Judy Hicks had almost reached her breaking point not long ago. When she and her husband, R.W., purchased Brookstown Farm near Versailles, Ky., in 1983, they knew the business of breeding Thoroughbreds could be richly rewarding. They also realized it would very likely be fraught with setbacks.

It had gotten to the point that no matter how hard she worked – and she does not miss a day –   problems were coming in punishing waves. In a game of highs and lows, extreme lows were suddenly outweighing the highs by a wide margin.

 “I was going to quit. My glass was no longer full. It was almost empty,” Hicks recalled. “Some of the things that were happening were just bizarre, could not be helped.”

One magnificent filly changed everything.

Judy Hicks (Anne M. Eberhardt/BloodHorse)

The emergence of Thorpedo Anna, who may well secure Horse of the Year honors if she wins the Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff Nov. 2 at Del Mar, helped to end her emotional turmoil. Everything felt right again.

“Had I continued on this year without Anna, I’m not sure if I wouldn’t have placed my boarding horses somewhere else and been done,” Hicks admitted.

There is a saying in the industry, “Breed the best to the best and hope for the best.” In contrast to that, Thorpedo Anna proves that good and great horses can come from the least likely beginnings.

Her undersized dam, Sataves, is by Uncle Mo. Due to Sataves’ extremely premature birth, she did well to survive. She was never viewed as a racing prospect. Hicks compares her legs to those of a pony. Thorpedo Anna’s late sire, Fast Anna, had not distinguished himself. His stud fee was a modest $10,000.

“The mare had such a bad beginning,” Hicks recalled, “that I didn’t know she’d be able to produce anything. So that’s why I bred her cheap.”

Hicks was immediately impressed by the filly produced from such an unpromising mating. “The thing that stood out about her that I remember is her hind end,” the breeder said. “It looked like a double-muscled Quarter-Horse foal. I mean she was massive, this is as a newborn.”

The filly, who subsequently would be named Thorpedo Anna, soon displayed a promising demeanor, one that allowed her to stand out among the approximately 120 horses that call 480-acre Brookstown home. She possessed a feistiness, a don’t-mess-with-me attitude, that often translates well to the racetrack.

“We always rub their bellies and rub them all over and pick up their feet each day. She didn’t want any part of that,” said Hicks of a practice that helps foals grow accustomed to human handling.

The more Thorpedo Anna matured, the more enamored her breeder became with her. “I was not going to sell her,” Hicks said, “because I thought she was special.”

The Hicks breed to sell, though, and bills must be paid. So, Hicks watched with mixed emotions when trainer Kenny McPeek, renowned for his keen eye at sales, purchased the yearling for $40,000 at Fasig-Tipton’s Kentucky October yearling sale in 2022.

Hicks immediately swung into action. She thanked McPeek for the purchase and told him, “I’d really like to stay in on her. Are you going to partner out?”

“I really haven’t decided,” he responded. “I just wanted to get the filly acquired. But if I do partner out, I will let you know. You’ll have to pay the same as the other partners.”

“Fine. No problem,” she said.

Thorpedo Anna wins the Cotillion Stakes. (Bill Denver/EQUI-PHOTO)

Sure enough, McPeek kept Hicks in mind. She wound up partnering with Brookdale Racing, Mark Edwards and Magdalena Racing. Sherri McPeek, Kenny’s wife, races under the Magdalena banner.

As much as a yearling can look the part, good-looking horses do not always have the desire needed to be good runners. 

“You never know. I was really enamored with the filly at the auction. I thought she was an incredible physical and then Judy loved her. I think she had a hard time parting ways with her,” McPeek said. “But who would have thought she’d be the filly she is? It does make for one of those feel-good stories.”

Sure does. Thorpedo Anna will be a star among stars when the Breeders’ Cup World Championships are contested Nov. 1-2 at Del Mar. She has dominated her division, rattling off victories in the March 30 Fantasy Stakes at Oaklawn Park, the May 3 Longines Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs, the June 7 DK Horse Acorn Stakes at Saratoga Race Course, and the July 20 Coaching Club American Oaks at Saratoga by a combined 18 ¾ lengths.

She and regular rider Brian Hernandez Jr. staged a breathtaking rally at Saratoga that fell a head short of overtaking Fierceness in her valiant bid to become the first filly to win the Aug. 24 DraftKings Travers Stakes since 1915. She returned to her division by overcoming a tough trip and adding the Sept. 21 Cotillion Stakes at Parx Racing to previous Grade 1 successes in the Kentucky Oaks, Acorn and Coaching Club American Oaks.

Thorpedo Anna owns seven wins and has never finished worse than second in her career while amassing $2,817,163 in earnings. Hicks is filled with optimism as she looks to the stiff challenge the Distaff represents with its hefty $2 million purse.

“When it comes to the Distaff, she is going to be running against older seasoned mares. But I am not sure they know what they are going to be up against,” she said, speaking like a breeder who is immensely proud of her creation.