ARCADIA, Calif. - Through Sunday, there have been nine turf sprint stakes at the current Santa Anita winter-spring meeting. Trainer Phil D’Amato won seven of those races, including two stakes over the weekend with Gregorian Chant and Leggs Galore.
But the other stables can rest assured that one of them will win Sunday’s $100,000 Sensational Star Stakes for California-breds at six furlongs on turf. D’Amato does not have any runners nominated, nor any plans for a supplemental entry.
Last Friday, the 3-year-old filly Missy P. won her debut by 9 1/2 lengths at 2-5 in a maiden special weight race at 5 1/2 furlongs.
The following day, Triple Tap, a 3-year-old half-brother to 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, won his first start in a maiden special weight race at seven furlongs.
The pair may be too far behind their age-group contemporaries to be part of the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on April 30 and May 1, but they performed in a manner that suggests they are not far from stake appearances.
NEW ORLEANS – Owner Tom Durant paid $475,000 to acquire a colt who would be named Run Classic at a 2-year-old in training sale during March 2020. The price could’ve been higher, said trainer Bret Calhoun, who was working with Durant on sales scouting.
“We thought he was the standout of the whole sale," Calhoun said. "I think in the end the pedigree scared some people away.”
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Trainer Jeffrey Englehart on Monday began a 10-day suspension (lasting through March 24) for the finding of Phenylbutazone (Bute) in the post-race sample of Runningwscissors, following his third-place finish in the Say Florida Sandy Stakes at Aqueduct on Jan. 9.
Englehart was also fined $1,000.
Runningwscissors was disqualified from third and ordered unplaced and Englehart, who is also the owner of the horse, had to forfeit the $12,000 in purse money earned.
Englehart has four wins from 26 starters at the meet.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Shoplifted, a multiple graded stakes-placed runner on this circuit, will try again for that elusive graded victory when he runs in the Grade 1, $300,000 Carter Handicap at Aqueduct on April 3.
Runner-up in the Grade 1 Hopeful at Saratoga in 2019 and third in both the Woody Stephens at Belmont and H. Allen Jerkens at Saratoga, Shoplifted will make his first start at Aqueduct in the Carter.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - At this time last year, trainer Rob Atras was gearing up for New York’s Claiming Championships, in which he had as many as 11 horses pointing to those 10 starter allowance races.
The COVID-19 pandemic hit and those races - as well as 11 weeks of racing - were canceled on the New York Racing Association circuit.
This year, the Claiming Championships will be run in less than two weeks. While Atras will likely have some to run, it won’t be nearly as many as he had hoped to start a year ago.
Masteroffoxhounds, the winner of the Grade 2 San Marcos Stakes on Feb. 6 in his American stakes debut, worked five furlongs on the Santa Anita training track in 1:01.20 on Sunday in preparation for Saturday’s Grade 3 San Luis Rey Stakes.
The $100,000 San Luis Rey Stakes, run at 1 1/2 miles on turf, is the lone graded stakes at Santa Anita next weekend.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Swiss Skydiver ran at nine venues in 10 starts in 2020, winning five stakes and earning the title of champion 3-year-old filly.
Expect another travel-intensive itinerary this year.
On Saturday, Swiss Skydiver began her 2021 season with a convincing win in the Grade 1 Beholder Mile for fillies and mares at Santa Anita.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Santa Anita will not race at all on April 9 and 16, and will not race on turf on April 10 and 11 to give the turf course a brief rest next month in advance of the final months of the winter-spring meeting, track officials said Saturday.
As a result of those added off days, there will be a gap of nearly two weeks without turf racing from April 5-16 for maintenance, racing secretary Chris Merz said. The course will be used extensively through the conclusion of the current meeting on June 20.
