Many were sad to see Rags to Riches get beat. They had put her on a pedestal that only the immortals of the sport had previously occupied. She was compared to Ruffian, Lady’s Secret, Personal Ensign, all of them. And in one fell swoop the Belmont winner’s quest for immortality ended.

Or did it? Lear’s Princess is getting good at just the right time, but let’s face it she is no Rags to Riches. Before the Gazelle, Lear’s Princess had a case of seconditis. She finished second in the Coaching Club American Oaks to Octave, and second again to Lady Joanne in the Alabama.

Rags to Riches suffered through setback after setback this summer. She missed The Alabama and The Ruffian, and missed training due to fevers and other ailments. She still turned in a gutsy performance first time on the track in fourteen weeks. She was beaten by a half length but she gave Lear’s Princess seven pounds. One would think if she had returned in an allowance race, it may have been better for her resume, but Rags is no allowance horse anymore, and she has already accomplished more than any of the other three year old fillies this year.

She has four stakes wins to her credit this year; The Las Virgenes, Santa Anita Oaks, Kentucky Oaks and the Belmont Stakes. Lear’s Princess now has one.

Octave, although never able to defeat Rags to Riches, is still number two. So far this year, she won the Mother Goose and the Coaching Club. She has seconds in the Fair Ground Oaks, Ashland, and Kentucky Oaks. She finished third behind Lady Joanne and Lear’s Princess in the Alabama. Even if she were to win the Distaff, it would be tough to unseat Rags to Riches.

The saddest part of the Rags to Riches saga is that she now has no shot at Horse of the Year. It is tough to imagine someone other than Street Sense, Lawyer Ron, Curlin, Hard Spun or Any Given Saturday winning the Classic. If one of them wins it, they will undoubtably win Horse of the Year. Even if an outsider wins, Street Sense has done more than Rags to Riches and will be a deserving Horse of the Year.

We will have to wait to see how Rags to Riches matures next year. We are not often able to see it nowadays, but horses generally get better as they age. If the filly does, she will be tough to catch next year, and then we will certainly be able to forgive her for losing the Gazelle.