Skye Diamonds targets Santa Monica Stakes

DEL MAR, Calif. – Skye Diamonds, fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint last week, will make her next start in late January in the Santa Monica, a seven-furlong graded stakes race for older female sprinters at Santa Anita, trainer Bill Spawr said Thursday.

Santa Anita has yet to release its stakes schedule for the winter meeting, but the Santa Monica usually is run in late January – it was run this year on Jan. 21 – and the timing suits Spawr, who likes to space Skye Diamonds’s races.

“It’s seven furlongs, and the timing is good,” Spawr said. “And it’s back at her home base.”

Skye Diamonds had a productive 2017 campaign, with five wins in seven starts, including the Grade 2 Great Lady M. at Los Alamitos and Grade 3 Rancho Bernardo at Del Mar. She was beaten 3 1/2 lengths in the Filly and Mare Sprint, whose first three spots were taken by horses 18-1 and higher.

“I thought she ran a real good race,” Spawr said. “She beat four Grade 1 winners,” Spawr said, referring to By the Moon, Constellation, Finest City, and Paulassilverlining.

◗ This meet goes by so fast that nominations for the eight graded stakes races to be run during closing week Nov. 23-26 are due on Saturday. Those races include two Grade 1 races, the Hollywood Derby for 3-year-olds on Nov. 25 and the Matriarch for female grass runners on closing day, Nov. 26.