Mike Smith and Gentlemans Code win the Maiden Stakes at Folkestone. Photograph: Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images

The American jockey Mike Smith will experience a more glamorous side of the sport at Royal Ascot next month, but nevertheless enjoyed breaking his British duck in low-key fashion at Folkestone.

The Hall of Fame rider, best known for his association with the brilliant mare Zenyatta, partnered the 1-6 chance Gentlemans Code to a workmanlike victory over Bear Behind and earned himself barely £200 for his share of the winning prize money in the three-runner Maiden Stakes.

However, despite it being a far cry from the valuable purses Smith often chases in the US, the 45–year-old insisted that he was revelling in the opportunity to ride in a different part of the world.

"I feel like a kid again," he said. "I've been in this game for 30 years, but this is something totally different."

Smith will return to Britain next month to ride at Royal Ascot, where Gentlemans Code is one of a number of two-year-olds trainer Wesley Ward has brought across to Europe in a bid to repeat his two victories at the meeting two years ago. One of those, Italo, was also successful on Thursday, in France.

Smith believes the five-furlong Norfolk Stakes could be the target for Gentlemans Code. "The course was very undulating and I wasn't really expecting that, but he was so well balanced that he handled it really well," he said. "We were slowing down a bit near towards the end, but it was only the second time he had run and he was looking around a whole lot so it was a good thing Wesley put the blinkers on him.

"We'll have to see what Wesley's other two-year-olds are doing, but probably five furlongs is right for him now. I'd feel a little more confident at five."

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5/24/11- Leading US jockey Mike Smith has been prevented by the UK Border Agency from taking up five rides at Lingfield on Tuesday afternoon.

Smith was warned that he might put further trips to Britain in jeopardy as conditions of
his visa restricted him to riding Wesley Ward-trained, Royal Ascot-bound Gentlemans Code at Folkestone on Thursday.

5/23/11 -American jockey Mike Smith, best known for his association with incredible racemare Zenyatta, will have his first rides in Britain at Lingfield tomorrow.

Smith is in the UK to partner Wesley Ward's Royal Ascot hope Gentlemans Code, who is pencilled in for a maiden at Folkestone on Thursday.

But after learning of his arrival on British soil, several trainers were keen to snap up his services and he has five booked rides on the all-weather.

His first mount will be Gay Kelleway's juvenile Red Socks, who goes in the opening five-furlong maiden.

The Newmarket-based trainer believes she could get Smith off to a winning start.

"He's just a great jockey," said Kelleway.

"Everyone knows him for riding Zenyatta but I've followed his career for a while and he's fantastic. He's a Hall of Fame jockey and you don't get too many of those riding round Lingfield!

"I was reading the paper the other day and saw he was coming over. I rang (jockeys' agent) Shippy Ellis, who looks after all the foreign riders and asked him if Mike would be available.

"I told him I had a nice, straightforward two-year-old who goes on the all-weather and he said Mike would be happy to ride, so it's great.

"I was a disappointed with Red Socks at Kempton last time as I thought he'd nearly win, but we've put some blinkers on him tomorrow and hopefully they'll help.

"With the blinkers, Mike Smith and stall one, hopefully he has a very good chance. Mike could be the man for the job."

Smith's final ride of the day is on the Zoe Davison-trained Illuminative in the second division of the one-mile handicap.

The five-year-old is part-owned by Simon Clare, director of communications for bookmakers Coral.

Clare said: "It's going to be incredible to see Mike Smith in our colours and I genuinely can't wait.

"I've been lucky enough to go to the last 15 Breeders' Cups and I've become a bit obsessive about top-class American racing.

"Zenyatta was one of my all-time favourite horses. I backed her when she won the Ladies' Classic and then didn't have enough faith when she won the Classic itself against the boys.

"Then I had a big bet on her last year when she didn't quite get there.

"Mike is just a legendary jockey. I think he won the Eclipse award in America two years running in the 90s.

"We'd already entered the horse before we knew Mike was going to be available, but I spoke to Adrian Beaumont from the IRB (International Racing Bureau) and he told me he would be available.

"Illuminative has been a bit of a frustrating horse. He's a horse who shows us he's really talented on the gallops, but he just doesn't put it in at the races unfortunately.

"To be honest, it isn't a great race and he definitely has enough ability to win. Hopefully Mike can work his magic.

"I have three sensational pictures of Zenyatta on my office wall and I might take one along for Mike to sign.

"It would be a dream to lead our horse in as a winner with one of the greatest jockeys of all time on top. Often the anticipation is more exciting than the reality, but we'll see."

