Mizdirection final task before Tribal Spy's vacation

ARCADIA, Calif. – A summer vacation looms for Tribal Spy, but not before she can continue an outstanding season in Sunday’s $75,000 Mizdirection Stakes for fillies and mares on the hillside turf course at Santa Anita.

This spring, Tribal Spy has won two stakes over about 6 1/2 furlongs on the hillside – the Irish O’Brien for California-breds on March 15 and the Grade 3 Las Cienegas on April 12. Trainer Adam Kitchingman said Tribal Spy will be rested after Sunday’s race.

“I think this will be it for a few months,” he said. “I want to bring her back for the Cal-bred races in the fall. I want to keep her on that grass course.”

Tribal Spy has won 6 of 15 starts and $298,610. To win a third consecutive stakes, Tribal Spy must beat many of the same fillies and mares she faced in the Las Cienegas. The Mizdirection drew a field of seven, including the second- through fifth-place finishers of the Las Cienegas – Llandudno, Sky High Gal, Biorhythm, and Ciao Bella Luna.

Overall, the race drew a strong field.

Ciao Bella Luna won the Sunshine Millions Filly and Mare Turf Sprint on the hillside turf course in January and was beaten a length by Tribal Spy in the Irish O’Brien.

Two other starters are stakes winners – Qiaona, who won her second stakes in the California Distaff Handicap on the hillside turf course last October, and Top Kisser, who won the Spring Fever Stakes on the main track April 26.

Tribal Spy will be ridden by Joe Talamo and breaks from the inside. Talamo rode Tribal Spy for the first time in the Las Cienegas, where she closed from third in a field of seven to win by a head over Llandudno. In the Irish O’Brien, Tribal Spy led throughout under jockey Irving Orozco.

“It’s nice to see that she’s so versatile,” Kitchingman said. “I like to see them close to the pace, all my horses. I’ll leave it up to Joe.”

Of his rivals, Kitchingman mentioned Llandudno as a threat. Trained by John Sadler, Llandudno has yet to win a stakes, but she closed from fifth in the Las Cienegas to just miss.

“It comes down to the best horse on the day,” Kitchingman said. “Sadler’s horse was closing well in the last race.”

Sadler has another leading contender in Sky High Gal, who won the Wishing Well Stakes on the hillside turf course Feb. 9. Sky High Gal set the early pace in the Las Cienegas and was beaten three-quarters of a length by Tribal Spy.