Midnight Bisou is a fantastic racehorse known for her gritty stretch runs and sheer dominance on the racetrack. She has only faced horses of her same gender, but that is all going to change on Saturday, February 29th. She is gearing up to take on the boys in the $20 million Saudi Cup.
This daughter of Midnight Lute out of the graded stakes winning mare Diva Delite (Repent) has been hugely successful against other females. She has won five Grade 1 races, four Grade 2s, and three Grade 3s. She has never finished off the board in all nineteen of her starts.
At three-years old in 2018, Midnight Bisou proved herself as one of the best fillies of her generation by winning races like the Santa Anita Oaks (G1) and Cotillion Stakes (G1). She was even able to finish at least second or third in the Kentucky Oaks (G1), Alabama Stakes (G1), Coaching Club American Oaks (G1), and Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1).
[Video: Watch Midnight Bisou (#3) win the Santa Anita Oaks in 2018]
By the time she was four-years old, Midnight Bisou had turned into an absolute beast. The Steve Asmussen trainee was on a seven race winning streak that included prestigious races like the Ogden Phipps Stakes (G1), Personal Ensign Stakes (G1), and Apple Blossom Handicap (G1). Bettors made her the first or second-choice in every race she ran in and her fans wore red to the racetrack to show their support.
She had become a sensation, a superstar on the racetrack. Every fan wanted a glimpse of her everywhere she went. Her pictures decorated social media accounts and living room walls. Much like the great horses of the past, Midnight Bisou had supporters crowding into racetracks just so they could say, “I saw her run”. Those far removed from the racetracks paused anything they were doing for those few exciting minutes that she would grace the racetrack.
The beautiful filly was just one race away from an undefeated season when she entered the starting gates for the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Santa Anita Park. The bettors didn’t believe that anyone could beat her that day. She was the heavy favorite in a field of eleven talented fillies and mares.
Perfection is hard to come by in racing, even for horses as good as Midnight Bisou. She fell just more than a length short of victory, a loss that her Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith contributes to the hard kickback at Santa Anita Park. She went into the stretch with her eyes closed and her dark bay coat caked with dirt.
Her connections at Bloom Racing Stable had planned to sell her in the Fasig-Tipton November Sale after the Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1), but they knew that their talented filly had more left in her. Much to the delight of her droves of fans, Midnight Bisou’s owners decided to pull her from the sale and keep her in training for her five-year old season.
[Video: Watch Midnight Bisou (#1) win the Personal Ensign Stakes in 2019]
This $80,000 2017 OBS Two-Year Olds in Training purchase has already earned more than 46x her purchase price. She has raced at the highest level on both coasts and dominated her foes in moments where it seemed almost impossible. Five is still such a young age for a horse and it is almost scary to think that she could be even better in 2020 than she was before.
Midnight Bisou will be facing some of the best males from around the world in the Saudi Cup, including Maximum Security, Mckinzie, Mucho Gusto, and Chrysoberyl. She will certainly have to bring her A-game to win on Saturday, but that shouldn’t be too hard for a horse as talented as her.
Saturday will be a showdown for the ages, a true battle of the sexes. If Midnight Bisou succeeds, it would surely be the first in a long line of important victories to come this mare’s way in 2020.
Be sure to tune in to Fox Sports 1 from 12 - 1 p.m. on Saturday to watch coverage of the Saudi Cup! This race will not be available to watch on TVG.
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