L and N Racing and Winchell Thoroughbreds’ Echo Zulu fought off Champion Female Sprinter Goodnight Olive to win the Ballerina H. (G1) at Saratoga on Saturday, Aug. 26. With the win, Echo Zulu secured a berth in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (G1) as the Ballerina is a “Win and You’re In” Breeders’ Cup Challenge race.
Trained by Steve Asmussen and ridden by Florent Geroux, Echo Zulu entered the Ballerina off an eye-catching victory in the Honorable Miss H. (G2) on July 26, where she earned a career-high 112 Beyer Speed Figure. In the Ballerina, Echo Zulu held a narrow advantage through a half in :45.23. In a determined effort, Echo Zulu fended off all challengers through the lane and put away Goodnight Olive inside the final furlong to win by 2 ½ lengths. She stopped the clock in 1:20.95.
“She was picking it up nicely when I asked her to,” said Geroux. “Felt like I was in control pretty much all the way through the race, and when I asked her turning for home, she gave me this other gear. She’s amazing. She’s a champion and I’m just the lucky pilot.”
Echo Zulu completed a perfect juvenile season in 2021, winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) at Del Mar en route to Champion 2-Year-Old Filly honors. She is perfect in three outings this year, winning the Winning Colors (G3) at Churchill Downs prior to her 7 ¼-length romp in the Honorable Miss. All told, she is perfect in four starts at Saratoga.
Bred in Kentucky by Betz/J. Betz/Burns/CHNNHK/Magers/CoCo Equine/Ramsby, Kentucky-bred Echo Zulu was a $300,000 purchase at the 2020 Kentucky September Yearling Sale. Echo Zulur’s record now stands at 11-9-1-0 and she boasts earnings of $2,640,375.