ARCADIA, Calif. – Even without ace turf sprinter Motorious, trainer Phil D’Amato holds a strong hand Sunday in the $100,000 Siren Lure Stakes at Santa Anita. Stakes winner Unconquerable Keen and stakes-placed Sorrento Sky give D’Amato a one-two punch in the Siren Lure, a six-furlong turf sprint that attracted a surprisingly large field of 10 plus one also-eligible. Graded stakes-placed comebacker Boss Sully is working as if he will fire first start back, stakes winner Artislas faces older horses for the first time in his return, and Zio Jo returns after a misfire in Saudi Arabia. The field also includes Vlahos, Charge for Gold, Friendly Confines, Virat, Bartholdy, and the also-eligible Simple Song. Eleven are entered, 10 can start. Missing from the Siren Lure is D’Amato-trained Motorious, a five-time graded stakes winner who finished second in the 2024 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. “He’s about a week away from a breeze,” D’Amato said. “He’s doing well. He’s galloping.” :: Play Santa Anita racing with confidence. Get DRF Past Performances, Clocker Reports, and more. Motorious will return this summer. “They might have something for him at the beginning of Del Mar as a prep to the Green Flash. If not, I’ll just run him right into the Green Flash,” D’Amato said. The Grade 2, $200,000 Green Flash, five furlongs on turf, is scheduled for Aug. 22 at Del Mar. Sunday at Santa Anita, Unconquerable Keen is the horse to beat. The hope is for less drama than his most recent start in the Gulfstream Park Turf Sprint on Jan. 24. Unconquerable Keen clipped heels in the stretch and unseated his jockey, Umberto Rispoli, who sustained ankle, tibia, and fibula fractures and has not ridden since. Unconquerable Keen came out of the incident better than the jockey. “The horse popped right up after that,” D’Amato said. “They caught him on the backside when everyone was pulling up.” D’Amato waited longer than normal before he resumed training Unconquerable Keen. “He came out of it good, and with everything considered, we gave him extra time after the ship to have him ready,” said D’Amato. “His last couple of drills gave us the indication he’s ready to go.” Unconquerable Keen, who has won the last three editions of the five-furlong Stormy Liberal Stakes in the fall at Del Mar, will be ridden by Kazushi Kimura. Unconquerable Keen’s six main-oval turf sprints at Santa Anita have produced two wins, a second, and two thirds. He will rally late in a field with plenty of pace. Sorrento Sky drops in class and shortens in distance after finishing fourth in the Grade 3 San Simeon Stakes at 6 1/2 furlongs on the hill. Sorrento Sky will benefit Sunday from the six-furlong distance of the Siren Lure. “I think this is his preferred distance. Anywhere between five and six [furlongs] is his sweet spot,” D’Amato said. Sorrento Sky is 2 for 4 in turf sprints on Santa Anita’s main oval. Antonio Fresu rides Sorrento Sky. :: Access morning workout reports straight from the tracks and get an edge with DRF Clocker Reports Boss Sully, runner-up in the Grade 2 Turf Sprint at Churchill Downs last year, acts like he will fire in his first start since last summer. Trainer Brian Koriner said Boss Sully is recovered from “muscle soreness and little things” that necessitated his layoff. Koriner has high hopes Sunday. “He’s been working really good. He’s doing as good as he’s ever done,” Koriner said. “He’s training well. All his works, he’s been very aggressive. He wants to stay in front.” Boss Sully will be ridden by Joel Rosario. A pace-presser, Boss Sully is one of several Siren Lure runners with a forwardly placed style. At least three others employ similar tactics – Vlahos, Virat, and Bartholdy. Zio Jo, Grade 1-placed at a mile and a neck behind Unconquerable Keen last fall in a turf sprint at Del Mar, is making his first start since Feb. 14, when he finished 12th in the 1351 Turf Sprint, a Group 2 in Saudi Arabia. Zio Jo raced closer to the pace than usual and faltered. Doug O’Neill trains Zio Jo, whose final comeback workout, five furlongs in 1:05, was weird. “I put a line through that goofy work,” O’Neill said. “I know he’s doing really well, hasn’t missed a beat. We’re obviously hoping to win, hopefully no worse than hitting the board, and something we can [utilize] to get a little campaign going.” The Siren Lure has been run 12 times at Santa Anita, at distances ranging from five to 6 1/2 furlongs furlongs on the hill. Favorites won five of the seven Siren Lures from 2014 through 2020 but have been blanked the last five years. The six-furlong Siren Lure is named after the Grade 1-winning sprinter who was trained most of his career by Art Sherman. The stakes is the ninth and final race on Sunday. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.