Farm manager Randy Blair, "but not because he looked like a Breeders' Cup winner back then. It was because while all the other yearlings were out jumping around and playing and running, he was always taking a nap in the sun."

Kip Deville became the all-time leading money earner of all Oklahoma breds in the latter part of his career, passing Eclipse Award-winning Horse of the Year Champion nationally Lady's Secret.

He was sired by Kipling out of the Encino mare, Klondike Kaytie.

This kind of news makes Horse of the Year arguments pale at the moment, but if Zenyatta is not voted Horse of the Year they should just shut down the Eclipse Awards.

The big mare showed up and beat the Kentucky Derby winner, the Belmont Stakes winner, North America's top grass horse and Europe's second-best overall horse. Rachel Alexandra is her nemesis in the voting and although one can not blame her ownership for not showing up at Santa Anita, if she wanted Horse of the Year, she should have been there.

No horse has ever won 14 races in a row as Zenyatta has, beaten the boys in the Breeders' Cup Classic, and not been named Horse of the Year.

Yes, Rachel Alexandra beat the older male horses in the Woodward, but that is far from the stellar field Zenyatta beat in the Classic.

If the Rachel beats the older mares in the balloting, there should be a review of all ballots and serious consideration to taking votes away from anyone who doesn't vote for Zenyatta. The electric feeling of her changing leads in mid-stretch and re-firing when it appeared she was flattening out gave many who witnessed it goose bumps. One writer wrote that if she didn't win the Classic, then her owners could be blamed, but if she did win, it would be a race he would tell his grandchildren about in years to come.

Breeders' Cup postscripts: Keep the following ominous statistic in mind the next time the Breeders' Cup is run on a synthetic racing surface. Horses that made their last start on regular dirt were 0-for-21 making it to the winner's circle last weekend and last year they were 0-for-22.

Richard Linihan is the marketing director for Fair Meadows in Tulsa. By RICHARD LINIHAN Horse Racing

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