Grand Slam Smile. (Ernie Belmonte/Past The Wire)
Versatile 3-year-old beats older horses in Saturday’s $100,000 California Distaff Handicap at Santa Anita
The race is part of the lucrative Golden State series for horses bred or sired in California
Santa Anita Press Box
ARCADIA, Calif.—Grand Slam Smile continues to prove there isn’t much she can’t do on the racetrack. Making her first start on Santa Anita’s unique hillside turf course, and first time facing older horses, the versatile 3-year-old filly earned her fifth stakes win under Frank Alvarado in the $100,000 California Distaff Handicap Saturday at Santa Anita.
“She handles anything,” winning trainer Steve Specht said.
Since winning her debut on synthetic at Golden Gate last May, all five of Grand Slam Smile’s stakes wins have come at Santa Anita. She’s won stakes sprinting on dirt (Fasig-Tipton Debutante, Golden State Juvenile Fillies); routing on dirt (Melair); routing on turf (California Cup Oaks); and now sprinting on turf.
“She’s done it all. Dirt. Turf. Synthetic…I mean, she’s pretty handy,” Specht said.
A homebred for Larry Williams and Marianne Williams, Grand Slam Smile tracked pacesetter Sassy Nature in second as the leader took the field into mid-stretch through fractions of 21.86, 43.88 and 1:06.24. When Sassy Nature began to weaken, Grand Slam Smile took command and fended off all comers to score by a length at odds of 10-1. The final time was 1:12.40 for about six and a half furlongs.
Big Summer (6-1) with Hector Berrios up for trainer Carla Gaines finished second. Odds-on favorite Stay and Scam (4-5), ridden by Umberto Rispoli and trained by Doug O’Neill, was another length back in third. Andiamo Ragazza and jockey Tyler Baze completed the superfecta for trainer Peter Miller.
“It worked out perfect,” Specht said. “The other filly blasted away from there and (Alvarado) was clear without anyone pushing on him, so he was able to get her to settle. She started running when it counted.”
After dismounting and being weighed-out, Alvarado said he had a plane to catch while sprinting from the Winner’s Circle and was unavailable for comment.
Grand Slam Smile paid $23.40, $10.60 and $4.40. Big Summer returned $6.80 and $3.60. Stay and Scam, trained by Doug O’Neill, paid $2.20.
By Smiling Tiger, Grand Slam Smile is now 10: 6-3-1 with $511,400 in earnings
“It looked like she handled (the crossing) just fine, I was holding my breath when she came to it, but it looked like she handled it pretty good,” said Specht.
