Much like the diva the race was named in honor of, Cavalieri (Nyquist) gave the fans on hand a moment's worry at the start, but rolled home the easiest of winners to stamp her ticket to the Breeders' Cup via the 'WAYI' GII Zenyatta Stakes at Santa Anita.
Unbeaten in her career, the Speedway Stables colorbearer entered the race off a stalk and pounce performance which saw her claim the GI Beholder Mile by three-quarters of a length over stablemate Richi (Chi) (Practical Joke) back in March–who returned here for a second shot at turning the tables. She started her 2025 with a stylish victory in the GIII La Canada Stakes Jan. 19 to mark her first graded victory in her career.
Made the 3-5 betting choice here, Cavalieri missed the break entirely after she tossed her head around and hopped as the gates opened. She had to move quickly to secure her stalking position behind the anticipated pacesetter, and was never far behind the opening splits of :23.67, :48 flat, and six panels in 1:11.60. Pushed to come onto even terms with Richi, Cavalieri had a slim advantage as they hit the top of the stretch but was slowly increasing the margin with every stride. With ears pricked, she sailed in under a confident ride through the final yards to win by 1 3/4 lengths. Richi gamely hung on to second as their third stablemate MGSP Howin (Gun Runner) claimed third.
With the win in the Zenyatta, Cavalieri has earned an automatic berth in the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff at Del Mar in November.
“When she missed the break I thought, 'Well, oh well',” said Bob Baffert. “But we knew that she is very talented. He got her up there. Juan, he didn't panic. He was patient with her and got her in a nice spot down the backside. When I saw the fillies going down together I knew they were going to have to sprint home. They went easy the first half, so I think that helped a lot.”
“She is just so talented, the further, the better for her. Now she has had the time off. I knew she was going to be a little rusty today. I didn't think she was going to be that rusty in the gate, but she was. This will set her up perfectly for the Breeders' Cup.”
“She was acting up, she was nervous,” explained Juan Hernandez. “It had been a while since she had run so she was excited. Even in the post parade she was dancing a little bit. In the gate she moved a little bit and then she was okay but, then she moved when they opened the gate. It caused her to miss the break but she recovered in three jumps and she recovered really well.”
“…I asked her to pick it up, she switched leads, she took off and passed the horse in front of me. She is back.”
After hopping at the start CAVALIERI ($3.40) digs in under @JJHernandezS19 to win the $200,000 Zenyatta Stakes (G2) at @santaanitapark. The undefeated 4YO Nyquist (@DarleyAmerica) filly is trained by @BobBaffert and owned by Speedway Stables. #BC25 @BreedersCup @LanesEndFarms pic.twitter.com/PKbr8CGtT1
— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) September 28, 2025
Pedigree Notes:
The victress is the most recent to the races for her dam, who does have a juvenile to her credit named Miss Disconnect (Connect). Her elder half-sister, Affirmative Lady (Arrogate), also claimed graded black-type during her career when she took home the hardware in the GII Gulfstream Park Oaks. Cavalieri is the first in the family to claim Grade I black-type, however, and is the most accomplished for the dam thus far. Stiffed has a yearling colt by Mandaloun in the wings and unfortunately delivered a stillborn Elite Power foal this season.
The dam is herself a half-sibling to accomplished racehorses-namely MSW Speaking (Mr Speaker) and MSW Sea Streak (Sea Wizard) on track while her half-sisters produced the likes of MSW & MGSP Great Navigator (Sea Wizard) and MSW & GSP Riding Pretty (Jack Milton).
Sunday, Santa Anita
ZENYATTA S.-GII, $200,000, Santa Anita, 9-28, 3yo/up, f/m,1 1/16m, 1:42.64, ft.
1–CAVALIERI, 124, f, 4, by Nyquist
1st Dam: Stiffed (MSW & MGSP, $256,559), by Stephen Got Even
2nd Dam: High Noon Nellie, by Silver Deputy
3rd Dam: Full and Fancy, by Marfa
($170,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP; $900,000 2yo '23 OBSAPR). O-Speedway Stables LLC; B-Alastar Thoroughbred Co, LLC (KY); T-Bob Baffert; J-Juan J. Hernandez. $120,000. Lifetime Record: 5-5-0-0, $438,000. *1/2 to Affirmative Lady (Arrogate), GSW, $284,435. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*** Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Richi (Chi), 126, m, 5, Practical Joke–Rich Baby (Chi), by Scat Daddy. O-Hill 'n' Dale Equine Holdings, Inc. (J. G. Sikura) and Stud Vendaval, Inc.; B-Haras Paso Nevado (CHI); T-Bob Baffert. $40,000.
3–Howin, 118, f, 3, Gun Runner–Flora Dora, by First Dude. ($550,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP). O-Baoma Corp; B-Coffee Pot Stables (KY); T-Bob Baffert. $24,000.
Margins: 1 3/4, 2 1/4, 4 1/4. Odds: 0.70, 1.30, 18.50.
Also Ran: Sugar Fish, La Kika (Per).
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
