She's a Tiger (foaled 10 May 2011) is an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic ...

. In 2013, racing exclusively in California, she won three of her six races including the

Del Mar Debutante Stakes The Del Mar Debutante Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old fillies run each year in early September at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. A Grade I event since 1999, the Debutante is raced on dirt at a distance ...

and was disqualified after finishing first in the

Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies The Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies is a -mile thoroughbred horse race on dirt (although the distance has varied, depending on the configuration of the host track) for two-year-old fillies run annually since 1984 at a different racetrack in the Uni ...

. She was voted

American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly The American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when both ...

for 2013.

Background

She's a Tiger is a bay filly with a narrow white blaze and two white

socks A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. In the lat ...

bred in Kentucky by Rodney Orr. Her sire, Tale of the Cat, was a high class racehorse who won the

King's Bishop Stakes The H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run over a distance of seven furlongs on the dirt held in August at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. The current purse for th ...

in 1997 and finished second to

Awesome Again Awesome Again (March 29, 1994December 15, 2020) was a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse and stallion. As a three-year-old, he won the Queen's Plate in Canada and the Jim Dandy Stakes in the United States. He was undefeated at age four, scoring his ...

in the

Whitney Stakes The Whitney Stakes (run as the Whitney Handicap through 2013 and still sometimes referred to as such) is an American Grade 1 stakes race for Thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and older run at a distance of miles. The current purse is $1, ...

a year later. At stud, his most successful performer to date has been the multiple

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

winner

Gio Ponti Giovanni "Gio" Ponti ( ͡ʒo18 November 1891 – 16 September 1979) was an Italian architect, industrial designer, furniture designer, artist, teacher, writer and publisher. During his career, which spanned six decades, Ponti built more than a ...

. Her dam, Shandra Smiles, has produced several other winners including the leading sprinter Smiling Tiger, the winner of the Bing Crosby Stakes, Ancient Title Stakes and Triple Bend Handicap. As a

yearling Yearling may refer to: *Yearling (horse), a horse between one and two years old *''The Yearling ''The Yearling'' is a novel by American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, published in March 1938. It was the main selection of the Book of the Mo ...

, the filly was consigned by Warrendale Stables to the September sale at

Keeneland Keeneland Association, Inc. is an equine business based in Lexington, Kentucky. It includes two distinct divisions: the Keeneland Race Course, a Thoroughbred racing facility, and Keeneland Sales, a horse auction complex. It is also known for i ...

where she was bought for $150,000 by Mersad Metanovic Bloodstock.

Racing career

2013: two-year-old season

She's a Tiger made her racecourse debut in a

maiden race In horse racing a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the s ...

over five

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use i ...

s at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in

Pleasanton, California Pleasanton is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. Located in the Amador Valley, it is a suburb in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 79,871 at the 2020 census. In 2005 and 2007, Pleasanton ...

. The race proved to be little more than a workout for the filly, who started at odds of 1/5 and won by nine

lengths Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the In ...

. Three weeks later the filly appeared on the synthetic Cushion Track at

Hollywood Park Racetrack Hollywood Park was a thoroughbred race course located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to the Forum indoor arena. In 1994, the original Hollywood Park Casino was added to t ...

and started 3/5 favourite for the

Landaluce Stakes The Landaluce Stakes is a discontinued American Thoroughbred horse race which was held annually during the first part of July at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. Created at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California in 1945 but afte ...

over six furlongs. Ridden in her debut by Frank Alvarado she took the lead soon after the start, went clear of her rivals in the straight and held off the challenge of E Equalsmcsquared to win by three quarters of a length. In the following month, She's a Tiger was moved up in class and distance for the

Grade II In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ire ...

Sorrento Stakes The Sorrento Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old fillies over a distance of six furlongs on the dirt track scheduled annually in August at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The event currently carries a pu ...

on the

Polytrack The track surface of a horse racing track refers to the material of which the track is made. There are three types of track surfaces used in modern horse racing. These are: * Turf, the most common track surface in Europe *Dirt, the most common tra ...

surface at

Del Mar Racetrack The Del Mar Fairgrounds is a event venue in Del Mar, California. The annual San Diego County Fair is held here, which was called the Del Mar Fair from 1984 to 2001. In 1936, the Del Mar Racetrack was built by the Thoroughbred Club with foundin ...

. She led the field in the straight and fought back after being headed, but was beaten half a length by the Canadian-bred filly Concave. On September 1, over the same course and distance, She's a Tiger (wearing blinkers for the first time) and Concave met again in the Del Mar Debutante Stakes, a Grade I event which also attracted the highly regarded fillies Awesome Baby and Fascinating. Gary Stevens rode the filly for the first time and disputed the lead with Awesome Baby from the start, before opening up a two and a half length advantage in the straight. She was challenged in the closing stages but "ran on gamely under pressure" to win by half a length from Fascinating. After the race, her trainer Jeff Bonde commented "She got stronger, and when we added (blinkers) she got more focused. She was very professional in the paddock. A lot of Tale of the Cats can get a little hot, but she's got such great mentality and I'm really pleased with her". The filly then moved to racing on dirt when she contested the Grade I

Chandelier Stakes The Chandelier Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at the end of September at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is restricted to two-year-old fillies. The Grade II race is contested at a distance of one and one-si ...

over eight and a half furlongs at

Santa Anita Park Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races ...

on September 28. She's a Tiger took the lead on the backstretch and took a clear lead but was worn down by the

Rosie Napravnik Anna Rose "Rosie" Napravnik (born February 9, 1988) is a former American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey and two-time winner of the Kentucky Oaks. Beginning her career in 2005, she was regularly ranked among the top jockeys in North America i ...

-ridden Secret Compass in the closing stages and beaten a head, with Fascinating finishing strongly to take third place. She's a Tiger ended her first season in the

at Santa Anita in which she was again ridden by Stevens. She started at odds of 4/1, level with the

Spinaway Stakes The Spinaway Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. Open to two-year-old fillies, it is a Grade I event contested at a distance of seven furlongs (1,408 metres) on dirt. Th ...

winner Sweet Reason and behind the

Frizette Stakes The Frizette Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old fillies raced annually at Belmont Park in October. It is currently a Grade I stakes race at a distance of one mile. The Frizette is the female counterpart of the Champagn ...

winner Artemis Agrotera, who was favored at 7/2. She took an early lead and went four clear of her rivals on the final turn. In the straight the 40/1 outsider

Ria Antonia A ria (; gl, ría) is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea. Definitions Typically rias have a dendritic, treelike outline although they c ...

emerged as the only serious challenger and the two fillies were level with fifty yards to run when She's a Tiger edged away from the inside rail and bumped her rival. She's a Tiger crossed the line a nose ahead of Rio Antonia, but after an inquiry by the racecourse stewards, she was disqualified for causing interference and demoted to second. Bonde described the result of the inquiry as "just heartbreaking". In January 2014, She's a Tiger was named Champion Two-Year-Old Filly at the

Eclipse Awards The Eclipse Award is an American Thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th-century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse. An Eclipse Award Trophy is presented to the winner in each division that is made by a few small selected American ...

, taking 212 of the 249 votes.

2014: three-year-old season

On her first appearance as a three-year-old, She's a Tiger started as the 13/5 second favorite for the

Eight Belles Stakes The Eight Belles Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old filly sprinters run at a distance of 7 furlongs at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky each year on Kentucky Oaks Day. History The inaugural runnin ...

at Churchill Downs on 2 May but finished seventh of the nine runners behind Fiftyshadesofgold.

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 2011 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Thoroughbred family 5-g Eclipse Award winners