Winter Sunset, in second start, wins Shantel Lanerie Memorial Stakes

Winter Sunset showed Saturday at Fair Grounds why veteran horseman Wayne Catalano has been so high on her.

Bursting through an outside seam when odds-on favorite Elsa drifted off her line before the quarter-pole, Winter Sunset powered through a rough homestretch run, dispatching the favorite and going on to a 1 1/2-length victory in the $60,000 Shantel Lanerie Memorial Stakes.

Winter Sunset, a debut winner late last year on the Fair Grounds turf, was making only her second start, while Elsa had raced four times and was coming off a 2 1/4-length win Nov. 24 in the Grade 3 Jimmy Durante at Del Mar.

And while Winter Sunset ($7.40) had scored a slow-paced front-running win first out, she was back behind a walking pace Saturday as Elsa’s stablemate, Cypress Point, went a half-mile over firm turf in 52.23 seconds. Corey Lanerie on Elsa followed the pacesetter around the turn, but was in about the three path and drifted even wider than that preparing to corner into the homestretch. Seeing daylight, Channing Hill went for it on Winter Sunset, jumping on the leaders and making the top with a 11.69-second furlong.

Elsa counter-punched and the two fillies brushed before the furlong pole (leading to an inquiry that in the end went nowhere), but Winter Sunset was the better horse on the day, pushing clear as Elsa failed to keep pace.

Winning time (pretty much meaningless, given the pace) for about one mile was 1:342.34. Naughty Me finished third but the back three for all intents and purposes were in a different race than the top two. Liora, entered in case the race was moved to dirt, was scratched.

Winter Sunset is owned by Coffeepot Stables and Phillips Racing Partnership, the latter is her breeder. She’s by Tapit and is the first foal to race from multiple Grade 1-winning turf mare Winter Memories. And one can see why Catalano likes her.

*** Dream Maker threw his hat into the Triple Crown ring with an excellent comeback win in the eighth race Saturday at Fair Grounds. Making his first start since a disappointing performance last October in the Breeders’ Futurity, Dream Maker tracked the pace in this 1 1/16-mile dirt race, took over at the top of the stretch, and widened his lead with a powerful, easy stride, winning by 8 1/2 lengths and stopping the timer in a quick 1:44.10. Mark Casse trains Dream Maker for owner John Oxley, and Florent Geroux was in the irons.