11/17/11 - Zenyatta Crowned Horse of the Year

12/7/10 - Smith receives Big Sport of Turfdom award
Courtesy of the Thoroughbred Times Today

During a ceremony that helped Symposium on Racing and Gaming participants relive some of the most exciting moments of Mike Smith’s career, the Racing Hall of Fame jockey accepted the Turf Publicists of America’s Big Sport of Turfdom Award on Tuesday in Tucson.

TPA President John Engelhardt presented Smith with the award, which Smith shared in last year when it was presented to Team Zenyatta. Engelhardt highlighted Smith’s career, starting with his 2005 Kentucky Derby (G1) victory aboard Giacomo and his Belmont Stakes (G1) victory this year aboard Drosselmeyer. That Belmont win made Smith one of a handful of jockeys to win all three Triple Crown races.

“Some jockeys do it all in one year in `wham, bam, thank you ma’am’ fashion, but Smith made sweet love to the Triple Crown for 17 years,” Engelhardt said of Smith bookending his treble with victories in the 1993 Preakness Stakes (G1) and 2010 Belmont.

Engelhardt then showed Smith’s victory aboard Proviso (GB) in this year’s Abu Dhabi First Lady Stakes (G1) at Keeneland Race Course, calling it “one of Smith’s best rides.”

The final clip was of the 2009 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) with Smith winning aboard the then-unbeaten champion Zenyatta, who went on to win five Grade 1 races this year before finishing second to Blame in her Classic defense.

“This is one of the greatest races ever,” Engelhardt said of the 2009 Classic. “If it doesn’t get your heart racing, then you don’t have a pulse.”

Smith was humble in accepting the award, joking that it would cost him an extra $50 to get the large trophy home by air travel and thanking all the connections associated with his big wins this year—Jerry and Ann Moss, John Shirreffs, and Dottie Ingordo-Shirreffs for Zenyatta, and fellow Hall of Famer Bill Mott, who trained both Drosselmeyer and Proviso, and WinStar Farm and Juddmonte Farms, the respective owners of those horses.

Q&A: Zenyatta's jockey Mike Smith
By Jay Privman

Zenyatta’s retirement ceremony is next Sunday here at Hollywood Park. How do you think you will feel watching that? “It’s going to be hard to make it through it without choking up. I’m choking up now, just thinking about it.”

How often have you been to the barn to see her since her final race in the Breeders’ Cup Classic? “I’ve been back there three or four times, and it would have been more, except I’ve been traveling a lot. She looks incredible, all dappled out, brilliant. I don’t know how John Shirreffs does it.”

Speaking of traveling, how was your trip to Tokyo? “It was overwhelming. When they introduced me for the jockey competition, they went crazy. I was wearing the Mosses’ silks. They were screaming her name. ‘Zenyatta. Zenyatta.’ They were holding up signs of her, pictures of her. Fortunately, I had time to sign things for them. Some of the pictures they had were pretty cool shots of her. I signed all kinds of stuff. I’m glad there was a fence between us or I might have got crushed.”

Her fans are quite devoted, aren’t they? “I mean, just look at this stuff here. All these letters here, these are just the ones that arrived today. I got 10 today. I get about 10 every day. Long letters, pages and pages. Cards. From Michigan, Colorado, all over the world. They are all about her, how happy [she makes] everyone.”

What do you think were her best races? “The Apple Blossom in 2008, the first time I rode her. The Classic last year. And this year’s Classic. She lost contact with the field, then made up so much ground. It was incredible what she did.”

You were very hard on yourself after this year’s Classic, taking the blame for the loss. Now that you’ve had three weeks to reflect on things, how do you feel? “I certainly wasn’t going to blame her. I’m fine now with what I did. She got squeezed leaving there, then got all that kickback. It startled her. I don’t think she realized she was in a race until she got to the first turn. She had so much ground to make up. But you don’t want to make it up all at once. You make up a little, but not too much. Then make up a little more, but not too much. The lights were on. It wasn’t her home track. To come up half a head short after all that was incredible. If I had to do it again, I’d do something different. I can’t say I’d do the same thing, because I know that outcome. But I’m proud of the job I did. And I’m so proud of her.”

The other real top horse you were close to was Holy Bull. How would you compare your relationship with him to Zenyatta? “He got hurt to end his career, so the immediate part of that was just concern, hoping they would save him. Fortunately I got him stopped quickly. I saw him not long ago.”

Do you think you’ll be visiting her often? “Definitely. I’ll jump the gate at Lane’s End! I’ll call Mr. Farish. I’ll go visit her every time I go to Lexington.”

When you rode her for the first time in the 2008 Apple Blossom, could you ever envision the journey on which she would take you? “Who could have? I knew I was riding something special that day. She had trained well up to the race. I thought she was something special. Sure enough, she was. She stands above it, anything and everything.”

You and David Flores are the only jockeys to ride her in a race. Describe what she felt like. “As big and tall as she is, she’s very light on her feet. She’s very athletic, so balanced. She doesn’t feel like a big, heavy horse. She feels like a gazelle.”

