Belvoir Bay beats males in San Simeon Stakes

ARCADIA, Calif. – Belvoir Bay keeps getting lucky. Unless maybe she is just that good.

A 5-year-old mare facing colts and geldings, Belvoir Bay took advantage of an expectedly favorable pace scenario Sunday at Santa Anita, winning the Grade 3 San Simeon Stakes for her eighth victory from 19 starts and her second straight perfect-trip win.

When expected pacesetter Coniah bobbled and was slow from the gate in the turf sprint, Belvoir Bay and jockey Tyler Baze were able to press the pace through an inordinately slow first quarter-mile of 22.13 seconds. The rest was history.

Belvoir Bay shook off Mongolian Saturday, kicked away into the lane and won the $100,345 race by two lengths over the favored Coniah. Isotherm, the second betting choice, finished an even-paced third, followed by Anatolian Heat, Miss Julia Star, and Mongolian Saturday.

Peter Miller trains Belvoir Bay and Anatolian Heat. Miller scratched program favorite Conquest Tsunami, who will point to the Grade 2 Jaipur on June 9 at Belmont Park.

Belvoir Bay was winning her second consecutive stakes, following a rail-skimming off-the-pace victory in the Mizdirection Stakes. The San Simeon victory boosted her career earnings to $438,361. She will seek her third straight stakes win May 28 in the Grade 2 Monrovia Stakes for fillies and mares.

Belvoir Bay returned $7.60 as the third choice in the betting. The final time of the downhill sprint, run over firm turf, was 1:12.37.