Mandella confident Beholder will run even better next time

ARCADIA, Calif.- Beholder will show improvement from her win in Saturday’s $100,250 Adoration Stakes at Santa Anita when she makes her third start of 2015 in the $300,000 Clement L. Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar on Aug. 1.

Sunday, trainer Richard Mandella expressed confidence Beholder was not in peak form when she won the Grade 3 Adoration Stakes for her 10th career stakes win.

“She was in good shape yesterday and will be better next time,” Mandella said.

Ridden confidently by jockey Gary Stevens, Beholder won the Adoration Stakes at 1 1/16 miles by 1 1/4 lengths over Warren’s Veneda, the winner of the Grade 1 Santa Margarita Invitational Stakes in March. The Adoration was Beholder’s first start since a win in the restricted Santa Lucia Stakes in April. She missed the Grade 1 Vanity Stakes on May 9 because of illness.

In the Adoration, Beholder stalked pacesetter My Monet before taking the lead in early stretch. Stevens did not ask Beholder for her best effort until the final eighth of a mile, always holding an advantage of at least a length over Warren’s Veneda.

Mandella said the confident ride was appropriate, but a little unnerving.

“I wanted to yell at the quarter pole, ‘That’s a good filly behind you. Don’t be so damn cute,’ " Mandella said on Sunday. “But he knew what he was doing.”

Beholder, 5, races for B. Wayne Hughes, and has won two Eclipse Awards as the champion 2-year-old filly of 2012, and 3-year-old filly of 2013. She has won 12 of 17 starts and earned $3,476,600.

Beholder is likely to have three more races in her career before being bred in 2016 – the Grade 1 Clement Hirsch, the Grade 1 Zenyatta Stakes at Santa Anita in late September or early October, and the Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Keeneland on Oct. 30. Beholder won the 2013 BC Distaff at Santa Anita, but missed the race last year because of illness.

The Clement Hirsch could draw Warren’s Veneda and My Monet.

Trainer Craig Lewis said he is entertaining a wide range of options for Warren’s Veneda’s next start, including the $500,000 Gold Cup at Santa Anita against males on June 27, the $200,000 Great Lady M Stakes at 6 1/2 furlongs for fillies and mares at Los Alamitos on July 11, or the $750,000 Delaware Handicap for fillies and mares at 1 1/4 miles on July 18.

“There’s an outside chance we would run in the Gold Cup,” he said.

Lewis said a start in the Great Lady M would be a prep for the Hirsch, which is run at 1 1/16 miles.

My Monet had her graded stakes debut in the Adoration. Trainer Ricky Agarie said My Monet’s third-place finish is likely to lead to a start in the $150,000 Solana Beach Handicap for California-bred fillies and mares at a mile on turf at Del Mar on Aug. 16. The Hirsch would be possible for My Monet if the field is small, Agarie said.