There was a race at Santa Anita earlier this year where you had to weave through traffic. “That was fun. She’s so agile. She’s like Walter Payton, the way he used to go in and out. After the race, I was like, ‘Look at you. You’re like a little, agile filly.’ ”

Do you appreciate a horse like her more now that you’re more towards the end of your career than the beginning? “For one to come along like her, it wouldn’t matter if it was at the beginning of your career or the end. Horses like that come along once in a rider’s life. But I’m blessed that she came along so late in my career. It makes me feel like I can keep going, and I plan on it.”

Do you think your devotion to working out has helped you as you’ve gotten older? “For me, there’s no way I would feel this good without working out. I feel it when I slack off. I’m so hard on myself. I think working out will keep me around a whole lot longer. Fitness-wise, strength-wise, I’m stronger and fitter than I’ve ever been.”

How often do you work out? “Just about every day. I just got a text from my trainer. We’re working out at 1 p.m. tomorrow. Just back from Japan. No rest. But I enjoy it. I lift four days a week, and do circuit training the other three days. And in between I hike in the mountains. I don’t lift to get huge. Once a week, though, I’ll do heavy lifting to see where I’m at.”

How much can you bench-press? “I don’t come all the way down, because I’ve broken both my shoulders. But I can do 245 pounds, which is unbelievable for someone my size.”

That’s more than twice what you weigh! “There was a lady working out next to me the other day, and she saw what I lifted and said, ‘Are you kidding me?’ On the incline, I once did 265 pounds. I like doing it. At 45, you have to be in that kind of shape to keep up with these kids. I feel like I’ve got an edge. At least I think I do, and that’s all that matters. I like knowing that when I come down the lane, if it’s a close finish, I’ll be there. But I like it better when one just takes me around there.”

Do you want to get on Zenyatta next Sunday? “I kind of hope I do. If I’m not crying too much, I’d like to. When it comes to her, I get emotional.”

11/18/10 - Smith wins 2010 Big Sport of Turfdom Award

Racing Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith has been named the 2010 recipient of the Big Sport of Turfdom Award by the Turf Publicists of America.

The award, which was announced on Thursday, is given annually to a person or group who enhance Thoroughbred racing coverage through cooperation with media and racing publicists. Last year, Smith won the award in part with Zenyatta owners Jerry and Ann Moss, trainer John Shirreffs, and racing manager Dottie Ingordo-Shirreffs as “Team Zenyatta.”

This year, Smith won the 2010 Belmont Stakes (G1) aboard Drosselmeyer. However, he primarily was known as the jockey of Zenyatta. Despite finishing second in the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), Smith attended the post-race press coverage and answered questions about Zenyatta’s first defeat.

“Mike Smith will forever be immortalized for his scintillating rides aboard the great Zenyatta throughout her career but this award is for his entire body of work throughout his career,” TPA President John Englehardt said. “What resonates most at the present was his heartfelt press conference to the press, reflecting positively on his craft and the entire sport of Thoroughbred racing. His individual recognition is well deserved.”

“It was an incredible honor just to be part of a team that won the Big Sport of Turfdom Award,” Smith said. “Now, to win this award on my own is overwhelming. As a matter of fact, last year’s trophy is one of my all-time favorites and it sits prominently on my mantel at home.”

The award will be presented at the Race Track Industry Program Awards Luncheon on December 7 in Tucson, Arizona.

11/17/10 - Mike Smith will represent the United States in the 24th World Super Jockeys Series at Tokyo Racecourse on Saturday, Nov. 27, the day before the 30th running of the $6.1 million Japan Cup at the same track.

The man who has ridden Zenyatta in all but three of her 20 races, the 44-year-old Smith will be making his third appearance in the event. He will be competing against seven other foreign riders as well as eight Japanese jockeys. The foreigners are Johnny Murtagh, who was named on Tuesday as the Aga Khan’s contract rider in Ireland; the Aga Khans’s French rider Christophe Lemaire; Ryan Moore, who is fresh from a victory aboard Snow Fairy in the Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup at Kyoto on Sunday; Andre Fabre’s number one rider Maxime Guyon; Christophe Soumillon, the man mentioned most frequently as Murtagh’s replacement at Coolmore; Australian Craig Williams, who will be making his fifth appearance in the Series; and champion Hong Kong apprentice Matthew Chadwick.

The Japanese contingent will be led by Masayoshi Ebina, the rider of Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe runner-up Nakayama Festa as well as Japanese Fillies Triple Crown winner Apapane. Also representing Japan will be Hiroyuki Uchida, Masami Matsuoka, Yuichi Fukunaga, Shinji Fujita, Yusuke Fujiota and Kazuki Sugimura.

