Songbird – Champion Two-Year-Old Filly

Songbird was a near unanimous choice as champion two-year-old filly of 2015 following an unbeaten campaign. The dark bay daughter of Medaglia d’Oro garnered 260 votes, but failed to win over one voter who cast his/her ballot for Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1) heroine Catch a Glimpse.

Songbird dominated on the dirt during her 2015 season, culminating in a 5 3/4-length score in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1).

Bred in Kentucky by John Antonelli, Songbird sold to Rick Porter’s Fox Hill Farm for $400,000 as a Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Selected yearling.

The filly was subsequently sent to trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, for whom she broke her maiden on July 26 at Del Mar by 6 1/2 lengths. Songbird stayed at that California venue and added a 5 1/4-length victory in the Del Mar Debutante (G1) to her resume next out on September 5.

The dark bay lass showed up at Santa Anita Park just 21 days later and once again schooled her rivals when romping by 4 1/2 lengths in the Chandelier S. (G1). That set her up perfectly for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Keeneland, and Songbird was never challenged in that October 31 contest to wrap up her two-year-old season in stellar fashion.

Songbird was exclusively piloted by Mike Smith and earned $1,502,000 to go along with her perfect four-for-four mark in 2015.

There was immediate talk after the Breeders’ Cup of Songbird targeting the 2016 Kentucky Derby (G1) instead of the Kentucky Oaks (G1), but Porter has repeatedly said he favors the Oaks for his filly. She’s already posted four works since her Juvenile Fillies win and is expected to make her sophomore debut in the $300,000 Las Virgenes (G2) at Santa Anita Park on February 6.

TWO-YEAR-OLD FILLY		FIRST-PLACE VOTES
SONGBIRD		260
Catch a Glimpse		1

Songbird photo courtesy of Keeneland/Coady Photography