Santa Anita: Firm turf enables Winning Prize to do his best in Arcadia

ARCADIA, Calif. – Winning Prize looked like a future star when he won his United States debut last summer at Del Mar, but rain got in the way of allowing him to show his best in his next two starts. His trainer, Neil Drysdale, hit the re-set button for 2014, and Winning Prize came back blazing in his seasonal debut on Saturday at Santa Anita, scoring an impressive victory in the Grade 2, $200,500 Arcadia Stakes for older turf milers.

The margin of victory was only 1 1/2 lengths, but Winning Prize ($7.40) looked in control of the race throughout, and came away from his rivals with purpose in the final sixteenth. He rolled through his final quarter-mile in slightly more than 23 seconds and completed one mile on firm turf in 1:32.89.

Tom’s Tribute got up for second, catching pacesetter Regally Ready in the shadow of the wire by beat him by a neck. Unbridled’s Note was fourth and was followed, in order, by Suggestive Boy (the favorite), No Jet Lag, and Procurement.

Winning Prize settled nicely behind Regally Ready under jockey Rafael Bejarano, who rode Winning Prize to a front-running victory in his race at Del Mar.

“I liked that he showed he’s not a one-dimensional horse,” Drysdale said. “He settled very nicely. Rafael said he could have gone at any time. They were cooking right along at the end, 32 and change.”

Winning Prize, a son of Pure Prize bred in Argentina, won 5 of 8 starts, including a pair of Group 1 wins, in his native land. After his Del Mar win last summer, he next went to Keeneland for the Grade 1 Shadwell Mile, which was rained off the turf; he finished fourth on Polytrack. Winning Prize then finished a close third in the Grade 2 Citation at Hollywood Park, which was run on a good turf course following rain that weekend.

“We got started off right, but everything went wrong in Kentucky. I’ve never seen it rain so much,” Drysdale said. “He doesn’t like it soft. It was soft that day at Hollywood. It was strange. It was breaking away.”

Drysdale said he will campaign Winning Prize in turf mile races this year, with the Grade 1 Kilroe Mile on March 8 next on the agenda. Drysdale trains Winning Prize, 5, for David Heerensperger and Jose Nelson. Nelson owned Winning Prize in Argentina, then sold 50 percent of the horse to Heerensperger through Drysdale’s wife, bloodstock agent Shawn Dugan.