Santa Anita: Egg Drop tries to rejuvenate stalled career in allowance sprint

ARCADIA, Calif. – Nearly 17 months after a flashy debut, Egg Drop has yet to fully display her potential.

Trained by Mike Mitchell for Little Red Feather Racing, Egg Drop beat maidens at Del Mar in September 2011, and has made two subsequent starts – a 10th-place finish in the Grade 1 Alcibiades Stakes at Keeneland in October 2011, and a third in an optional claimer at Betfair Hollywood Park last June.

Egg Drop starts her 2013 campaign in a $58,000 first-level allowance race at Santa Anita on Sunday, a race that Mitchell hopes will be the start of a lengthy season. He is anxious to try her in races beyond Sunday’s distance of six furlongs.

“It seems like now, and I don’t want to jump too much, but it seems like she’ll [run] two turns,” Mitchell said. “I’ve got that in my mind to stretch her out.”

Mitchell was not as encouraged by Egg Drop’s post position for Sunday’s eighth race, the inside draw in a field of eight. Egg Drop will start adjacent to Splendid Fortune, a speedy Giant’s Causeway filly trained by Bob Baffert.

Add Magical Band, who was second in a race at this level on Dec. 29 after setting the pace, and Egg Drop could face considerable pressure early.

“Baffert’s filly is right next to us, and she has gas like ours,” Mitchell said of a potential pace duel.

A gray by Alphabet Soup, Egg Drop was rested last summer because of concern over a tibia, Mitchell said. He has been encouraged by her recent training at Santa Anita, notably five furlongs in 1:00.20 from the gate on Jan. 17.

“The last few works have been really good,” he said.

Splendid Fortune has not started since winning a maiden race here last April.

The filly who could benefit from a speed duel is Twelve Folds, a 4-year-old who won an optional claimer over six furlongs for California-breds here on Jan. 4. She has drawn post 6, and is expected to stalk the early pace.

Trainer and co-owner Mike Machowsky said Twelve Folds has responded well to her recent race, and that she excels on dirt.

“It’s the next step we had,” Machowsky said of Sunday’s race. “I can see where I’m at after this.

“She’s a better horse on real dirt. Her two worst races are on synthetic tracks.”