One ‘Warren' sibling or the other could give Lewis his 1,000th win

ARCADIA, Calif. – On his journey to 1,000 victories, a career milestone he could reach Saturday at Santa Anita, trainer Craig Lewis handled some horses that are easy and others that are not.

They might even be from the same family and running the same day, such as Warrens Candy Man and Warren’s Showtime. One is a 2-year-old maiden gelding Lewis describes as a clown; his 3-year-old full sister is a consummate professional with four stakes wins.

Lewis enters Saturday with 999 wins, and he knows the family well. Both are by hot California stallion Clubhouse Ride, a Grade 2 winner Lewis trained. Both were produced by Warren’s Veneda, a Grade 1 winner Lewis also trained. Owned and bred by Ben and Sally Warren, both could be favored to win Saturday.

Warrens Candy Man starts in race 1, a turf mile for Cal-bred maiden 2-year-olds. Warren’s Showtime starts in the Grade 3 Autumn Miss, a mile turf race for 3-year-old fillies that is race 8. The siblings look and move similarly – chestnut with extraordinary athleticism. The comparisons end there. They are mental opposites.

Lewis describes Warrens Candy Man as a “magnificent-looking animal with a beautiful way of moving.” So, what is the problem? “His brain has not caught up with body. He wants to be the class clown. He’s just a maniac. He’s nothing like his sister.

“She was calm, precocious, and did everything right from jump street. We knew she was good right off the bat,” Lewis said. “Contra to that, he has done everything wrong. I’m going to see how good [Flavien] Prat is on this goofy son of a bitch in the first race.”

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Prat is the new rider for both Warrens Candy Man and Warren’s Showtime. The maiden is making his third career start, following a wide-trip, one-length loss last out while finishing third.

Warren’s Showtime, meanwhile, has won five races including four stakes from 12 starts, and earned $460,251. The only thing she has not done is win a graded race, an oversight that could be remedied Saturday, dropping in class and shortening to a mile.

Her rivals in the Autumn Miss include Nasty, a recent arrival whose Midwest allowance form compares well, and Quiet Secretary, an improving front-runner that threatens to steal the race. Others include Mind Out, Guitty, Going to Vegas, and Croughavouke.

Lewis debates the notion Warren’s Showtime is distance-challenged, though she was last out at a mile and an eighth. She made the lead into the stretch of the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks, then got swallowed and finished third by a length and a half. Perhaps it was not the distance. Perhaps she was simply third best.

“She doesn’t have any limitations,” Lewis said. “The only limitations she has is who’s on her back.” Prat, the leading turf jockey at the meet, entered Friday with 10 wins and eight seconds from 27 turf races. He worked Warren’s Showtime twice recently, and will ride her for the first time in a race.

Nasty is making her first start in California for new trainer Richard Baltas. A 2-for-5 filly who misfired last out on yielding turf, Nasty could tuck into a perfect trip positioned second behind the speed. Ricardo Gonzalez rides Nasty.

Quiet Secretary figures to set the pace; her 45.27 opening half last out was the fastest in a turf mile this meet. She finished second by three-quarters of a length. Ian Kruljac trains Quiet Secretary, whose chance depends on rationing her speed under Victor Espinoza.

As for Lewis, 73, his objective is simple, milestone or otherwise. “It’s nice to win, no matter what the numbers are,” he said. “I’ve won and I’ve lost. I find that I like winning better.”