A Mo Reay gets up at the wire to win Beholder Mile
ARCADIA, Calif. – The experience of racing around two turns, and recent success in stakes at Oaklawn and Fair Grounds, translated into a career milestone for A Mo Reay in her first start in Southern California in Saturday’s Grade 1 Beholder Mile at Santa Anita.
A Mo Reay ($17.80) closed from a stalking position to catch 9-10 favorite Fun to Dream in the final strides of the $501,500 race for fillies and mares to win her first race at the highest level.
Ridden by Flavien Prat, A Mo Reay needed the entire stretch to reach the front, prevailing by a head in 1:36.25 over Fun to Dream, winner of four sprint stakes in the last year.
Prat said A Mo Reay’s experience played a major role in the outcome.
“She was traveling really well,” Prat said. “She had run two turns, and the other filly was stretching out. I thought it would work for her.”
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Prat’s confidence rose when Fun to Dream led by 1 1/2 lengths with a furlong remaining. The margin seemed like a difficult deficit, but Prat was encouraged that Fun to Dream was not farther in front under jockey Juan Hernandez.
Hernandez “was traveling well,” Prat said. “When he asked her, she didn’t get away and I thought I had a chance.”
Fun to Dream left Hernandez thinking he had the race won.
“Turning for home, I turned her loose and she picked it up,” Hernandez said. “The other horse came up and got me.”
Fun to Dream finished 4 1/4 lengths in front of 8-1 Midnight Memories, who was followed by Desert Dawn, Kirstenbosch, Awake At Midnyte, Pauline’s Pearl, and Ganadora.
Ganadora set the early pace of 23.19 seconds for the opening quarter-mile and 47.14 for a half-mile before fading from contention.
Prior to the Beholder Mile, Fun to Dream had won three consecutive sprint stakes since mid-November, including the Grade 1 La Brea Stakes at seven furlongs for 3-year-old fillies in December. The Beholder was her first start around two turns since a win in an allowance race at Santa Anita last October.
Fun to Dream and Midnight Memories are trained by Bob Baffert.
A Mo Reay, by Uncle Mo, has won 5 of 12 starts and earned $692,650 for Hunter Valley Farm. Purchased for $400,000 last November in Kentucky, A Mo Reay is unbeaten in three starts since joining trainer Brad Cox’s stable last fall.
A 4-year-old filly, A Mo Reay won her debut for his barn in the Pago Hop Stakes at a mile and 70 yards on Dec. 31 at Fair Grounds and the Grade 3 Bayakoa Stakes at 1 1/16 miles on Feb. 4 at Oaklawn Park.
The Beholder Mile was A Mo Reay’s first start in a Grade 1 since she finished a well-beaten third as a maiden in the Frizette Stakes at Belmont Park in October 2021 behind Echo Zulu, the champion 2-year-old filly that season. A Mo Reay was trained by Todd Pletcher at the time.
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