Also attending the big weekend at Tokyo will be Cash Asmussen. The winning rider of the first Japan Cup in 1981 aboard the John Fulton-trained Mairzy Doates, Asmussen will be making the award presentation for both the Japan Cup and the World Super Jockeys Series.

19/2/10 - 19 Down, One Big One to Go for Zenyatta

Courtesy of the Blood-Horse

Undefeated Zenyatta heads to Churchill Downs to defend her Breeders' Cup Classic (gr. I) crown riding a 19-race streak of perfection. For the third time in her career, she three-peated in a major grade I race when she used her patented late charge to score a half-length triumph over Switch in Oak Tree's $250,000 Lady's Secret Stakes (gr. I)before 25,837 fans at Hollywood Park Oct. 2.

Racing closer than usual to a pedestrian pace for jockey Mike Smith, Zenyatta wound up her sweeping move rounding the final turn. She came under urging in the lane as Switch, who bounced to the lead at the head of the stretch, proved resolute in the drive. Trailing by nearly three lengths approaching mid-stretch, the 1-10 favorite Zenyatta kept coming, however, getting control in the final strides while inching away at the wire.

``She seems to know where the wire is at and she likes to make it a little dramatic,'' Smith said. ``It's just incredible.''

Zenyatta completed the 1 1/16-mile trip in 1:42.97 for her 11th victory at the distance. She registered her eighth win over her home track. The 6-year-old daughter of Street Cry also completed her third consecutive three-peat following victories in the Vanity Handicap (gr. I) at Hollywood Park June 13 and the Clement L. Hirsch Stakes (gr. I) at Del Mar Aug. 7. It was her 13th grade I win and ninth at that level in a row.

``She has so much heart,'' trainer John Shirreffs said. ``She digs down every time.''

The complexion of the race changed when likely pacesetter, Rinterval, flipped in the paddock and cut herself. She was scratched by the track veterinarian, reducing the field to five.

Instead, Moon de French took control out of the gate and set moderate fractions --:24.67, :48.70, and 1:13.06 -- as Emmy Darling and Switch, along the rail, tracked in second and third. Switch, angled to the outside of her pace rivals by Alonso Quinonez, made an aggressive move to take control and opened a clear advantage in the lane.

Zenyatta, about six lengths off the pace when she commenced her bid, was cutting into the lead gradually as the two leaders drove toward the wire. But it was not until Smith asked her for more at mid-stretch that she really turned it on, getting up with room to spare.

Shirreffs pounded his rolled-up racing program against his chest after Zenyatta sailed across the finish line.

``She's a heart-stopper in so many ways,'' he said, smiling.

Zenyatta's exercise rider Steve Willard held his right hand over his heart, a relieved smile on his face.

``I'm sweating so much. Oh my God! It's just fabulous,'' said Dottie Ingordo Shirreffs, the trainer's wife and racing manager for Zenyatta's owners, Jerry and Ann Moss.

Switch, ridden superbly Quinonez, finished second by 4 3/4 lengths over Moon de French and Satans Quick Chick, who dead-heated for third. Emmy Darling trailed.

``I thought I was home free at the eighth pole,'' Quinonez said. ``I couldn't see Zenyatta coming because I was so into riding my horse. We lost, but it was exciting.''

Switch's trainer, John Sadler, was happy even in defeat.

``I've been tiptoeing around the barn all morning, saying, `I know we're going to give them a scare,' " Sadler said. ``To run second to the best horse in the world and one of the greats of all time is huge. I'm very, very excited.''

Zenyatta earned a free pass to the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic (gr. I) Nov. 5 at Churchill Downs. However, Jerry Moss said after the race that Zenyatta would next run in the $5 million BC Classic a day later "if she comes out (of the race) OK."

He added, ``I'm jazzed and I'm ready.''

The BC Classic would likely be the final race of her career.

The victory tied Zenyatta with Peppers Pride, who raced against New Mexico bred opposition before she retired unbeaten in 2008, for most consecutive wins in modern Throughbred history.

``She's done some amazing things the last sixteenth of a mile,'' Shirreffs said. ``Her heart must be huge.''

The victory was worth $150,000 and boosted the dark bay/brown mare's career total to $6,404,580. She broke the female earnings record for horses that have raced in North America of $6,334,296 established by the great Ouija Board, who retired in 2006.

Shirreffs said he was touched by the outpouring of affection from the fans for Zenyatta.

``The fans really demonstrate how I feel inside,'' the low-key Shirreffs said. ``I can't really show those emotions, so I really enjoy them getting into it because that's exactly how I feel.''

