Horse Profile: Che Evasora

Breeders' Cup Distaff Scouting Report

(Editor's note: Originally published in the 2024 BRISnet Breeders' Cup International Report) 

Argentine import earned her way in via the “Win and You’re In” Gran Premio Criadores (G1) at Palermo on May 1, when she pulled a 58-1 upset. But Che Evasora’s flop in her stateside prep in the Zenyatta (G2) did nothing to answer the question marks about her Breeders’ Cup potential. 

Although Argentina has furnished Distaff greats like Bayakoa (1989-90) and Paseana (1992), and more recently Blue Prize (2019), they all had a much more prolonged acclimation period before starring at the Breeders’ Cup. A case in point is Blue Stripe: the winner of the 2021 Criadores was only seventh in that fall’s Distaff, but a year later, she just missed narrowly. The only Argentine shipper who won a Breeders’ Cup race on a compressed schedule was the veteran gelding Calidoscopio in the Marathon (2012).

The other question mark is that Che Evasora reached a higher level of performance once she stepped up to about 1 1/4 miles. Her first Group score came at that trip in last December’s Los Criadores (G2) at La Plata, and she had to be driven along on the far turn before pulling away in the stretch. She rallied from much farther back to upset her Breeders’ Cup Challenge event by a half-length.

Che Evasora was subsequently purchased by Japanese interests, R Unicorn Stable, who paid to make her Breeders’ Cup eligible and transferred her to Phil D’Amato. The same connections sourced Brazilian champion Macadamia, who went on to win the 2023 Gamely (G1) for D’Amato. Current graded performer Super Shine is another example of the R Unicorn/D’Amato tandem, but like Macadamia, she had the luxury of a lot more time to adjust to the hemisphere switch. 

D’Amato has noted that Che Evasora was far too aggressive early in the Zenyatta, causing her to give way completely in an eased last. He’s conditioning her to revert to deep-closing tactics. But she’ll need Alice Verite to make the pace wild enough to bring out her stamina, along with a career-best display to factor in a 1 1/8-mile championship event.