Fantastic Style looks ready to fire in Kalookan Queen

ARCADIA, Calif. – Fantastic Style races sparingly. The 4-year-old filly has had nine career starts, three of which were stakes wins, and has never been worse than third.

Trainer Bob Baffert is optimistic that Fantastic Style will run well in her first start since May in Friday’s $75,000 Kalookan Queen Stakes at Santa Anita.

“She fits there,” Baffert said. “The time off has helped her. I think she was getting a little sour.”

Fantastic Style has not raced since finishing a well-beaten third at 1-5 in the Skipat Stakes at Pimlico in May. In April, she was second at 1-2 to Finest City in the Grade 2 Great Lady M Stakes at Los Alamitos. Finest City won the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint last month.

Fantastic Style, who races for Kaleem Shah, was in training until mid-June before being given a break, Baffert said. She resumed workouts in October and has worked quickly in recent weeks, including six furlongs in 1:12.60 on Dec. 21, the fastest of 18 works at the distance that day.

Fantastic Style drew the outside post in the Kalookan Queen, which is run at 6 1/2 furlongs for fillies and mares. The race is designed to be a prep for the $200,000 Santa Monica Stakes at seven furlongs on Jan. 21.

The Kalookan Queen will be the stakes debut of Brainspin, who won a maiden race and an optional claimer at Del Mar in the summer and was second in optional claimers at Santa Anita in October and Del Mar in November.

“She runs well all the time,” trainer John Sadler said.

Brainspin is quick, and Sadler hopes to use that speed to her advantage.

“I think she’s the fastest one in there,” he said. “I think we’re a good fit after Fantastic Style.”