The 2023 season has been marked by several equestrian trainers pushing their rookie racehorses to their peak performances. This has produced some of the best races spectators have witnessed in a while. However, not all trainers are pushing their fresh crops beyond their limits.

The desire to conquer the Breeders’ Cup has kept the wheels in motion for several equestrians. Trainer Leonard Powell, however, has decided to take a different route. The veteran trainer is trying a fresh approach for one of his fillies and is taking things slow.

Equestrian chooses to let horse shine at home

Equestrian trainers make huge efforts and spend a lot of money to transport their horses from one state to another. While this yields several grand victories, like the recent triumph of Five Star General, such success stories are quite uncommon. Anisette is a three-year-old filly trained by Leonard Powell. The trainer had initially planned to make Anisette compete at the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup. However, he has now changed his mind and will enter his filly at the $300,000 Rodeo Drive Stakes. Powell has trained several racehorses for over 19 years. The equestrian trainer decided to skip the Challenge Cup after considering several valuable factors he picked up on his journey.

Anisette is a British filly and has delivered stunning performances on the racetrack. The equestrian racehorse has won four out of six races it has participated in. In fact, it has won all the races it raced in 2023. The speedster’s victory at Santa Anita was its debut on an American racetrack. Powell said that he has decided not to ship Anisette after taking its inclinations into account. “We’re leaning toward staying home,” said Powell. The equestrian mentioned that his filly is doing well and also seemed to like the Santa Anita Racetrack. The equestrian trainer also mentioned a highly valuable tradeoff he factored in before making up his mind.

Powell aims for the Breeders’ Cup

Powell has decided to let his filly shine at home. However, it doesn’t mean he has given up on his ambitions. The Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup came with a purse of $600,000. Despite this, Powell played a strategic gamble and reserved his three-year-old filly for the $300,000 Rodeo Drive Stakes. 

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Powell said that he decided to go for the Rodeo Stakes despite the low purse because of the Breeders’ Cup. He mentioned that a victory at the Drive Stakes race gives a direct entry to a Breeders’ Cup Race. Powell is aiming to race Anisette at the Filly and Mare Turf race which will be held at Santa Anita. While Powell may appear laid-back on the surface, his mind is always hard at work. Equestrian trainers like Powell give life to the proverb ‘still waters run deep.’

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