Dotsy Jean has course advantage

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - It's all a function of location.

Trainer Marty Jones has two outstanding female turf sprinters in Dotsy Jean and Unzip Me, who start in Friday's $60,000 Great Lady M Stakes over six furlongs at Hollywood Park. Dotsy Jean has an affinity for the Hollywood turf course, while Unzip Me has run best on the turf course at Santa Anita.

Dotsy Jean has won 4 of 5 starts on Hollywood Park's turf course, but was fourth behind Unzip Me in the Irish O'Brien Stakes at Santa Anita in March. Unzip Me has won four consecutive turf sprints, including two stakes at Santa Anita earlier this spring.

Jones considers Dotsy Jean to have an excellent chance of winning the Great Lady M against her more accomplished stablemate.

"Dotsy Jean, I think, is a little better on this turf course," Jones said. "I think the other filly is better on the [Santa Anita turf course]. She has trouble on the turn. It's a little tight for her."

Dotsy Jean rebounded from her loss to Unzip Me in the Irish O'Brien to win a six-furlong allowance race on turf here on May 1. Typical of her style, Dotsy Jean was near the front throughout and took the lead nearing the eighth pole.

Unzip Me has not started since winning the Grade 3 Las Cienegas Handicap on the hillside turf course at Santa Anita in April. In her last start here, she led throughout a six-furlong allowance race in December, winning by four lengths. The victory was an improvement from a second to Dotsy Jean in a similar race last November.

"One has speed and the other comes from off of it," Jones said. "It depends on how the race sets up. They've beaten each other once. I hope one of them wins."

Dotsy Jean and Unzip Me are part of a solid field of seven, which includes the 2010 debut of Strawberry Tart, the winner of two stakes at this meeting last year. Trained by Jeff Bonde, Strawberry Tart won the Manhattan Beach Stakes over six furlongs on turf here last May. Strawberry Tart was eighth in the Ramser Handicap at Santa Anita last fall.

There are two other sprint turf stakes winners from the Santa Anita winter-spring meeting in the field - Porto Marmay, the winner of the Wishing Well Handicap in February, and Annihilation, who won in the Clocker's Corner Handicap in March.