Chatlos taking it one step at a time with Mundaye Call

DEL MAR, Calif. – After rushing Mundaye Call into a stakes race earlier in her career and then having to back off, a more conservative approach will be taken with her following her easy victory against maidens on Saturday at Del Mar, her trainer, Don Chatlos, said Sunday morning.

Mundaye Call, in the third start of her career, breezed home under Mike Smith in the 6 1/2-furlong race for 2-year-old fillies. She was second in her debut at Saratoga on Aug. 11, then tired and finished last of seven in the Grade 1 Spinaway on Sept. 1.

“The way she ran this time was what we saw leading up to the Spinaway,” said Chatlos, who trains Mundaye Call for the OXO Equine of Larry Best. “We backed off after that race. There was no pressure. We took our time and it worked out.”

Chatlos said there was no temptation to run back in the Grade 1 Starlet going 1 1/16 miles at Los Alamitos on Dec. 7.

“Too soon. No chance,” he said. “We’ll look for something at Santa Anita for her next step. We’ll get into the new year and make a plan.”

Santa Anita is scheduled to begin Dec. 26. Its application for dates is scheduled to be heard at the California Horse Racing Board meeting on Thursday in Del Mar.

Mundaye Call, a daughter of Into Mischief, was a $950,000 yearling purchase. All three of her races have been in sprints, but Chatlos thinks she can get two turns “if she relaxes on the lead like she did Saturday.”