WON: Breeders Bowl Juvenile Turf Filly(G1), Movieland Starlet(G1), Fauster's Juvenile Cup(G1), The Alabama 1110 Handicap, The Nebraska 1166 Handicap
2nd: The Ascot 1131 Stakes

By- TheBuzz

As a regally bred juvenile there are high expectations placed upon you from the start. However, never in their wildest dreams could Lionart Stables have predicted, or expected, the kind of season this years winner of the Eclipse Award for 2-year Old Filly Turf, produced. To say that Dancing Blade had a sensational season would be an understatement. As readers drift in an era of press writers besieging them with athlete accolades right and left, best, greatest in history, unequaled, unstoppable, and so on, sometimes it becomes hard to separate the chaff. Perhaps it's time to gather our senses, let those athletes with truly outstanding performances have those performances speak for themselves, then allow an individual evaluation as to the magnitude of the effort. Dancing Blade is a fantastic filly, recognized here as the 2001 Eclipse Award winner for 2-year old turf filly of the year, an honor well deserved and warranted. As to her place in history... we'll let the fillies year long performance speak to that.

A daughter of the very successful sire KINGMAMBO, Dancing Blade acquired a license to run at birth. She would be following in the footsteps of such noted KINGMAMBO family members as, LEMON DROP KID, a 10 race winner of $3,245,369 and voted Champion Older Horse for 2000, EL CONDOR PASA, a $2,957,984 earner, voted 1999 Horse Of The Year in Japan, million dollar earner KING CUGAT, along with additional graded stakes winners, PARADE GROUND, VOODOO DANCER, and OKAWANGO. The list of quality KINGMAMBO runners goes on and on with stakes winner upon stakes winner. Suffice to say, KINGMAMBO is quite a sire. How well his foals are thought of in the equine world is evidenced in the auction ring, as the demand for KINGMAMBO foals has soared. In 2000, his 16 yearling colts sold at public auction, average sales price was $793,375. In 1999, the 12 KINGMAMBO fillies sold at auction earned a $361,667 average offering. In fact, perhaps the best view of just how good this family's runners are is evidenced by the 1995 crop of KINGMAMBO runners. A 26 member crop of 1995 made it to the races, earning a staggering $12,236,789 in purse money, for a $470,646 average earnings per runner. Yes, this is quite a family Dancing Blade was born into.

Back in March of 2001 there were high expectations for Dancing Blade as she entered the gate for her maiden trip down the turf track in Indiana. Off as a 4-1 choice, Dancing Blade didn't disappoint her backers, as she pulled off a come from behind victory over eleven starters, in a very respectable 1:05 2/5 for the 5.5 furlongs over the firm turf course. Shipped to Sweden a month later for a turf sprint similar to the distance of her maiden win, Dancing Blade was clearly the best of this ten horse allowance field, winning the 5.0 furlong turf sprint in another come from behind victory by 3 widening lengths. Decision time for the stable! Dancing Blade had shown she was clearly a special filly by the manner in which she accomplished her previous wins. She possessed heart, the will to win, a relaxed running style, and perhaps more importantly she loved the experience. A race on the horizon just fit her running style, a graded stakes turf sprint, a race that would absolutely provide the next test, the test of class. Great credit goes to the Lionart Stables at this point in the fillies career, as they shipped her off to Queensland 5 weeks later for a start in the Grade I, 6 furlong on the turf, Fauster's Juvenile Cup. Running a carbon copy of her previous wins, Dancing Blade displayed her class, while capturing a graded winner title and running off from the rest of the field by 2 1/2 lengths. Needless to say there was a huge celebration that night in the lionart stables barn, as they spent a little of the fillies $240,000 race earnings.

Three for three and a graded stakes winner! Time to look ahead! Not that far to the Breeders Bowl! She's earned a shot if she can qualify! Winning her next start, then running second in an Ascot stakes where she came up just short at the wire, plus a big win in a Nebraska stakes, brought the filly into New York for the big Breeders Bowl race. The Breeders Bowl Juvenile Turf Filly race assembled the best turf runners in the world and Dancing Blade had earned her right to challenge. At a mile and one sixteenth on the turf, the Breeders Bowl turf race provide a true test for the juvenile fillies. Perhaps the drawing of the post positions for the race were an omen of good things to come, as Dancing Blade drew the preferred inside post #1 while health wise she was at the top of her game. Breaking from the inside, Dancing Blade allowed the early speed to set the pace while settling into seventh place, 7 3/4 lengths off the streaking pace setter early. Making a bold move in the turn, Dancing Blade picked off horses one by one, then opened up on the field to again win going away by 4 1/2 widening lengths. She pulled it off! A Breeders Bowl race winner! The filly had come a long way along a most difficult path and had just won the Breeders Bowl Juvenile Turf Filly race. Fans adored her, competitors respected her, and on that day, she was the best two year old filly turf runner on the planet. She ran the mile and one sixteenth in a brisk 1:43 1/5, while earning her first century speed figure. The lionart stable family was jubilant and justifiably celebrated in the winners circle.

Dancing Blade finished off her 2001 juvenile campaign with a trip to California and a victory in the Grade I Movieland Starlet Stakes. Movieland Starlets Stakes! Hmmmm.. now that has a familiar ring to it. Who could have in their wildest imagination, back in Indiana, in that initial maiden race, ever thought it could end up here.

As I said from the start, you be the judge of the Dancing Blade place in history. From my view, when you pull up horse ID #2649, scroll to the left there and look just after the line labeled Divisional Ranking, yep! right there! That's what I think of Dancing Blade.

Congratulations to lionart Stables for a wonderful year with Dancing Blade and a most deserved Eclipse Award. I was honored and privileged to write about such a great competitor and a year of outstanding accomplishments.

TheBuzz