Monashee leaves for breeding shed

ARCADIA, Calif. - Monashee, the winner of 18 of 24 starts, including 11 consecutive stakes in western Canada, has been retired and sent to Kentucky to be bred, according to her trainer, Tracy McCarthy.

Owned by Ole Nielsen, Monashee, 6, made her final start in the Paseana Handicap at Santa Anita last month, her only start outside of Canada. She was a candidate for the $250,000 Santa Maria Handicap on Saturday until she pulled a muscle in a shoulder while training, McCarthy said.

"If the race was another week or so, we'd have time," McCarthy said. "We don't want to run if she's not on top of her game."

McCarthy accompanied Monashee to Southern California this winter. The mare was officially trained by Jason Orman in California.

Monashee earned $693,675. She will be bred to Hard Spun, McCarthy said.

McCarthy's stable is based at Hastings Park in Vancouver and Northlands Park in Edmonton. She said she may bring a few horses to California during the winter in the future.

"I'd like to bring two, three, or four of our best," she said.

La Canada absent a stakes winner?

The $200,000 La Canada Stakes on Sunday has drawn a field of six 4-year-old fillies, but may have only five starters.

Tough Tiz's Sis is entered in Saturday's $250,000 Santa Maria Handicap for older fillies and mares and is a race that trainer Bob Baffert prefers. "It's more money and it's a Grade 1," he said of the Santa Maria. "She'll have to run just as hard."

If Tough Tiz's Sis - the winner of the Grade 1 Lady's Secret Stakes last October - does not start in the La Canada, the field will lack a stakes winner. Dawn After Dawn has placed in three stakes, including a third in the Grade 1 Ashland Stakes at Keeneland last April. Down was third in the Grade 1 Hollywood Starlet in 2006. Caressive and Say You Will are making their stakes debuts, while Bahia Rose was unplaced in a stakes in Argentina last year.

Sunday's $150,000 San Vicente Stakes, for 3-year-old over seven furlongs, has drawn a field of five, all of whom have won or placed in stakes.

The race features the 2008 debuts of two Grade 1 winners of 2007 - Georgie Boy, unraced since winning the Del Mar Futurity last September, and Into Mischief, the winner of the Grade 1 CashCall Futurity at Hollywood Park in December.

Cardinal Zin, Massive Drama, and Red Hot Flame are also likely to start.

Aging pick-six carryover at stake

Bettors have had to wait a week, but the pick-six carryover of $181,514 from last Saturday will finally be up for grabs on Saturday's 10-race program. Racing was canceled last Sunday because of excessive rain, and on Monday, Thursday, and Friday so that track maintenance crews could conduct a much-needed renovation of the synthetic main track.

Saturday's pick six covers the fifth through 10th races and has four fields of 11 or more. The two stakes in the pick six have the smallest fields. There are seven 3-year-old fillies in the Las Virgenes and nine older horses in the San Antonio Handicap.