Petersen's Latest Gem: Kentucky Oaks Filly Gamine

Michael Lund Petersen might simply have become the answer to a horse racing trivia question, except he keeps owning headline performers, including flashy filly and Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) contender Gamine.

The trivia? Back in 2014 when American Pharoah  suffered a leg injury and was declared out of the Sentient Jet Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1), who owned trainer Bob Baffert's remaining entrant in that race? Yes, "Jeopardy" fans, it was Petersen, whose One Lucky Dane (named after him by Charlene, his wife, who, according to Petersen, "Thinks I am one lucky son of a gun") finished sixth. 

One Lucky Dane, the first racehorse owned by Petersen, wound up second in the following season's Santa Anita Derby (G1) behind stablemate Dortmund .

Petersen, a founding shareholder of the U.S. division of Pandora Jewelry, has campaigned a string of graded winners trained by Baffert over the past six years. Mor Spirit , also named by Charlene, this time in honor of Petersen's mom, Mor, won the Los Alamitos Futurity (G1) in 2015, the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G3) in 2016, finished second in the Santa Anita Derby, and dominated the 2017 Mohegan Sun Metropolitan Handicap (G1). The Eskendereya colt banked $1,668,900 and today stands at stud at Spendthrift Farm.

Mucho Gusto then came along to take the 2018 Bob Hope Stakes (G3) and the 2019 Robert B. Lewis, Laz Barrera, and Affirmed stakes (all G3). He banked nearly $800,000 for Petersen before the jewelry magnate sold him to a Saudi prince for a sizable dowry.

Lund, as he is known to his friends back home, grew up next to a racetrack in Copenhagen, Denmark, where he became a regular at the races as a teenager, attracted both by a little wagering and the beauty of the horses. Intrigued, he kept it in mind to perhaps get involved in the sport down the road somewhere.

That road led to his opening up the U.S. market for Pandora, which was started by his friend Per Enevoldsen in Denmark. Today Pandora is the biggest jewelry company in the world, which led Lund into Thoroughbred ownership. Despite his string of top performers, Petersen has weathered the typical plight of a Thoroughbred owner.

"I have learned that being an owner is a lot of heartache and heartbreak," said Lund, who lives in the Maryland horse country outside Baltimore and near Sagamore Farm.

There has been little heartache yet from Gamine, other than perhaps a slight case of indigestion from Petersen having to part with $1.8 million to buy her out of the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale. 

"During the bidding I was on the phone with Bob (Baffert) and it hit $1.4 or $1.5 (million) and he said, 'Don't let her go. She's worth it.' I guess he was right," Petersen said.

"She was not a secret," noted agent Donato Lanni, who selected Gamine as a possible purchase for Petersen. "She was a complete standout, and those don't come around very often. She is a big, beautiful filly who went around the track so easily. We were actually looking for colts, but she was the best horse there." 

It should come as no surprise that Gamine (pronounced Gah-MEEN) was named by Charlene. Gamine is a French word for a girl that has boyish features that make her beautiful, according to Petersen.

"Since she is so big, Charlene got creative and thought the name matched perfectly," the owner said. "I know to surround myself with people who are smarter than I."

Gamine, a daughter of Into Mischief —Peggy Jane, by Kafwain, has finished first in all four of her races, but was disqualified in an allowance/optional claiming event in May after failing a post-race test. A speedball who enjoys going to the front and improving her position, Gamine has performed brilliantly, breaking her maiden by 6 1/4 lengths, winning the Longines Acorn Stakes (G1) in June by a Secretariat-like 18 3/4 lengths, and scoring in the Longines Test Stakes (G1) in August by seven lengths.

The allowance-level effort in May at Oaklawn Park was 1 1/16 miles, so she has gone two turns. Still, the big questions that remain are whether she can handle both the nine furlongs of the Oaks as well as key rival Swiss Skydiver.

"She's obviously very exciting; almost too good to be true," said Petersen, who will attend the Oaks with Charlene. "What can I say? I'm nervous before every one of her races, and then after the race you think you should know by now that she has an extra gear that her opponents, up until now, can't match. But you always wonder if she's really going to do it again. There are a couple in the Oaks that have also performed very well.

"As the competition gets better, we can just hope that she is the superstar that Mr. Baffert likes to call her. His new nickname for her is Queen Gamine."

Petersen is an athlete of note himself. He brought home a trophy when he and PGA tour pro Pat Perez won the Pro-Am at prestigious Pebble Beach a few years back. Following a recent knee replacement, he too is hoping to hit another gear, even if it is not as impressive as Gamine's.

"She is lightly raced compared to some of the others she'll face in the Oaks," he said. "But whatever happens in that race, she has tons of potential going forward."