Zenyatta didn't disappoint, putting on her usual pre-race show by goose-stepping around the paddock as the crowd cheered her and Smith. Among her high-profile fans were Penny Chenery, owner of Triple Crown winner Secretariat; actress Bo Derek; and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

Afterward, Smith stopped Zenyatta at the top of the grandstand to check out the crowd, then guided her to the middle of the track while she received a standing ovation.

Smith held up his right index finger, signaling No. 1.

``She's just amazing,'' he said.

Zenyatta was bred in Kentucky by Maverick Production. She is out of the Kris S. mare Vertigineux.

8/7/20 - She wins 18th in a row with customary charge before adoring fans at Del Mar on Saturday.

8/3/10- 'Streaking Showgirl's jockey is all smiles. Riding Zenyatta’s like ‘out-of-body experience’

Courtesy of the UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF


Del Mar — There was emotion in jockey Mike Smith’s voice Tuesday when he described what it’s been like riding horse racing’s present royalty, the Streaking Showgirl, Zenyatta, to the last 14 of her record 17 straight wins.

“As a rider, how blessed can you be to ride something like her?” Smith said of Zenyatta, tentatively set to run for her historic 18th straight win Saturday at Del Mar in the $300,000 Grade I Clement L. Hirsch Stakes. “I wish every rider had the chance to feel what I feel.

“But along with that certainly comes a lot of responsibility, a lot of pressure. I mean, it’s a wonderful thing, a great thing for me. It makes me focus more. When I get up on her, I’m just so proud to be up there. And I’ll tell you, when she runs, it’s almost like an out-of-body experience. I feel like I’m one of those people in the crowd cheering for her. It’s just an honor to be part of it.”

Zenyatta, named by owner Jerry Moss of A&M Records for The Police album, “Zenyatta Mondatta” (with the appropriate hit, “Don’t Stand So Close to Me”), is scheduled to arrive today at Del Mar after a van ride from Hollywood Park and train over the Polytrack surface Thursday and Friday.

Earlier in the meeting, Moss voiced concerns about Zenyatta’s hesitancy to train on Polytrack last year before the Hirsch, which she won only by the length of her head, the smallest margin of victory during her streak. She also won the Hirsch by one length in 2008.

Entries for the Hirsch will be taken today, although a final decision from trainer John Shirreffs on whether Zenyatta actually starts is not expected for another day or two.

“No, it’s not written in stone,” said Smith, a Hall of Fame jockey, regarding Zenyatta running here.

What is set in granite is the record Zenyatta has strung together since jockey David Flores rode her to her first three wins in late 2007 and early 2008. Smith has ridden her ever since, winning 11 Grade I races and three Grade IIs.

“It’s just incredible when you see what she has accomplished,” Smith said.

And yet, Smith is amazed people find a way to knock “perfection.” He still gets asked if her record is lessened because 15 of her 17 wins have been on synthetic surfaces at Hollywood Park, Santa Anita and Del Mar.

“It shouldn’t be because she’s won on dirt twice (at Oaklawn Park in Arkansas), and she’s proven that, if anything, she might be even better on the dirt,” Smith said. “Her largest margin of victories have been in the Apple Blossom both times (4½ lengths in 2008, 4¼ lengths in 2010). I mean, we’re in California here. We have synthetics here. We can’t help that.”

Smith says her record is even more remarkable considering her style of running off the pace and stalking rivals before making her powerful, patented late kick around and through traffic.

“To me, that makes her record more impressive,” Smith said. “Just about every horse she’s ever run against in every race, she’s had to get by almost every single horse. Incredible. A lot of races are lost because of a little traffic here and a little traffic there.”

Smith, who has won three Triple Crown races including the Belmont Stakes this year aboard Drosselmeyer and the 2005 Kentucky Derby on the Moss-owned and Shirreffs-trained Giacomo, says Zenyatta is a pure entertainer who has more than track intelligence. Smith said she even has overcome her jockey’s mistakes and still won, like in last year’s Hirsch when Smith said he was overconfident and almost waited too long to urge her to run.

“She’s extremely intelligent,” he said. “There’s a time when you can walk up to the stall and she can be the most loving thing in the world and she’ll let you pet on her. But there’s also a time when she lets you know it’s time to get down to business. When she sees me, she knows it’s time to work and she starts dancing and putting on a show. It’s a fun thing for her. She should be Entertainer of the Year.”

With possibly three more races (including the Hirsch) before she is retired, with her finale likely the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs, this could be her last race in Southern California if Shirreffs decides to ship Zenyatta back East for a race before the Breeders’ Cup.

“For me right now, it’s race to race,” Smith said. “I just want to continue to pull this off. If we can just pull this off to the end, then, God, wouldn’t that be amazing? It would be the greatest record of all-time.”

Ed Zieralski

The margins that separated the top finishers were a head, a nose, and a head, testament to the class of the field.

