Sprinting Stars – Miss Andretti
If there are two things we learnt during the Turf Heroes series, they are that (1) a surprising number of people seem to like reading about champion thoroughbreds; and (2) Cliff can’t shut up about such horses. With that in mind, Making The Nut is pleased to bring you a ten-part ‘Sprinting Stars’ series, where Cliff Bingham will look back upon the short course specialists who scorched turf at the highest level. Part seven of the series covers the racetrack career of a Western Australian mare who flourished under the care of Lee Freedman when she came to Melbourne, Miss Andretti.
Previous instalments of the Sprinting Stars series:
Part 1: Schillaci
Part 2: Mahogany
Part 3: General Nediym
Part 4: Falvelon
Part 5: Spinning Hill
Part 6: Fastnet Rock
The career
The career of Miss Andretti began in her perhaps the most obscure locale of all the Sprinting Stars – Pinjarra, to be precise.
It was here that she won her debut race on the 29 December 2004, a three year-old maiden over 1200 metres. It was then on to Belmont four weeks later where she ran second in a three year-old fillies handicap and then won an open three year-old race, before returning to Pinjarra to beat the older horses in a Class-6 race to close out her opening campaign which showed much promise for the future.
After a shortish spell, she returned on Anzac Day 2005, winning a three year-old fillies Class-6 at Belmont. She then won a 3MW race at Belmont against older horses, defeated the mares in restricted grade and finally ran second to Lust For Dust in an open fillies and mares race. Her first eight races had netted six wins and two seconds – racing (and winning) at a much higher level was the next challenge.
October 2005 saw her compete in ‘black type’ racing for the first time, as she resumed with a win in the Listed Bankwest Stakes at Belmont. The remainder of her campaign (all undertaken at Ascot) was also rather successful – a win in the Group 2 Winterbottom Stakes (her first crack at a WFA race, and one that now has Group 1 status), third to Electic in the Listed Crawford Stakes, a win the Group 3 WFA Prince of Wales Stakes and a fourth to Ellicorsam in the Group 3 Colonel Reeves Stakes.
She now had nine wins from 13 career starts and with her credentials at Group level in the west now firmly established, the riches of the eastern seaboard lay in wait. The geographical shift was aided when trainer David Mueller sold a 75 per cent share in the mare to Melbourne connections, with Miss Andretti transferred to the Lee Freedman stables for the remainder of her career.
Her first Melbourne campaign was not exactly a roaring success, albeit that there was something to go on with. A heavy track found her out when sixth to Snitzel in the Group 1 Oakleigh Plate at Caulfield, before a disappointing eleventh to Takeover Target in the Group 1 Newmarket Handicap at Flemington. After a ten-week freshen up, she put those disappointing performances behind her and carried 56 kilos against the boys to win the Listed Straight Six at Flemington.
The spring of 2006 would prove her to be an elite sprinter. She kicked off her campaign with a win in the Group 3 Ian McEwen Trophy at Moonee Valley on her first run at the track, then three weeks later returned to take out the Group 1 Manikato Stakes, defeating Dance Hero. She then stepped up to 1400 metres for the first time in the Group 1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes at Caulfield, running a strong second to Rewaaya. Dropping back from 1400 to 1000 metres is never an easy task, but one she handled with aplomb when returning to Caulfield three weeks later to win the Group 2 Schillaci Stakes. Her final run of the spring came in the Group 1 (these days Group 2) Salinger Stakes, where she carried 55 kilos (or a full WFA allotment, thus giving weight to the majority of the handicap field) to third place behind Dance Hero.
13 wins from 21 career starts to date would be hard to top, but her form in February and March of 2007 surpassed anything else produced over the remainder of her career. With the Flemington racecourse under redevelopment and out of order for the premier autumn races, the Lightning Stakes found a temporary home at Moonee Valley – a track Miss Andretti relished running on. It was unsurprising then to see her capture both the Lightning Stakes and the Group 1 Australia (formerly William Reid) Stakes at the Valley a fortnight later.
She then lined up under in the Newmarket Handicap for a second straight year (temporarily relocated to Caulfield this time), only this time carrying 56 kilos. Not to worry though – she was in irrepressible form, scorching across the turf to break 1:08 for the 1200 metres and record a third successive Group 1 win over the flying filly Gold Edition.
