Lady Eli

Background

Bred by Runnymede Farm, Lady Eli is by Divine Park out of Sacre Coeur, both of whom were also bred by Runnymede. Martin O'Dowd of Runnymede Farm would later say: "[Lady Eli] was very independent, but also easy to live with. She was a big, strong filly. As a yearling she was agreeable prepping for the sale; she came out and did what you asked her to do and was very willing and well-behaved. She always had a kind of seriousness about her; she never balked at anything."

As a yearling in 2013, she was sold at the Keeneland September Sale for $160,000. In April 2014 as a two-year-old in training, she was resold at the Keeneland April Sale, again for $160,000. Her new owners are Nantucket contractor Jay Hanley and Boston Hedge Fund Manager Sol Kumin and a few of their friends, who called their stable Sheep Pond Partners after an area in Nantucket. She is trained by Chad Brown and her jockey is Irad Ortiz Jr.

2014: two-year-old season

Lady Eli made her racing debut at Saratoga on August 25 as the favorite in a maiden race at  1 ¹⁄₁₆ miles on the turf. She settled in the middle of the field but was blocked when she tried to make her move on the turn. When she finally got clear with an eighth of a mile to go, she accelerated rapidly and won by a nose. "She was training up to her first race in Saratoga lights out, so we had very high hopes for her — even the layperson could watch her train and see she was training better than other horses there," owner Hanley would later say. "When she finally got through in her debut, she did, she showed her turn of foot and we saw in that last 100 yards what we were seeing in the morning.

In her next start in the Miss Grillo Stakes at Belmont, Lady Eli was the fourth betting choice in a field of eleven. She tracked the pace while racing wide, then blew past the leaders to win under a hand ride. "Outstanding performance," said Brown. "(Lady Eli) had trained like a horse with a ton of ability. ...To start your career 2-for-2, as impressive as those races have been, is great. You can't ask for more."

The quality of the field for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf was strong, with a good European contingent and stakes winners from across North America. Lady Eli was nonetheless the favorite and she did not disappoint. She rated in fourth and then "exploded" past the leaders in the stretch to win going away. "My filly broke good and I got a nice spot down inside," said jockey Ortiz. "I broke through the hole (at the top of the stretch) when Sunset Glow came out, and my filly flew right through there." Lady Eli completed the mile in 1:33.41, more than a full second faster than the colts went in the Juvenile Turf earlier that day.

Lady Eli was the runner-up in the Eclipse Award voting for champion two-year-old filly, traditionally dominated by horses who run on the dirt.

2015: three-year-old season

Lady Eli returned to racing on April 12 in the Appalachian Stakes at Keeneland. The odds-on favorite, she raced behind the leaders then "shot away" in the stretch to win easily. "You have these brilliant 2-year-olds and sometimes they don't all train on at 3," Brown said. "We gave her a little time off this winter, but all her works have been so strong and sharp, she gave every indication she was going to come back even better at age 3."

Her next start was in the $200,000 Wonder Again Stakes at Belmont. Racing again behind the leaders, she was trapped when she tried to make her move and only got free in the final eighth of a mile, then rallied to win by half a length. "There were definitely some anxious moments there," said Brown. "It wasn't really the trip I was envisioning, but she worked it out and ended the weekend on a good note. She had to overcome a lot today—stretching out in distance, a slow pace, and she was bottled up for most of the way."

On July 4, Lady Eli faced 13 rivals in the Belmont Oaks Invitational Stakes at  1 ¹⁄₄ miles. She raced in the middle of the pack, then swung wide and then drew off in "eye-catching fashion" to win by  2 ¹⁄₂ lengths. She had won all six of her starts. "As we stretch out our turf horses, you wonder if they're going to lose their turn of foot," Brown said. "The term 'breathes different air' gets thrown around a lot when someone has a very good horse, and I've been lucky to have some great turf fillies and mares, but this one 'breathes different air' for sure. She certainly has the most devastating turn of foot I've ever worked around."

Following her victory in the Belmont Oaks, Lady Eli stepped on a nail with her left front foot walking back to Brown's barn from the test barn. The nail was removed, and it didn't seem a big deal at first according to her owner. But Lady Eli started favoring her right front hoof, and about a week later began showing signs of laminitis in both front feet. Hanley said, "It's horrifying and disheartening. If you're an optimist, you'd say she'll race again. If you're a pessimist, she could be battling for her life." Brown told Daily Racing Form that Lady Eli was in a “stable but guarded condition” and that she had “been fitted with special shoes for support on both front feet.” On August 13, Brown said, "She's making remarkable progress. She's really doing as well as she possibly could be right now. We've been given clearance to increase her exercise, and she is walking twice a day around the barn. She's been getting out to the courtyard for grazing. She has great foot growth. She's walking perfectly sound. Her weight and color are terrific, and her attitude is back to her dominant self — protecting her space. I'm really happy with her right now."

2016: Four-year-old season

Lady Eli was turned out for two months at Dell Ridge Farm in Kentucky, then went back into training. She had a few timed workouts in early 2016, but then had some inflammation in a tendon. "We backed off and gave her some time walking; we took our time with her and then moved her to New York," Brown said. "Since she arrived at Belmont, she has been jogging and walking, and her tendons have been good. We gave her a little extra galloping to make sure she had enough foundation."

On August 27, Lady Eli returned in the Ballston Spa Stakes at Saratoga. She raced behind the early pace then made her move around the far turn, moving into the lead before being caught in mid-stretch by Strike Charmer. Lady Eli was beaten by just  ³⁄₄ of a length by the winner, who set a stakes record.

On October 8, Lady Eli returned to the winner's circle in the Flower Bowl Stakes at Belmont Park by  ³⁄₄ lengths at odds of 4-5. Referring to her recovery from laminitis, Brown said, "There were a lot of different scenarios, some extremely scary, and the best case was we'd be back heading to the Breeders' Cup race as one of the favorites, and here we are. It couldn't happen to a more deserving horse, for her to overcome all this."

Lady Eli was the betting favorite in the 2016 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf at Santa Anita on November 5 but faced a strong field including Grade I winners Seventh Heaven (Irish Oaks, Yorkshire Oaks), Catch a Glimpse (Belmont Oaks), Sea Calisi (Beverly D), Avenge (Rodeo Drive), Al's Gal (EP Taylor), Ryan's Charm (Clasico Pamplona) and Kitcat (Club Hipico Falabella. She beat all of these but was caught in the final stride by Queen's Trust, a well-regarded English filly given a perfectly timed ride by Frankie Dettori. "(Lady Eli)'s incredible. We know she's incredible and we know this comeback story was singular, second to none," said Hanley. "It's just hard to see her lose by a nostril. But if she's back, she's healthy, that's all that really matters. That's the bottom line."

Statistics

All races on the turf.

Pedigree

Lady Eli is by Divine Park, winner of the Metropolitan Handicap, when he was standing at Airdrie Stud in Kentucky. Divine Park was sold to Korea at the beginning of 2016.

Lady Eli's dam is Sacre Coeur, who had already produced graded stakes winner Bizzy Caroline. Sacre Coeur is from a highly distinguished family, tracing back through the Aga Khan's Khazeen. Even further back, the family produced Blushing Groom and Mill Reef.

Lady Eli is inbred 5 × 4 to Nijinsky, meaning Nijinsky appears once in the fifth generation and once in the fourth generation of her pedigree. She is also inbred 5 × 5 × 6 × 5 to Northern Dancer, sire of Nijinsky and also El Gran Senor and Danzig.