Light One Up tops field for the Senorita Stakes, Benoit Photo
Santa Anita Press
ARCADIA, CA —After winning the Sweet Life Stakes for 3-year-old fillies sprinting on Santa Anita’s hillside turf course in February, Light Won Up will now look to add a graded-stakes victory over the unique layout in a competitive edition of the Grade III, $100,000 Senorita Stakes Saturday at Santa Anita.
Trained by Doug O’Neill, Light Won Up scored comfortably by 2 ¾ lengths in the Sweet Life on Feb. 7. Following that promising effort, Light Won Up was sent to Keeneland for a first graded stakes try in the GIII Limestone going 5 ½ furlongs at Keeneland. Sent off at 10-1, the daughter of City of Light ran evenly and finished fourth.
Light Won Up was purchased by owners Purple Rein Racing and Mark D. Davis for $265,000 at last year’s OBS March sale of 2-year-olds in training. She’ll again have Fresu aboard in the Senorita.
Dreaming of Alys, winner of last year’s Juvenile Fillies Turf at Del Mar going one mile, will make her 3-year-old debut for trainer Phil D’Amato. The daughter of Upstart hasn’t started since October when finishing fifth in the GIII Surfer Girl going one mile on grass at Santa Anita, which followed her Del Mar stakes win.
Dreaming of Alys will be ridden by Tiago Pereira for the first time. She is owned by Agave Racing Stable, Medallion Racing and Evan Trommer.
Bella Lyra is a European import making her U.S. debut for trainer Mark Glatt and owners Jastar Capital Ltd. and Rancho Temescal Thoroughbred Partners. Bred in Germany, the daughter of Oasis Dream started seven times in Great Britain. Those efforts include a pair of Group III tries with the best result being a third-place finish, beaten just one length, in the Princess Margaret Stakes at Royal Ascot going six furlongs. Bella Lyra will have Ricky Gonzalez aboard for her local unveiling.
Set to make her turf debut for trainer John Sadler is stakes winner Revera, winner of last year’s Desi Arnaz Stakes at Del Mar. In two starts this season, Revera was third in the Santa Ynez at Santa Ynez going seven furlongs and then off-the-board when catching a sloppy track at Oaklawn in the Dixie Belle going six furlongs.
By Lexitonian, Revera is owned by U Racing Stables, Saints or Sinners, Titletown Racing Stables, Denise Barker, Edwin S. Barker, John Haines and Daniel Rivers.
