Turf Paradise: L. A. Weekend cruises in Swift Stakes

There really wasn’t any doubt about the issue, but another dominant performance by L. A. Weekend in capturing Turf Paradise’s $35,000 Swift Stakes on Saturday put an exclamation point on the fact that he is clearly the best sprinter on the grounds.

The reigning horse of the meet from last season is owned by Rick Wiest and trained by Robertino Diodoro. This proved to be little more than a public workout under Geovanni Franco, as he dominated his six rivals in the 5 1/2-furlong event. He went right to the lead, responded smartly when receiving a brief challenge from Absolutely Cool, and bounded away to win easily by 4 1/2 lengths as the overwhelming 1-5 favorite.

Absolutely Cool chased the winner from the start, as he’s done numerous times before, moved closer to challenge turning for home, but couldn’t keep pace while finishing well clear of the others. La Mano Nera rallied for third but wasn’t really a factor.

L. A. Weekend ran the distance in 1:02.91 and paid $2.40. The winner’s share of $21,266 gives him earnings of $304,640 from 10 wins in 20 starts. He’ll next target a defense of his title in the meet’s marquee event, the $75,000 Phoenix Gold Cup, on Feb. 15.