Easter on track for Shoemaker Mile, Newgrange possible for Dubai World Cup

Easter is a candidate for the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile at Santa Anita on May 27, while Newgrange may start in the $12 million Dubai World Cup in the United Arab Emirates on March 30 after losses in major stakes at Santa Anita on Sunday.

Newgrange, the winner of two Grade 2 stakes in December and January, finished sixth as the 3-1 favorite in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap. Newgrange was as close as second on the turn before fading in the stretch under jockey Victor Espinoza.

Trainer Phil D’Amato said on Wednesday that Newgrange “may have displaced his soft palate on the first turn.”

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“There’s a few things we need to check out with him,” D’Amato said. “We’ll see if we can figure out why he did what he did.”

Regarding the Dubai World Cup, D’Amato said, “We’re keeping it on the table. A lot of things have to go right for us to get there.”

Easter finished second by two lengths to Du Jour as the 3-2 favorite in the Kilroe Mile, ending a three-race winning streak in stakes.

Easter rallied wide on the turn under jockey Antonio Fresu, while Du Jour closed on the inside to reach the front in the stretch.

“He came out of the race in good shape,” D’Amato said of Easter. “Antonio decided to go wide. It was more ground we had to cover. I think it was the difference in the race.”

The $300,000 Shoemaker Mile is the leading turf race of the spring portion of Santa Anita meeting.

The top race at Santa Anita this weekend is Saturday’s Grade 1 Beholder Mile for fillies and mares on dirt.

The projected field of nine for the $300,000 race includes the stakes winners Adare Manor, Desert Dawn, Green Up, Interstatedaydream, Kirstenbosch, Turnerloose, and Window Shopping as well as the stakes-placed fillies Coffee in Bed and Sweet Azteca.

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