Hang the Moon, Mouffy find easier spot in Frankel Stakes

ARCADIA, Calif. – The second day of the Santa Anita winter meet on Friday will be quieter than the Thursday opener, and the competition will be easier for a pair of female turf runners dropping in class for the Grade 3 Robert J. Frankel Stakes.

Hang the Moon and Mouffy are back where they belong after taking shots in Grade 1s. Hang the Moon finished last of 12 in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf. Mouffy finished seventh in the Matriarch Stakes.

Hang the Moon was outclassed and out of luck in the Breeders’ Cup.

“Nothing worked out,” trainer Phil D’Amato said. “Granted, we were running against the best horses in the world, but we wanted to be up close and we ended up sitting [almost last] behind a dawdling pace.”

Hang the Moon lost the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf by less than six lengths. Mouffy ran similarly in the Matriarch. She was beaten less than three lengths while earning the same 91 Beyer Speed Figure as Hang the Moon. Trainer Jonathan Thomas knew Mouffy was up against it in the Matriarch.

“We kind of knew we there throwing a Hail Mary,” Thomas said. “She was there [at Del Mar], she was doing well. We had to take a shot.”

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Grade 2 winners Hang the Moon and Mouffy fit perfect in the 1 1/8-mile Frankel. The field includes the Thomas-trained trio of Mouffy, Mrs. Astor, and Rashmi, plus the Paddy Gallagher-trained duo of Mahina and Yerwanthere. The longshot Omaha Girl will set or press the pace.

Hang the Moon began her career in the Midwest and East before owner CJ Thoroughbreds sent her to D’Amato this year.

“She came here on everyone’s recommendation she would like firmer ground,” D’Amato said. “She came here and has really not disappointed, except for her last race.”

Hang the Moon has won 3 of 5 for D’Amato, including a pair of Grade 2s. Kazushi Kimura is back aboard.

Mouffy won the Grade 3 Dance Smartly at Woodbine in October and finished a troubled fourth in the Grade 3 Goldikova at Del Mar leading to the Matriarch.

“The mile is probably a little sharp for her, especially against horses of that ilk,” Thomas said. “It’ll be interesting letting her stretch out a little bit.”

Vincent Cheminaud rides Mouffy.

Mrs. Astor won the Grade 3 Red Carpet last out at 1 1/8 miles on Del Mar turf, but there are no upcoming filly-mare marathons at Santa Anita.

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“It was a little unfortunate the Astra got axed, that would’ve been our primary target,” Thomas said.

The 1 1/2-mile Astra Stakes, typically in January, was one of 11 stakes cut from the Santa Anita schedule this winter. Mrs. Astor is under consideration for the Grade 3 La Prevoyante, a 1 1/2-mile turf race on Jan. 25 at Gulfstream Park.

Another Santa Anita stakes cut was the Lady of Shamrock for 3-year-old turf fillies, a December/January race Rashmi would have fit perfectly. She is cross-entered in the Grade 1 American Oaks on opening day and will run in one or the other.

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