SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – There are three things of which I feel certain as we celebrate Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta, newly inducted first-ballot Hall of Famers.

As an all-too-gray turf writer who has covered every Triple Crown race and every Breeders’ Cup since 1998, Rachel Alexandra’s tour de force in 2009 was the single most impressive campaign I witnessed by a filly. The determination and courage she showed in defeating older males in the Woodward Stakes was the race of a lifetime for me.

Having said that, Zenyatta was the better horse.

I have some explaining to do, so let’s start from the top. When Rachel Alexandra outpolled Zenyatta 130-99 in a hotly debated Horse of the Year contest in 2009, I was all in for the winner. How could I not be? Rachel was perfect through eight races, Zenyatta through five.

Yes, Zenyatta became the first female to defeat males in the 26-year history of the Breeders’ Cup Classic that year. Rachel already had handed them their lunch three times.

She became the first filly to win the Preakness in 85 years when she fended off Kentucky Derby victor Mine That Bird. She joined Serena’s Song (1995) as the only fillies to take the Haskell. She emerged as the first filly or mare to capture the Woodward. In the Woodward, she gained the distinction of being the first 3-year-old filly to top the boys in a route dirt race in New York since Lady Primrose reached the winner’s circle in the Manhattan in 1887.

Rachel and her jockey, Calvin Borel, were locked in combat the moment the Saratoga starting gate popped open for the Woodward. Da’Tara, the 2008 Belmont Stakes winner, wanted the early lead. Rachel was equally intent on showing the way, even if it meant taking the field through torrid early fractions of :22.85 for the opening quarter of a mile, :46.41 through what had to be a taxing half-mile.

As Rachel Alexandra spun around the final turn for home, she took a one-length margin into the stretch. Here came Bullsbay. Borel asked for more and Rachel answered, repelling Bullsbay.

Now, Macho Again was bearing down on her. They exchanged blows throughout an unforgettable stretch run. This was a race of the heart; no Woodward starter that day possessed a bigger one than Rachel. She summoned all of her strength, all of her will, and refused to yield. She bettered Macho Again by a head.

2009 WOODWARD STAKES

Wow! The roar of the crowd was so deafening that old Saratoga literally shook.

Having said that, how can the case be made that Zenyatta is the better of the superstars? Longevity is to be prized in any sport, and Zenyatta’s body of work clearly overshadows that of a rival who was kept away from her.

Jess Jackson, Rachel’s owner, cited his disdain for synthetic surfaces as his reason for not sending Rachel to the 2009 Classic for a long-awaited confrontation with Zenyatta. My suspicion is that he knew the outcome could not possibly be good. After the exhausting Woodward, Rachel had to be all but screaming, “Enough!”

Rachel’s abbreviated 2010 season made clear the tremendous toll the year before took on her, and understandably so. She began her 4-year-old season on March 13 with a stunning upset, a runner-up finish to Zenyatta's stablemate Zardana in the New Orleans Ladies Stakes. At that point, Jackson ruled out a confrontation with Zenyatta in the Apple Blossom Stakes at Oaklawn Park. My suspicion is that he knew the outcome could not possibly be good.

Rachel’s next start, on April 30, brought another second, in the La Troienne. She rebounded for minor scores in the Fleur de Lis and, at Monmouth Park, the Lady’s Secret. When the heavy lifting began, though, she was not up to it. She missed by one length against Persistently in the Personal Ensign at Saratoga.

It was hardly surprising when she was retired on Sept. 28, having won 13 of 19 starts, with five second-place finishes, for earnings of $3,506,730.

If Rachel was a fleeting star, Zenyatta withstood the test of time far better. She reached the Breeders’ Cup, the goal for every top-flight horse, to culminate each of her three full seasons. She delivered in the Ladies’ Classic in 2008. Her one-length triumph against males in the 2009 Classic was one for the ages.

Derby winner Mine That Bird, Belmont victor Summer Bird, multiple Grade 1 winner Gio Ponti and European stars Twice Over and Rip Van Winkle were among those who succumbed to her breathtaking rally. Once Zenyatta reached top speed, she all but flew.

“You couldn’t image how quickly she could pass horses,” said Mike Smith, Zenyatta’s jockey. “In two jumps, she could make up five lengths.”

2009 BREEDERS' CUP CLASSIC

It hardly diminishes Zenyatta that she was a just-missed second to Blame in the 2010 Classic at Churchill Downs in the final start of her career or that 17 victories occurred on synthetic surfaces in her home state of California. She did what was asked -- every time but one. She banked $7,304,580, more than doubling Rachel’s total.

There is no better time to toast Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta. I raise my glass a little higher to Zenyatta.