Kanthaka, Emboldened might pack bags for Belmont Park

ARCADIA, Calif. – The two sprint stakes for 3-year-olds run at Santa Anita on Saturday may turn out to be preps for major stakes at Belmont Park on June 9 more than graded stakes in Southern California later that month.

Kanthaka won the Grade 3 Laz Barrera Stakes at seven furlongs for his second stakes win around one turn this year. On Sunday, Terry Finley, the chief executive of the West Point Thoroughbreds partnership that owns the colt, said Kanthaka is being considered for the Grade 2 Woody Stephens Stakes for 3-year-olds at seven furlongs at Belmont Park on June 9.

“That’s the target as of right now,” Finley said in a text message.

Emboldened, a 14-1 outsider, won her stakes debut in the $83,225 Angels Flight Stakes at seven furlongs for fillies, closing from ninth in a field of 10 to win by 2 1/4 lengths over Moonshine Memories, the 3-2 favorite.

Trainer Bob Baffert said after the race that he did not have any specific race plans for Emboldened, who is owned by Sheikh Mohammed’s Godolphin Racing. Two options are the Grade 1 Acorn Stakes, a $700,000 race at a mile for 3-year-old fillies at Belmont Park on June 9, and the Grade 2 Summertime Oaks, a $200,000 race at 1 1/16 miles here on June 16.

Baffert has won four of the last nine runnings of the Acorn, including last year with division champion Abel Tasman.

Moonshine Memories is bound for the Acorn, trainer Simon Callaghan said on Sunday. Moonshine Memories closed from sixth to be closest to the front at the finish.

“Although we didn’t win, we were happy with her run,” Callaghan said. “She’ll move forward.”

Kanthaka is unbeaten in three starts at seven furlongs, including a maiden race on Dec. 26 and the Grade 2 San Vicente Stakes in February.

Kanthaka was tried in two Triple Crown distance prep races this year, finishing third to Bolt d’Oro in the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes here on March 10 and sixth behind Good Magic in the Grade 2 Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland on April 7.

Trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, Kanthaka won the $100,345 Barrera Stakes by three-quarters of a length over Beautiful Shot, a sprint-stakes winner last fall. Ridden by Flavien Prat, Kanthaka saved ground to early stretch before closing between horses.

“That was a good effort by the horse and a good effort by Prat,” Hollendorfer said in the winner’s circle.

The next graded stakes for 3-year-olds at Santa Anita is the Grade 3 Affirmed Stakes at 1 1/16 miles on June 10. The $100,000 Affirmed may include a runner trained by Peter Eurton such as Dark Vader, the winner of an allowance race with a $75,000 claiming option on Friday, or Core Beliefs, who was second in the Grade 3 Peter Pan Stakes at Belmont Park on Saturday.

Eurton has the Grade 3 Los Alamitos Derby on July 14 as a summer goal for Dark Vader, who won a maiden race there last December.

“He loves Los Al,” Eurton said.

The Eurton-trained filly Uppercut was pulled up in the stretch of the Angels Flight and was walked back to the barn area. Eurton said on Sunday that jockey Mike Smith pulled up Uppercut as a precaution and that the filly showed no injury.

“We’ll keep an eye on her the next few days,” Eurton said.