With the precedent set by Australian sprinters such as Choisir in 2003 and Takeover Target in 2006, and with her own form being so hard to resist, the Freedmans took her to Royal Ascot to visit the Queen. She didn’t disappoint in the Group 2 King’s Stand Stakes, providing the third win in five years for Australian sprinters. The story was not so rosy four days later in the Golden Jubilee Stakes though, as she failed to flatter that day and was beaten by over ten lengths. Nonetheless, her overall record now stood at 17 wins from 26 starts, including seven Group wins (4 at Group 1 level) from her previous ten races – a phenomenal record.
The proverbial band picked up more or less where it left off in October 2007 – Miss Andretti won the Group 2 Schweppes Stakes at Moonee Valley first-up and then headed to Flemington to pick up another Group 1, this time the Linlithgow Stakes, with Gold Edition running second on both occasions. Such was her dominance that she was chasing competitors away (these wins came in fields of five and six respectively) and stifling betting markets by starting well into the red. It wasn’t quite Black Caviar-esque (don’t worry, we’ll get to her in due course during this series), but it was emphatic nonetheless. The fact that we she was consistently beating such a high quality sprinter as Gold Edition is testament to her talents.
Another overseas raid was next on the agenda – this time Hong Kong, specifically the Hong Kong Sprint. However much as in the Golden Jubilee at Ascot, she raced well below par and was beaten more than twelve lengths by the winner Sacred Kingdom.
Lee Freedman bypassed the early autumn riches of Melbourne in 2008 and instead resumed with Miss Andretti in the Group 1 Sangster Stakes at Morphetville. At WFA level against the fillies and mares only, punters once again forgave an overseas flop and sent her out the odds-on favourite. However after looking in control at the home turn, she tired in the straight to finish fourth to Juste Momente, and was immediately sent for a spell.
The final run of her career came in August 2008 when resuming as a seven year-old in the Listed The Heath stakes at Caulfield – she ran dead last in the race, beaten over 18 lengths. Clearly her best was behind her and/or the after effects of her Hong Kong trip remained, and thus she was retired. It was an unflattering end to a career made up primarily of glittering highlights.
The memories
I clearly don’t want to try and suggest she’s the equal of Black Caviar (equally clearly, she is not), but the subsequent arrival of an absolute freak has perhaps taken away some of the lustre of a brilliant career only recently completed.
Unlike Takeover Target, her story doesn’t really live on via the more romantic aspects of the sport. She didn’t come back from career threatening injuries early in her career, nor did she have a ‘battler done good’ former taxi driver adding to the theatre of her success. She was simply an outstanding racehorse – not much more, and certainly no less.
Her 2007 was particular outstanding – seven Group wins, a number of them achieved with what appeared relative ease, from just the nine starts. When on song, she had the ability to toy with some extremely good gallopers. It is a rare few who reach such an echelon.
Whilst not wishing to denigrate her performances elsewhere, she really did grow a proverbial leg at Moonee Valley, racing their five times in her career (all at Group level) and winning the lot. In fact, if I could order a set of ‘dream races’ where horses from various points in the modern era could face off against one another, one such race order would be Sunline v Spinning Hill v Miss Andretti v Black Caviar over 1200 metres at Moonee Valley. The four best sprinting mares of my time racing at a track where they all enjoyed much success – how great a spectacle would that be?
One tendency which tends to crop up in sports is that from every era, one or two elite stars seem to fall further from the collective memory than their performances would dictate. They become the ‘forgotten greats’. If you take anything away from this column, hopefully it is this – don’t let Miss Andretti become a ‘forgotten great’ of the sprinting ranks. She was simply a ‘great’ and should be remembered as such.
The stats
Overall record: 31 starts, 19 wins (5 x Group 1s, 4 x Group 2s, 2 x Group 3), three seconds, two thirds, $2,848,991 prize money
3YO summer (2004-05): Four starts, three wins, one second
3YO autumn (2005): Four starts, three wins, one second
4YO spring (2005): Five starts, three wins (1 x G2, 1 x G3), one third
4YO summer/autumn (2006): Three starts, one win
5YO winter/ spring (2006): Five starts, three wins (1 x G1, 1 x G2, 1 x G3), one second, one third
5YO summer/ autumn (2007): Three starts, three wins (3 x G1)
5YO winter (2007): Two starts, one win (1 x G2)
6YO spring/ summer (2007): Three starts, two wins (1 x G1, 1 x G2)
6YO autumn (2008): One start
7YO winter (2008): One start
Turf Heroes series
Just in case you missed them the first time around, links to each of our Turf Heroes series are below:
(1) Super Impose, (2) Better Loosen Up, (3) Let’s Elope,(4) Octagonal, (5) Saintly, (6) Might and Power, (7) Sunline, (8) Northerly, (9) Lonhro, (10) Makybe Diva