"It wasn't a big field but it was an extremely talented field, and she got the job done," said jockey Mike Smith, who flew in from California to ride the 5-year-old daughter of Dansili in the 11/8-mile turf challenge. "I knew it was going to be a tough race and that no one was going to draw off and win it easily because they were all too good."

Smith's ability to relax the intensely competitive mare played a huge part in her win. She was rank in the early going behind a pedestrian early quarter of :24.70 set by Dynaslew, but settled down heading into the backstretch. By the time Smith angled her out coming off the final turn, she was ready for business. She claimed the lead in deep stretch and held on determinedly to get the score in a final time of 1:47.04.

"She's got a little bit of a tendency to want to be a little rank ... but (Smith's) got soft hands and he got along with her very well," Mott said of the duo, who teamed together for a June 5 score in the Just a Game Stakes at Belmont and before that beat male turf contenders in the March 6 Frank E. Kilroe Mile at Santa Anita. "She beat the boys and beat the girls twice; you'd have to put her close to the top of the division. I don't think it would be any stretch of the imagination to think that right now, at least at the distances we've run, she would be as good as anybody."

The Diana score boosts Proviso's bankroll to more than $1.4 million in 20 starts. It was her eighth victory. She returned $6.40, $3.90, and $2.90 to win; Shared Account and Forever Together followed.

Trainer Graham Motion, who conditions Shared Account, said the effort proved his filly belongs in Grade I company. And Jonathan Sheppard, trainer of two-time Diana winner Forever Together, said the results took nothing away from his contender, sent off as the 9-5 favorite after winning the race in 2009 and 2008.

"She ran well," he said. "It was tough for a little while to get her in high gear, but she tried hard and finished strongly. She won by a head last year, she lost by a neck this year, and she's still pretty darn good. I'm proud of her."

6/13/10 -SUPER AT 17 - ZENYATTA DOES IT AGAIN!

Courtesy of the TDN

Jerry and Ann Moss’s Zenyatta (Street Cry {Ire}) secured the 17th straight win of her unblemished career in Sunday’s GI Vanity H. at Hollywood Park. It wasn’t without
a few white-knuckle moments, however, as the towering filly needed every inch of the stretch to fight past an ultragame St Trinians (GB) (Piccolo {GB}) and win by a half-length. “Oh my lord, she ran her eyeballs out,” Smith said of the runner-up. “But we just kept on grinding, and [Zenyatta] hit her best stride 100 yards out, and I knew we had it won at that point.” Winning owner Jerry Moss said simply, “She’s otherworldly.” The victory moved Zenyatta past the likes of Citation, Cigar and Mister Frisky as horses with the longest winning streaks outside of statebred company.

Zenyatta was collecting her 14th straight victory in her historic tally over the boys in last year’s GI Breeders’ Cup Classic. She won by 1 1/4 lengths in the GI Santa Margarita H. in her seasonal debut at Santa Anita Mar. 13, then took the GI Apple Blossom by 4 1/4 lengths at Oaklawn Apr. 9. The margin of victory would be much closer in the Vanity. Settled a good 10 lengths off the dueling Miss Silver Brook (Cozzene) and Cherryblossommiss (Langfuhr) going into the first turn, Zenyatta edged a bit closer as they cruised through a half in :47.54 and three quarters in 1:11.91. She was within two lengths of the leaders wheeling into the stretch widest of all, but the scrappy St Trinians burst away with a quick turn of foot. Put to a drive under Mike Smith, Zenyatta closed with resolute strides and finally surged past in the shadow of the wire. “It's just incredible,” enthused Smith. “It was a gallant effort on St Trinians’ part—she really ran huge. When we headed for home, I hit a real big gear, and she hit another one right back at me, and I said “Whoa, she's serious--she's going to make me run.” I was working at it until the last 100 yards and then I knew I'd out-grind her.” Smith said he’d considered guiding Zenyatta toward the inside two furlongs out, but decided on the overland route instead. “We're carrying a lot of weight, and I just wanted to get that weight moving forward, so I tried to tip out as we came off the turn and use that momentum to kind of slingshot me--even though I was a little wide--to get her at least running. I didn't want to take a chance splitting them, because if Martin [Garcia, on St Trinians] saw me do that, he might make it tight on me. If I had to steady just for a jump, to get that weight going again is asking an awful lot. I knew he was probably going to take me out [wide], it was great race riding on his part. But it was just me and him. So as wide as he is, that's as wide as I'm going to be. Nothing matters at that point.”

While the New Mexican filly Peppers Pride (Desert God) concluded her career unbeaten with 19 wins to her credit--all in statebred company--most race fans would point to Citation’s and Cigar’s 16-race skeins as the standard by which modern-day win streaks are judged. A crowd of 12,232 lined up to watch Zenyatta make history, and roared with approval as she streaked under the wire still unbeaten in her 17th start.

