Santa Anita: Bejarano aboard both 2-year-old winners in Cal Cap

ARCADIA, Calif. - Jockey Rafael Bejarano swept the races for 2-year-old on Saturday’s California Cup program at Santa Anita, winning the Juvenile with Rousing Sermon and the Juvenile Fillies with Starlight Magic.

Both were making their first starts around two turns and handled the transition from sprints without difficulty.

Rousing Sermon ($9.20) closed from fifth through traffic in the final three furlongs to win the Juvenile by 2 1/4 lengths over 4-1 Motown Men. Rousing Sermon took the lead in the final sixteenth and quickly went clear. Motown Men set a pace of 22.81 and 47.30 seconds, and finished a half-length in front of Stoney Fleece. Champions Gate, the 9-5 favorite, finished fifth of nine after racing wide throughout.

Rousing Sermon ran 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.52. Bejarano had worked Rousing Sermon in recent weeks.

“He’s been getting better and better every work,” he said. “When I saw [Motown Men] was hanging out a little bit in the stretch, I got my opportunity to get clear.”

Owned by breeders Larry and Marianne Williams, Rousing Sermon has won 2 of 4 starts and $114,000. By Lucky Pulpit, Rousing Sermon beat maidens in his debut at Hollywood Park in June and was third in two sprint stakes for statebreds at Del Mar – the Graduation and I’m Smokin Stakes.

Jerry Hollendorfer trains Rousing Sermon.

Starlight Magic had a perfect trip to win her first stakes in the $100,000 California Cup Juvenile Fillies.

Starlight Magic ($3.20) was fourth to the end of the backstretch, engaged pacesetter Willa B Awesome in early stretch and won by 1 3/4 lengths, finishing 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.47. The Juvenile Fillies was Starlight Magic’s first start around two turns.

“I felt like I had a lot of horse,” Bejarano said. “She showed me a lot of kick in the stretch.”

Bejarano gave Starlight Magic a few cracks of his whip in the stretch to keep the filly focused after she reached the front.

“She played around with her ears and that’s why I hit her, to keep her going,” he said.

Starlight Magic has won 2 of 4 starts and $96,700 for owner Cory Wagner and trainer Mark Glatt. She won a maiden race for California-breds at Santa Anita on Oct. 9. A filly by Marino Marini, Starlight Magic was bought for $75,000 at the Barretts May sale of 2-year-olds in-training. She was fourth in the Generous Portion Stakes at Del Mar on Aug. 31.

Willa B Awesome, the winner of the Barretts Debutante at Fairplex Park in September, held second, finishing 10 1/2 lengths in front of Raesunbridledfaith in the field of six.