Showdown Between Eclipse Award Winners

The US$ 1million Gr1 Apple Blossom Handicap at Oaklawn on Saturday will see a clash between reigning Eclipse Award winners Swiss Skydiver (Daredevil-Expo Gold, by Johannesburg) and Monomoy Girl (Tapizar-Drumette, by Henny Hughes), reports bloodhorse.com. "Oh, you could say there's a million reasons why we're running Swiss Skydiver," Swiss Skydiver's trainer Ken McPeek said. "To be the champion, at some point you have to beat the champion, don't you? And this seems like as good a time as any to try it. The timing was good. It's five weeks between races and Swiss Skydiver is doing really good." Swiss Skydiver was crowned Champion 3YO Filly of 2020 in a season where she won the Gr1 Preakness Stakes and Gr1 Alabama Stakes. In her first start of 2021, Swiss Skydiver also won the Gr1 Beholder Mile (see below). "The Beholder was a very impressive performance. It was her first race back from four months off and people thought it was ambitious," McPeek said. "But she's bigger and stronger now." 6YO mare Monomoy Girl, who was sold as a breeding prospect in 2020 for $9.5 million, has won 14 of her 16 starts including the 2018 and 2020 Gr1 Breeders' Cup Distaff, and won her first start for 2021 in the Gr3 Bayakoa Stakes over 1700m. Monomoy Girl was crowned Champion 3YO Filly in 2018 and Champion Older Mare in 2020. Four other mares will run in the Gr1 Apple Blossom.