Owner Jerry Moss was in awe after the race. AI’m going to be watching that [replay] 30 or 40 times,” he said. “I had a feeling she was going to make it somehow, like she always does, ever since she caught Anabaa’s Creation in that race at Del Mar [the 2009 GI Clement L. Hirsch, when Zenyatta won by a head]. She won, she got there, she gave away the nine pounds [129-120], and she came about seven wide. She’s just awesome. What can I say? Thereaction of the crowd was amazing. She’s such a fan pleaser. Everybody here loves her.’’ The bettors sent St Trinians off at relatively low 2-1 odds--Zenyatta was at 1-2 odds--and the five-year-old nearly posted the upset of the year.

“I don't know what to say,” jockey Martin Garcia offered. “I couldn't have asked her for any more. The other mare is just too much horse.” Said her trainer Mike Mitchell, “I wanted to be a little farther in front of her turning for home, because I know the kick that Zenyatta’s got. My mare has a big kick, too. She just got outrun. I’m happy. We’re all big fans of Zenyatta in my family, and I know that [St Trinians] didn’t shame herself.’’

6/5/10 - Mike Captures his first Belmont Stakes on DROSSELMEYER  (SEE PHOTOS)

The 142nd running of the Belmont Stakes may have lost a lot of its appeal without a Triple Crown threat, but it meant a lot to jockey Mike Smith.

Smith, the veteran who has been based in New York for much of his career and won many stakes at Belmont Park, had never been aboard the Belmont Stakes winner.

That changed Saturday afternoon.

Aboard 13-1 shot Drosselmeyer, Smith tracked the moderate pace set by the front-running First Dude, moved up on the backstretch and turn for home before taking the lead in mid-stretch and holding off the late challenge of Fly Down. First Dude held on for third.

The winner, owned by WinStar Farm - which also owns Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver - and trained by Bill Mott, ran the mile and a half in a moderate 2:31.57 and paid $28 to win, $11.60 to place and $7.70 to show.

The favorite Ice Box, who closed strongly to finish second in the Kentucky Derby, "left his race somewhere," said trainer Nick Zito, and finished ninth.

"I've run here most of my career, and I still consider this home," said Smith, who captured the Belmont in his 13th try. "It's unbelievable." In a classy gesture, Smith dedicated the win to jockey Richard Migliore, another New York rider who announced his retirement earlier in the week. "This is for you, Mig," Smith said.

6/5/10 - PROVISO scores in the JUST A GAME G1  (SEE PHOTOS)

PROVISO (GB) has not been the easiest of mares for Bill Mott to train. He politely describes her as being “sensitive to things around her.”

“She’s not nervous,” the Racing Hall of Famer said of the Juddmonte Farms' homebred five-year-old Dansili (GB) mare. “But she is high strung.”

On Saturday, in front of a packed grandstand at Belmont Park, Proviso was on her best behavior for jockey Mike Smith and rewarded Mott and Juddmonte with a half-length victory in the $400,000 Just a Game Stakes (G1) on the turf.

In recording her second straight Grade 1 victory, Proviso stalked the early pace of Speak Easy Gal, then motored to the lead approaching the final furlong and held off late bids from runner-up Phola and My Princess Jess, who was third.

Proviso covered one mile in 1:34.09 as the 11-to-10 favorite in the six-horse field.

“She has been a little more relaxed lately and that made her easier to ride and has added lengths to her,” said Smith, who rode Proviso for the first time in her previous start, a victory over males in Frank E. Kilroe Mile Handicap (G1) on March 6 at Santa Anita Park.

Saturday’s victory helped wipe away the painful memory of another Grade 1 stakes, the Juddmonte Spinster Stakes. Proviso crossed the finish line first in that 1 1/8-mile race last October for her former trainer, the late Bobby Frankel, but was disqualified and placed second.

There were no post-race jitters this time.

“The race pretty much developed like Bill envisioned,” Smith said. “He told me not to push her and her everything worked out.”

Mott said he probably would run Proviso next in the 1 1/8-mile Diana Handicap (G1) on July 31 at Saratoga Race Course.

“She’s been a nice filly,” Mott said, “and she’s come to hand.”

The win was the seventh in 20 starts for Proviso, who started her career in Europe. The $240,000 winner’s share of the purse pushed her earnings past the million-dollar mark to $1,165,473

11/07/09 -Zenyatta captures Breeders' Cup Classic
Courtesy of Sports Network

4/11/07 - Mike Smith Returning to Southern California Circuit
COURTESY OF THE BLOOD HORSE

4/10/07 - WELCOME BACK TEAM GIACOMO

9/4/06 - Noble Stella, Smith patient en route to Glens Falls Handicap triumph
Courtesy of the Thoroughbred Times Today
Gary Tanaka’s Noble Stella (Ger), under a masterful ride by jockey Mike Smith, won the $112,100 Glens Falls Handicap (G3) by a comfortable two lengths on Monday at Saratoga
Race Course. The 13⁄8-mile turf contest on Saratoga’s closing day attracted a field of nine fillies
and mares.

