Spiced Perfection steps out of comfort zone and into winner's circle in La Brea Stakes

ARCADIA, Calif. – Spiced Perfection continues to be overlooked, and continues to make her supporters proud. She was the subject of a potential sale recently, but was turned down by her prospective new owners, so on Wednesday’s opening-day card at Santa Anita she picked up right where she left off.

Spiced Perfection, a winner at Del Mar last time out, continued her ascent among female sprinters by stepping out of the California-bred ranks to knock off the last Grade 1 dirt race of the year for 3-year-old fillies, the $301,035 La Brea Stakes. The previously unbeaten Dream Tree trailed badly in her first start since undergoing throat surgery.

Spiced Perfection ($12.80) got an ideal stalking trip after breaking from the outside post in the field of eight. She loomed up four paths wide on the far turn under Flavien Prat, took the lead nearing the furlong grounds, then held her rivals safe to prevail by 1 1/4 lengths.

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Hot Autumn, a 33-1 shot, beat Emboldened by a head for second, with Happy Like a Fool another 1 3/4 lengths back in fourth. Heavenhasmynikki was fifth and was followed, in order, by Kelly’s Humor, Cathedral Reader, and Dream Tree, the 3-5 favorite, who backed up badly after setting or forcing the pace and was beaten more than 25 lengths.

Mo See Cal was scratched.

Spiced Perfection covered seven furlongs on the fast main track in 1:23.54. The win was her sixth in 14 starts, her third in her last four outings, and her fourth in eight starts this year. She made $180,000 and now has career earnings of $622,405.

“It was a last shot against 3-year-old fillies,” trainer Brian Koriner said of the main reason to step out of the statebred ranks and go for a Grade 1 win. Having a Grade 1 should raise her residual value a touch, too, even if she doesn’t have a glittering pedigree.

Spiced Perfection was the subject of a potential sale recently, but it fell though.

“They offered $500,000 without looking at her,” Koriner said of the daughter of Smiling Tiger. “Then they took back the offer.”

Spiced Perfection is owned by the Dare to Dream Stable partnership.

Dream Tree, a Grade 1 winner who had won all five of her previous starts, was done with three furlongs to go after a half in 45.68 seconds and allowed to coast to the wire when the cause was lost.

Her trainer, Bob Baffert, said he did not believe the throat surgery was to blame, but said Dream Tree would undergo an endoscopic examination regardless.

“She was keyed up in the paddock and going to the gate,” Baffert said. “She ran a little bit but didn’t fire.”