Becerra high on Dancing General
ARCADIA, Calif. - A shoulder injury and a bone chip in an ankle in early 2006 did not end Dancing General's career, and after a year off she returned to racing at the current Santa Anita meeting.
Although she is winless in three starts at the meet, trainer Rafael Becerra insists that the 5-year-old mare is better now than she was before her comeback. He has a chance to prove his theory when Dancing General starts as the 115-pound highweight in Sunday's $100,000 Pro or Con Handicap for California-bred females. The race is run over a mile on turf.
Somethinaboutlaura, the multiple stakes winner trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, was assigned top weight of 124 pounds but is not running.
Her absence makes the Pro or Con easier for Dancing General and her eight rivals.
Owned by Stan Fulton, Dancing General was second in an allowance race in open company over 1 1/4 miles on turf on Feb. 28, finishing three-quarters of a length behind the promising Naughty Rafaela.
Becerra said she deserves to have a stakes win.
"I don't think the mile will be a problem," he said.
Dancing General will be ridden by leading rider Garrett Gomez on one of the last days he will ride at the meet. He will ride primarily at Keeneland this month.
None of the starters have won a stakes.
Wickersham, who won an allowance race for California-bred fillies and mares on the hillside turf course on March 23, is likely to lead early. Wickersham was claimed for $20,000 by Richard Englander and trainer Lisa Lewis on Feb. 10 and has not been worse than second in two subsequent starts.
Burst of Light and Easy Obsession each won her last start, both in optional claimers for statebred females. Easy Obsession has won 2 of her last 3 starts but is winless in five starts on turf.
Trainer Ron Ellis starts Del Mar Ticket, who finished second as the favorite in an allowance race in open company on March 22, her second start of 2007.
"She's not a filly that I like to run back as quickly as I'm running here, but you don't get that many opportunities for a California-bred stakes," Ellis said.