Noble Stella assumed her preferred position in front of the field leaving the gate but Sabellina soon charged past to take the lead, opening up as much as five lengths
on the backstretch. Smith was content to let Noble Stella track the leader from second until reaching the final turn. Moving to the outside, Noble Stella quickly closed the gap, drew even with Sabellina, and took command through the stretch, covering the distance in 2:16.02 over good turf.

9/3/06 - Breeders' Cup winning trainer Hauswald to become Smith's agent

Phil Hauswald will put his training career on hold to become the jockey agent for Racing Hall of Famer Mike Smith when the fall meeting at Belmont Park begins September 8.

The 47-year-old Hauswald conditioned Epitome to a win in the 1987 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Stakes (G1) at Hollywood Park. A native of New Albany, Indiana, Hauswald saddled the Kentucky Derby favorite Demons Begone in '87, but the Arkansas Derby (G1) winner bled during the race and was pulled up.

Hauswald conditioned Banker's Lady to a trio of Grade 1 wins from 1988-'89. His most recent graded stakes victory was with Middlesex Drive in the 1999 Kelso Handicap (G2) at Belmont Park.
Hausewald took out his trainer's license in 1985 after working under Racing Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey for five years. He has sent out one winner in from 34 starters this season.

“I have to really thank the Mosses for sticking with me. You know, you get beat a couple of imes and a lot of people want to make a change. But they stuck with me and we got the job done. He might have redeemed himself today—and he might have redeemed me, too.”
Racing Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith after riding Jerry and Ann Moss’s Giacomo—winner of the 2005 Kentucky Derby (G1)—to victory in the $300,000 San Diego Handicap (G2) on Saturday at Del Mar. Giacomo was winless in four starts since his 50.30-to-1 upset in the Derby

Giacomo's First Win Since Derby a Nail-Biter
by Blood-Horse Staff
Date Posted: 7/22/2006 10:09:03 PM

The 4-year-old gray colt was making his first start in the 1 1/16-mile San Diego since finishing a well-beaten fifth – 11 1/2 lengths behind Lava Man – in the Santa Anita Handicap (gr. I). Trainer John Shirreffs is pointing the son of Holy Bull to the $1 million Pacific Classic (gr. I) at Del Mar Aug. 20, where he could face Lava Man again. The San Diego and Pacific are part of a four-race series that Shirreffs hopes will end with Giacomo in the Breeders' Cup Classic Powered by Dodge (gr. I) at Churchill Downs in November.

Most thought the San Diego distance was too short for Giacomo and that he would need the race. That, coupled with a lack of early zip in the seven-horse line-up, allowed the late-running Giacomo to go off as the 9-2 fourth choice. He stopped the clock in a strong time of 1:42.

"I'm just so proud of this horse. He's just amazing," said Smith, the only rider Giacomo has had in his 13-race career. "He's a big horse and once he got rolling, I didn't want to stop him so I took the overland route.

"It reminded me of the Derby. He got up just in time."

With Spellbinder scratched earlier in the day, it was anyone's guess which horse would set the pace. It turned out to be Preachinatthebar, who set out at a surprisingly fast clip (:22 4/5, :46, 1:09 4/5) while pressured by Rathor, the slight 5-2 favorite. That set things up nicely for Giacomo, who had one horse beaten on the far turn but knocked off his rivals one by one before getting to the wire just in front of Preachinatthebar in the final stride.

It was 2 1/4 lengths back to Papi Chullo, ridden by Norberto Arroyo Jr., in third, but they were disqualified and placed last for shutting off Rathor in the stretch. That moved Southern Africa and Alex Solis up to third.

Giacomo has come in for some harsh criticism as a one-hit wonder since his Derby win (Jerry Moss, his original co-owner and breeder, is one of the founders of A&M Records), but he'd only lost four times since. He ran third behind, nearly 10 lengths behind Afleet Alex, in the Preakness (gr. I), then came out of the Belmont Stakes (gr. I), in which he finished seventh, with bone chips in an ankle and knee. After surgery, he returned eight months later to finish third in Santa Anita's Strub (gr. II) prior to his defeat in the Big 'Cap.

Prior to the Derby Giacomo had won just once in seven starts, although he had been quite competitive in all of those races. Giacomo, who is now owned in partnership by Mr. and Mrs. Moss and Stronach Stables, improved his record to 3-2-4 in 13 starts with earnings of $2,202,316