Santa Anita: Alpine Luck looks to bounce back in Speakeasy Stakes
ARCADIA, Calif. – When the Betfair Hollywood Park spring-summer meeting ended in July, Alpine Luck was at the top of California’s 2-year-old division following a win in the Hollywood Juvenile Championship.
The Del Mar meeting was not as kind. Alpine Luck was fifth in the Grade 2 Best Pal Stakes and eighth in the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity.
A change of scenery could revive Alpine Luck’s season. In Monday’s $100,000 Speakeasy Stakes over six furlongs, Alpine Luck starts for the first time on Santa Anita’s dirt track.
“I think he liked Hollywood more than Del Mar,” trainer Mike Harrington said.
Owned by Heinz Steinmann, Alpine Luck will be ridden by Gary Stevens, who has been aboard for the colt’s last four starts. Stevens has taken Alpine Luck to the lead in those races, and Harrington said they are a good fit.
“I expect a little Stevens magic,” he said.
There are five runners in the Speakeasy Stakes, and Harrington has two of them. He also runs Hi Fashioned, who breaks from the rail. Owned by Rozamund Barclay, Hi Fashioned won the Barretts Juvenile Stakes at the Los Angeles County Fair on Sept. 15, his first win in his third start.
“He probably would like to run further,” Harrington said. “We’re still figuring him out.”
There will be strong support for Can the Man, trained by Bob Baffert. Can the Man was third in the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity on Sept. 4 but only fourth of 10 in the Grade 1 FrontRunner Stakes over 1 1/16 miles here Sept. 28. Can the Man will race without blinkers for the first time Monday.
Trainer John Sadler starts Jedi Mind Trick, who won the I’m Smokin Stakes for California-breds at Del Mar on Sept. 2. Trainer Craig Dollase starts Brother Soldier, who won a maiden race over six furlongs at the Los Angeles County Fair on Sept. 21.
◗ In Monday’s third race, an optional claimer over six furlongs, the 2012 stakes winners Frumious and Secret Circle return from long layoffs.
Frumious, trained by Jeff Bonde, has not raced since winning the Grade 2 Palos Verdes Stakes in January 2012. Secret Circle won the Grade 3 Southwest Stakes and the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park in early 2012. Trained by Baffert, Secret Circle has not started since finishing second to stablemate Bodemeister in the Arkansas Derby there in April 2012.