Each year after the Triple Crown and Breeders' Cup we document which of the top three finishers in each race are tail-female to a Reine-de-Course.

This year we thought we would expand this by looking ahead at the contenders to see which ones offer Reines-de-Course in their tail-female lines.

Races are not always won by the best-bred horse, and certainly luck plays a major factor in larger fields. But Reines have been well represented in classic races in the past and their presence in the pedigree of the dam is an indicator of quality that is most certainly not summarized anywhere else.

This list originally appeared in alphabetical order.  We have rearranged it in race finish order to emphasize that the first six finishers were tail-female to Reines-de-Course!

---Ron Parker

Mine That Bird - Lou Lanier 23b             1st    $103.20    $54.00    $25.80

Pioneerof the Nile - Dog Blessed 21a    2nd      $8.40      $6.40

Musket Man - Prayer Bell 9b                    3rd     $12.00

Papa Clem - Linaria 12c                           4th

Chocolate Candy - Won't Tell You 23b    5th

Summer Bird - Beadah 3o                        6th

Regal Ransom - Mock Orange 4m           8th

General Quarters - Colosseum 16g        10th

Advice - La Flambee 17b                         13th

Atomic Rain - Conjure 1p                          16th

Nowhere to Hide - Happy Mood 2n          17th

Theoretical Bet/Return if one boxed the above 11 in exotic wagers:

$2 Exacta - Cost $220    Return $2,074.80

$2 Trifecta - Cost $1,980    Return $41,500.60

$2 Superfecta - Cost $15,840    Return $557,006.40

Of course an additional ticket sold (yours) would reduce the payoffs some, but what's a few dollars among friends?

A Super High Five was available, but no one hit it (Carryover $251,865, hardly worth whatever it would cost)...

Contenders without tail-female Reines:

Desert Party 14th, Dunkirk 11th, Flying Private 19th, Friesan Fire 18th, Hold Me Back 12th, Join In The Dance 7th, Mr. Hot Stuff 15th, West Side Bernie 9th.