Unique Bella, Paradise Woods look to bounce back in Beholder Mile

ARCADIA, Calif. – In a perfect world, the Grade 1 Beholder Mile on Saturday at Santa Anita would attract California’s best fillies and mares, each in irrefutable peak form.

While the $400,000 race attracted an exceptional field, the “peak form” proviso is open to interpretation. Only one of the six entrants finished in the money last out, and even that was a frustrating runner-up finish. Is this really an outstanding field? Well, yes.

You see, Unique Bella is not perfect. Nor is Paradise Woods. Both of those Grade 1 winners will try to rebound from odds-on defeats. At least they had alibis. Vale Dori, the other Grade 1 winner in the field, finished next to last in her comeback. She needed the start.

Jerry Hollendorfer trains Unique Bella.

“It’s hard to win them all,” he said, adding that Unique Bella “missed last time, but we’re not holding it against her.”

In fact, Unique Bella delivered an outstanding performance last out in the Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park, though she finished second. She squatted just as the gates opened and was away poorly. She zoomed past most in the field and tired late.

“We thought she ran one of her better races,” Hollendorfer said.

Unique Bella, 7 for 10, is the favorite in the Beholder Mile. Is she a cinch? Not if the real Paradise Woods shows up. Trainer Richard Mandella believes Paradise Woods will do just that despite her fourth-place finish last out.

“She has tender feet, and a tender mind,” Mandella said. “She wasn’t lame out of the race, but she was tender. You could see [the track] stung her. She does have light feet.”

Paradise Woods, 3 for 9, including two Grade 1 romps at Santa Anita, has recovered from foot issues and is likely to start as the second choice. She should run a top race Saturday.

“That’s what I’m thinking,” Mandella said. “Her works are great, everything is great.”

While the connections of the favorites are bullish, Vale Dori might be a race away. Last year, she won 4 of 6 and finished second twice by a neck to Stellar Wind. Vale Dori, in her comeback last month, finished a flat fifth.

“She looked heavy, and she didn’t get away from there good,” trainer Bob Baffert said. “She’s not a really great work horse; I can only do so much with her. I think she is going to take a couple races to get going. She’s not there yet.”

The three other entrants are longshots, including two trained by Doug O’Neill. Mopotism wheels back a week after finishing last on turf in the Grade 1 Gamely, and Munny Spunt stretches out from a fourth-place comeback in a second-level allowance. La Force is the sixth entrant.

The field does not include three top California-based females. Abel Tasman and Fault run next weekend in the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps at Belmont Park, and Selcourt has resumed light training after a minor setback. She returns this summer.

The Beholder Mile is race 9 on a 10-race card that includes the $200,000 Snow Chief Stakes for California-bred 3-year-olds, race 7.

KEY CONTENDERS

Unique Bella, by Tapit
Last 3 Beyers: 91-109-98

◗ Hollendorfer adjusted the filly’s training routine. Her last two workouts were at 5:30 a.m., the earliest she has ever worked. “We found out we can keep her slowed down a little bit [working her early],” Hollendorfer said.

◗ Unique Bella has matured mentally, according to Hollendorfer and assistant Dan Ward. “Now she comes out on the track, and she just stands there,” Ward said. “She wouldn’t do that before.”

◗ Unique Bella has schooled repeatedly in the gate since the Oaklawn mishap. Hollendorfer also worked her six furlongs from the gate on May 13 “just to make sure she can do it.”

“It never hurts to give a horse a little reminder,” he said.

◗ Mike Smith has ridden Unique Bella in all 10 starts and is back aboard.

Paradise Woods, by Union Rags
Last 3 Beyers: 92-97-95

◗ Some horses become more relaxed as they mature. Sometimes it goes the other way. That is the challenge Mandella faces with Paradise Woods. “She is more tense about racing,” he said. “Sometimes with fillies, the more you run them, the more serious they get.”

◗ A mental meltdown contributed to her comeback defeat last summer at Del Mar, but she followed with a Grade 1 victory in her next start.

◗ Although Paradise Woods has raced exclusively on dirt, Mandella this week said, “Someday, I’m going to put her on the turf.”

◗ Flavien Prat rides Paradise Woods, who is expected to contest the pace along with Unique Bella.

Vale Dori, by Asiatic Boy
Last 3 Beyers: 85-102-100

◗ She has won nine races, including a Group 1 in Argentina and a Grade 1 last year at Santa Anita. She is the field’s lone millionaire. A 6-year-old, she has earned $1,136,943.

◗ The Baffert-trained females Abel Tasman and Vale Dori disappointed in recent comebacks. “Abel, I ran her, and all of the sudden she woke up,” he said. He suggested that Vale Dori has not woken up yet.

◗ Rafael Bejarano has his first mount for Baffert in 2018 in this race. He rode Vale Dori three times last year, including in a victory in the Grade 1 Santa Margarita.