Freaky Wins Champion of Champions

[haligator]

Hi All,
Please excuse this post if someone else covered it. I’m a bit of a QH racing fan along with TBs and there was a great race on Saturday night.

The $750,000 Champion of Champions crowned the 2009 World Championship (Racing) Quarter Horse. The field that lined up at Los Alamitos on the wet track was impressive. The former Champion, Jess You And I, was coming back to try to steal off to victory again. Only three horses, the immortal Refrigerator, Dash For Cash, and SLM Big Daddy, have won the race twice.

The track and stake record of 20.94 seconds for 440 yards was set by ‘Jess’ and although the record held a new Champion was crowned. Freaky won by 3/4 of a length under Francisco Rubio in 21.06 - an extremely speedy time for the track and weather condition.

Freaky is just EXPLOSIVE out of the gate and has such heart and a closing kick that makes you wonder if you really saw what you saw. The nice mare Stylish Jet ran second but was DQed to 7th due to interference, so Foose moved up to second. There was a deadheat for third between Fighter On Fire and Separate Bet.

I’ve got to interject here that Rubio, the winning jockey, has come A LONG way in a short time. It wasn’t but a year or two ago that he was still rough around the edges and seemed possibly destined for obscurity. Man, what a masterful job he did on Freaky! Congratulations to this young jockey for working hard and becoming so talented and successful.

I have to say that it is refreshing in a strange way to see how the owners were dressed - leather jackets and peacoats.

Freaky is just that - a freak. He could be the best horse ever seen in QH racing. I’ll enjoy watching it play out.

Viva Quarter Horses! Viva Freaky!

Hallie
Hallie I. McEvoy
Racing Dreams, LLC

[Glimmerglass]

I watched it on TVG and Freaky is a really big boy who would stand out alone with his physical size let alone that highly unique bald-face. While he didn’t bring down the record as it was thought possible it still was an extremely fast time.

Perhaps more impressively is that Dash For Cash’s 1976 effort is still one of the five fastest of all time. All other times were scored in the last 15 or so years.

[Glimmerglass]

Video: Freaky when he set the 3rd track record in as many starts - June 19, 2009, Grade 1 Vessels Maturity @ Los Alamitos

[haligator]

QH vs. Paint

Hey Glimmerglass,
I wondered about Freaky’s unusual bald face in terms of QH vs. Paint. Just a few years ago when the AQHA was so hyper about the ‘white rules’ you have to wonder - Freaky has the bald face as well as chin, and I wonder if there is roaning or white elsewhere on him. There is what looks like a freeze brand on his left rear flank.

Now wouldn’t it be interesting if this was some years back and the AQHA rejected him for registration due to the ‘excessive’ white markings. He would then have been registered with the APHA as a Paint. He would have been burning up the Paint races instead!

He maybe doesn’t have enough white to qualify as a Paint, but I have never examined him. He just makes me wonder…

A non-racing example - when Bill Horn brought Trashedeous to the USET Festival of Champions in either 2000 or 2001 (too many times I’ve landed on my head to remember dates) to introduce the ‘new’ international sport of reining, everyone kept referring to him as a QH. I was the Media Queen at the dressage arena and Trashedeous just spun and ran down that ring - it is one of the most memorable days of my life (I even got to pat Trashy - I just kvelled). When Brian O’Connor announced him as a QH I made the dash through the press tent, threw the VIP food kitchen, ducked back down to the letters (I did not halt at X) and bolted to the announcer’s booth.

Me at a run is funny in itself, but before startled dressage fans who had no idea what Bill and ‘Trashy’ were doing was extra special (was that a spin or several pirouettes at the canter?). The ‘mucky-mucks’ of the USET at that time didn’t believe me that the horse was a Paint, but Brian (God Bless Him - just love him) understood and changed his announcements. Bill Horn finally said to the unbelievers something to the effect of ‘darn it - he’s a Paint! The AQHA rejected his dam for too much white (the wonderful Miss White Trash) and that makes this very special competitor a PAINT. And, have you ever seen such heart in a horse?’

The AQHA finally figured out a few years ago that their annoying ‘white rule’ (also known as the ‘high white rule’) was just turning people away from the association. By doing so, they made the APHA the fastest growing, and one of the largest, registries in the U.S. And we think The Jockey Club and other racing organizations are screwed up! Talk about throwing money away.

And now back to our regularly scheduled racing thoughts…

Hallie

[EquineRacers]

Yeah, that Freaky is Freaky!!! Since he switched trainers he has really shown his talent. It was also a sealed track, that would be part of the reason why the super fast time and Freaky also seems to really like a wet/sealed track! Good lookin horse too, too bad hes a gelding! Next year starts all over for him.

[Glimmerglass]

Yep since he changed barns something has been awoken in him.

I’m not sure if he’ll ever be called the best of the all time best (Dash For Cash really is peerless) but he’s come into his own.

He now has 9 wins out of career 23 starts and has banked $646,300. The connections said he’ll rest for an extended period of time before pursuit of a repeat season.

[Glimmerglass]

Not sure how extended that period of rest was as Freaky was back on Saturday (Jan 30th) to do what he does best as of late: win.

In fact his win caused a few financial problems for the track

DRF 2-3-10 “Freaky prompts a racing rarity”

Favorites do not get much more lopsided than the Quarter Horse Freaky was in a division of the Los Alamitos Winter Championship trials last Saturday.

Freaky, the 2009 World Champion, was so heavily backed to win the last of three trials on Saturday that there was a minus win pool of $67, which is almost unheard of in win betting.

Minus pools occur when a horse is so heavily bet that after state taxes and commissions are deducted there is insufficient money remaining in the pool to pay out the minimum $2.10 to all winning bettors. When that occurs, racetracks make up the shortfall, which in this case was $67.

Minus pools are more common in show betting and, occasionally, place betting, and can sometimes reach $100,000 or more for show bets.

Rachel Alexandra, the 2009 Thoroughbred Horse of the Year, created minus win pools of $3,382 with her win in the Fantasy Stakes at Oaklawn Park last spring and $18,698 in the Mother Goose Stakes at Belmont Park last summer.

And how much go did Freaky have?

Ridden by Francisco Rubio, Freaky set the fastest 400-yard qualifying time of 19.31 seconds in the time trials. Freaky overcame a stumble and a severe bump with a rival at the start to win by 1 1/2 lengths.

“I had to fight just to stay on,” Rubio said. “I was worried about pushing at that point. I knew that once he got going, he was going to take off. Right now, I know that if I can hang on to him, we’ll win the race.”

Videos: Youtube Freaky from Dec 12 2009: Champion of Champions

Youtube Freaky from October 10 2009: Bonface Invitational Championship

Youtube Freaky from July 25, 2009 Memorial Childrens CA Breeders

[WinterTriangle]

It was amazing watching him overcome that bad start and then get bumped, and still WIN! And break another record?

He’s just at his best now, no doubt about it.

As I watched the race, I really didn’t think he would win it. If I remember there was only win and exacta wagering allowed.

[pinkdiamondracing]

Huge FOOSE fan here-- I thought he was gonna be the next big thing when he burst on the seen as a two year old.

[Glimmerglass]

Video promo: Freaky in the Los Alamitos Winter Championship on February 19-20