Gutierrez Eyes 2022 Campaign, BC Return for Letruska

For trainer Fausto Gutierrez, the Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) did not work out as planned for Letruska , but he's already envisioning another try and looking forward to an unforgettable night at the Eclipse Awards ceremonies once 2022 rolls around.

Letruska was a tired mare Sunday morning at Del Mar after finishing a disappointing 10th of 11 behind Japan's victorious Marche Lorraine  in the 1 1/8-mile Distaff as an 8-5 favorite.

The 5-year-old daughter of Super Saver   pressed an incendiary :21.84 and :44.97 pace before fading in the stretch and finishing off the board for the just the fourth time in 23 career starts.

"She came out of the race good. The first impression is that she will be OK. She scoped clean and ate everything. We need to watch her for a few more days before making a final decision on how she is," Gutierrez said about a mare with 17 wins and career earnings of $2,256,459. "It was a very, very tough race on her, but this happens in a race as good as the Breeders' Cup. When I heard the announcer say the fractions, I had the same reaction as all of the fans when they said 'ooh.' I knew she was finished after seven furlongs."

The consolation for Gutierrez and the St. George Stable ownership is that the homebred mare will assuredly be voted the champion older dirt mare with a record of six wins and a second from eight 2021 starts with earnings of $1,945,540 and four grade 1 wins.

"I'm very happy. To win an Eclipse Award is very important to me and everyone else," said Gutierrez, who will be collecting his first Eclipse Award in a career that includes just 60 North American winners according to statistics compiled by Equibase (Gutierrez has been a top trainer in Mexico). "This is a real dream to win an Eclipse Award with a horse that came from another country (Mexico). I will always remember beating Monomoy Girl  and Swiss Skydiver  (in the Apple Blossom Handicap, G1, at Oaklawn Park) and winning at Saratoga (the Personal Ensign Stakes Presented by Lia Infiniti, G1) this year."

Helping to keep Gutierrez optimistic is the knowledge that Letruska will return for a 6-year-old campaign in 2022. The goal will once again be the Distaff, but the season will feature a later start than this year when she opened the year with a Jan. 31 victory in the Houston Ladies Classic Stakes (G3) at Sam Houston Race Park and wound up racing at seven different racetracks.

"I want to win a Breeders' Cup race with her," Gutierrez said. "We are planning to be at Keeneland (for the 2022 Breeders' Cup) with a strong horse. But we will not be as aggressive next year with her. It's hard to evaluate now, but maybe we will run five or six times instead of eight and arrive at the Breeders' Cup with a little less traveling during the year and have a more passive horse."