Give Me a Hint finishes strong in Golden State Juvenile Fillies

ARCADIA, Calif. – Give Me a Hint remained unbeaten after three starts with a come-from-behind victory in Friday’s $200,000 Golden State Juvenile Fillies for California-bred 2-year-old fillies at Santa Anita.

Ridden by Evin Roman, Give Me a Hint ($13.20) closed with a wide rally to best 6-5 favorite Mucho Unusual by 2 1/4 lengths in the seven-furlong race. Give Me a Hint was timed in 1:26.45.

Give Me a Hint broke from the rail in a field of nine. Roman kept the filly in fifth for the first half-mile before guiding her to the outside in the stretch.

“I knew she was a good filly,” said Roman, who won the Eclipse Award as the nation’s outstanding apprentice jockey of 2017.

“When I pushed her to the outside, she finished strongly.”

Mucho Unusual finished a half-length in front of 25-1 Hotitude, who was followed by Creative Instinct, Dichotomy, Time for Suzzie, Apache Princess, Naughty Tiger, and Start the Show.

Creative Instinct, Mucho Unusual, and Hotitude disputed the pace through early fractions of 22.27 seconds for the opening quarter-mile and 45.73 for a half-mile. Creative Instinct and Mucho Unusual were first and second in the Generous Portion Stakes for statebred 2-year-old fillies at Del Mar on Aug. 29.

Give Me a Hint, by Merit Man, won her debut in a $50,000 claiming race for California-bred maidens by 9 1/4 lengths at Del Mar on Aug. 12. She won her second race in a starter allowance with a $40,000 claiming option here by 6 1/2 lengths on Oct. 12.

Give Me a Hint, trained by Bob Hess Jr., has earned $151,040 for owners and breeder Schroeder Farms and Welton Mansfield.

Kencumin gets up in Lure

In the $75,955 Lure Stakes, Kencumin ($12) wore down a stubborn pacesetter in 7-2 Kenjisstorm to win the restricted turf race at a mile by a half-length for his first stakes win. Ridden by Brice Blanc, Kencumin was timed in 1:33.59.

Alert Bay, the 2-1 favorite, finished a game third, beaten a length in the field of eight.

Le Ken was fourth, followed by Chicago Style, Secretary At War, Threefiveindia, and Colonist. He Will was scratched early Friday afternoon.

Kencumin, a 4-year-old French-bred colt by Kendargent, races for CRK Stable and trainer Peter Eurton.

Kencumin has won 4 of 10 starts and earned $151,359. His previous wins were a maiden race on the all-weather surface at Southwell, England, in February 2017, and two allowance races with claiming options here in October 2017 and on Oct. 6.