ARCADIA, Calif. – Idiomatic slapped an exclamation mark on a championship season Saturday at Santa Anita by scoring a gritty victory in the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Distaff. The half-length victory over Randomized was similar to most wins by Idiomatic this year. Her weapon is always speed. But the Distaff was different in another regard. After blowouts in two recent Grade 1 victories, Idiomatic had a fight on her hands in the stretch of the Distaff. "Victories have been fairly easy for her,” winning jockey Florent Geroux said. “This one, she had to earn it.” Her win was not brilliant, but it was game. Idiomatic ($5.60 favorite), trained by Brad Cox and owned by breeder Juddmonte Farms, pressed front-runner Randomized as the kamikaze duel many expected did not materialize. The race was dominated by the two front-runners. Randomized and Jose Ortiz set the pace through a half-mile in :46.26 and six furlongs in 1:10.16. Idiomatic pressed on the outside. At the quarter pole, Idiomatic engaged the pacesetter, but Randomized would not go away, and the late-runners were closing in. “They were all coming to her,” Cox said. “The last sixteenth, she showed the heart of a champion.” :: Bet with the Best! Get FREE All-Access PPs and Weekly Cashback when you wager on DRF Bets. Idiomatic (96 Beyer Speed Figure) crossed the wire of the 1 1/8-mile race in a slow 1:50.57 as the first five finishers were bunched at the wire, separated by less than 1 1/4 lengths. After runner-up Randomized, it was a nose back to Le Da Vida in third. Clairiere, the 3.20-1 second choice in the betting, finished fourth in the final start of her career. The fifth- through ninth-place finishers, in order, were: Desert Dawn, Search Results, Adare Manor, Wet Paint, and Hoosier Philly. Pretty Mischievous and A Mo Reay were scratched. The win by Idiomatic, a 4-year-old Curlin filly produced by Lockdown, was her eighth from nine starts this year and her third straight Grade 1. It all but clinches an Eclipse Award as outstanding older filly or mare, but Cox was thinking beyond a divisional championship. “I think she deserves votes for Horse of the Year,” Cox said. “It’s a serious record. She has had a tremendous year from start to finish.” The discussion can continue post-Breeders’ Cup. Idiomatic and runner-up Randomized benefited from a speed-friendly surface, which jockey Joel Rosario addressed after riding late-runner Clairiere to finish fourth. “I had to ride her the whole time. With the track today, you had to engage them a little bit.” Stonestreet owner Barbara Banke confirmed before the race that the Distaff was the final start for Clairiere. She won eight races from 21 starts and earned more than $3.2 million for trainer Steve Asmussen. Idiomatic began 2023 racing in allowances on synthetic at Turfway Park, following a long layoff necessitated by injury. “We were forced to give her time with a setback,” Cox said. “We gave her all the time she needed. I honestly wasn't sure she was even going to come back, but the injury resolved itself. “They [Juddmonte Farms] always make the right decision. We gave her another chance.” Idiomatic made her 2023 debut with an entry-level allowance victory, then went straight up the ladder. Her only loss was a runner-up finish in a one-turn Grade 2 at Belmont Park. After the BC Distaff, the third win in the race for Cox and Geroux, and first for Juddmonte, Idiomatic has won nine races and $2,456,840 from 12 starts. :: Get ready for Santa Anita racing with DRF PPs, Clocker Reports, Picks, and more. Shop Now.  * Pretty Mischievous was scratched Friday by trainer Brendan Walsh, who told Breeders’ Cup officials the Kentucky Oaks winner has “been a little dull and not showing us what she usually does.” With three Grade 1 victories, including the Oaks, Test, and Acorn Stakes, Pretty Mischievous is a leading candidate to win the Eclipse Award as outstanding 3-year-old filly. Plans call for Pretty Mischievous to race next year at age 4. * A Mo Reay, winner of the Grade 1 Beholder Mile in spring at Santa Anita was a vet scratch from the BC Distaff on Saturday morning. Plans call for A Mo Reay to be sent to Japan to be bred. Owned by Haruya Yoshida, A Mo Reay retires having won five races and $862,775 from 16 starts. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.