Zenyatta transcends gender

Zenyatta ran past all the female cliches Saturday at Hollywood Park. Toss out the gender stuff. She is just a great racehorse.

No need for lines about the next Bo Derek. Her career of 10 races is the perfect 10. And that appears to be merely a pause along the way to 13-0 or 14-0, before owners Jerry and Ann Moss let her retire in December at the end of her fifth year of racing.

Saying the lady is a champ doesn’t carry it anymore. Just make it champ. Period.

When she won the $150,000 Milady Handicap, she dawdled as far as 15 lengths behind the leader. She has been gone from racing for seven months, resting after her victory in October in the Breeders’ Cup Fillies Classic at Santa Anita. Saturday, it looked as if she wanted to take her time, soak it all in, strut her stuff.

In the paddock, she did her high-stepping routine, raising eyebrows among those who hadn’t witnessed that before.

“She started doing that a few races ago,” said John Shirreffs, her trainer. “She kind of does a little dance, kind of like a dressage walker. She gives us her John Travolta moves.”

She was calm in the parade to the gate, then just settled to the back of the field under Mike Smith, almost like someone wanting to see the sights and take it easy before it was time for this racing stuff.

Along the backstretch, Smith and veteran jockey Garrett Gomez had a special moment. Gomez, riding second choice Life Is Sweet, also trained by Shirreffs, knew full well that just racing Zenyatta wasn’t going to get it done. He had a Grade I winner under him and was the only one with a shot to even compete, so he baited Smith a bit by presenting an opening along the rail, where he might better control the inevitable burst from Zenyatta.

Shirreffs calls that burst her signature move.

It was about that time that Zenyatta got interested. Smith, not taking the bait, swung her smoothly and quickly to the outside and clear, with acres of running room ahead.

“We were playing some serious jockey games out there,” Smith said. “All clean and fair.”

Before Gomez and Life Is Sweet could react, Zenyatta was around and on her way.

“Garrett looked at me as we went by and said, ‘Damn you.’ ” Smith said, laughing.

Zenyatta swung into the lead, coasted home, turned around and returned to a standing ovation along the grandstand. She made her obligatory stop in the winner’s circle for the pictures and handshakes and hugging she is used to by now. And then it was back to Shirreffs’ barn, Stall 85, for some good feed and a little trash whinnying at the mare 15 feet across the way in Stall 75, Life Is Sweet.

Another day, another dollar. Zenyatta’s work was done. The expected had happened, the ballyhooed return was worth the ballyhooing. The fans, all 6,042 -- what a sad commentary on the current state of horse racing -- got what they came to see.

Hollywood Park, which obviously knew what was coming because it spent about $2.75 on marketing this race -- had to pay out $147,295.74 in what is called a minus show pool.

That means that so much money was bet on Zenyatta to place third, an incredibly safe wager, that Hollywood Park had to pay out at least 10 cents on every $2 show bet. She went off at 1-9 odds, meaning you had to bet $9 to make a profit of $1 on a win bet.

Shirreffs was asked repeatedly what is next. His answer was the same as all trainers, who need to know what shape their horse is in after a race. Deep inside, Shirreffs certainly knew that Zenyatta may not have even broken a sweat for this one.

Next up is likely to be the $300,000 Vanity on June 27 at Hollywood Park. That’s also a race for females. Soon, Shirreffs and the Mosses will let her take a run at the boys, maybe the big boys of Breeders’ Cup racing. Shirreffs has hinted recently at the likelihood of facing the boys, each time with more of a gleam in his eye.

When that happens, it’ll be just another great equine athlete in the starting gate. With Zenyatta, gender has become a non-issue.

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bill.dwyre@latimes.com