Miller focusing his attention on opening weekend at Santa Anita

Earlier this month, trainer Peter Miller was at the San Diego airport, bound for the Keeneland sales, when a flight delay was announced.

The postponement went from a momentary hiccup to concern about a missed flight connection. Eventually, Miller abandoned the trip.

“It wasn’t meant to be,” he said recently. “I thought, I’m not going to Lexington. I’m going to going to rest and get ready for Santa Anita.

“I’m way more of a 2-year-old buyer than a yearling buyer, anyway.”

Miller had good reasons to remain in Southern California. The opening weekend of the Santa Anita autumn meeting from Oct. 1-3 will define the early autumn for Miller and provide a clearer indication of hopes for Breeders’ Cup races on Nov. 5-6 at Del Mar.

As of Monday, Miller had 12 probable starters for stakes at Santa Anita. The list grew Monday with the addition of Samurai Charm for the Grade 2 Zenyatta Stakes for fillies and mares at 1 1/16 miles on Oct. 3. On Sunday, Samurai Charm won her stakes debut, and fifth consecutive race, in the $75,000 Dark Mirage Stakes at a mile at Los Alamitos, leading throughout.

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“She’s fast and she’s won five in a row,” Miller said.

Samurai Charm won the Dark Mirage Stakes by a head after running erratically through the stretch, appearing to react to her surroundings.

“If she runs straight, she wins clear,” Miller said.

Miller’s most prominent runners in early October are Mo Forza in the Grade 2 City of Hope Mile on turf in a prep for the BC Mile, and C Z Rocket in the Santa Anita Sprint Championship. Both races are Oct. 2.

C Z Rocket, second in the 2020 BC Sprint at Keeneland, is a candidate for the same race on Nov. 6.

Mo Forza won his 2021 debut in the Grade 2 Del Mar Mile on Aug. 21.

“He seems a lot more forward and fit after that race,” Miller said. “He’s finishing his works the way we want him to.”

Also on Oct. 2, Neptune’s Storm will start in the Grade 2 John Henry Turf Championship, while Crystalle runs in the Grade 1 Rodeo Drive Stakes, both races at 1 1/4 miles on turf.

On Oct. 3, Miller’s probable stakes runners include Liam’s Dove in the Surfer Girl Stakes for fillies and Aquitania Arrival in the Zuma Beach Stakes, both are one-mile, $200,000 turf races for 2-year-olds. He also has California Kook and Samurai Charm in the Zenyatta, and Proud Emma in the Grade 3 Chillingworth Stakes for fillies and mares at 6 1/2 furlongs.

On Oct. 1, Amber Hall and Time to Party are set to race in the $100,000 Speakeasy Stakes for 2-year-olds at five furlongs on turf.

Miller will know a lot more about the depth of his Breeders’ Cup team by the end of that weekend.

“It could be very good or very bad,” he said. “This is what you want. You want to be involved in the big races, the Breeders’ Cup races. We’ve got a lot of live horses.”