Smith picks up mount on Desert Dawn in Starlet

DEL MAR, Calif. – Desert Dawn, third in the Grade 2 Chandelier Stakes at Santa Anita in October and sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies on Nov. 5 at Del Mar, will be ridden by Mike Smith in Saturday’s Grade 1 Starlet Stakes at Los Alamitos.

Smith worked Desert Dawn five furlongs in 1:00.60 on Saturday at Del Mar. The decision to give Smith the mount was made after the BC Juvenile Fillies, in which Desert Dawn finished 18 3/4 lengths behind the brilliant winner, Echo Zulu. Ricky Gonzalez rode Desert Dawn in her first four starts.

Desert Dawn is trained by Phil D’Amato for H & E Ranch. D’Amato and Smith teamed to win the 2015 Starlet with Street Fancy.

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“I’ve had good luck with Mike in the Starlet,” D’Amato said Sunday. “I think this filly has a similar style. She comes from behind and likes to finish strong. I’m hoping that will be a good fit at Los Alamitos.”

Desert Dawn won a maiden special weight race at a mile at Del Mar in her second start on Aug. 26, closing from fifth in a field of seven.

The $300,000 Starlet is run at 1 1/16 miles and is likely to include Grace Adler, winner of the Grade 1 Del Mar Debutante in September, and the stakes winners Cairo Memories and Eda.

Smith said Saturday that he hopes to be more active this winter than in recent weeks. At the 15-day Del Mar autumn meeting, which ended Sunday, Smith won three races from 22 mounts.

“I want to start riding a little more,” Smith said. “I’m not looking to ride the whole card, but I’d like to ride four or five a day.”

Smith plans to be active at times during the two-week Los Alamitos meeting that begins Friday and continues through Dec. 12, but the wintertime focus will be on the Santa Anita meeting that begins Dec. 26.

“I’ll ride there a little bit,” Smith said of Los Alamitos. “I’ll take a mini-vacation and get back to work.”

Smith is the regular rider of Corniche, winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile on Nov. 5 at Del Mar. At 56, Smith is the senior member among leading riders in the nation. He has no plans to stop riding soon.

“California is home and where I want ride,” he said. “When it’s all said and done, a few years from now, I’d like to end it here.

“I’m not close.”

◗ Messier, headed to the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity on Dec. 11, worked a half-mile in 48.20 seconds on Monday morning at Santa Anita for trainer Bob Baffert. Messier won the Grade 3 Bob Hope Stakes on Nov. 14 at Del Mar in his most-recent start.