Santa Anita Big Saturday: SA Derby, SA Oaks

Bob Baffert trainee Kinza showed she is in a class above in her Santa Yaabel victory under Juan Hernandez at Santa Anita. (Ernie Belmonte/Past The Wire)

D’Amato Takes Multiple Shots In GIII American, GIII Wilshire
Million-Dollar Men: Hernandez, Maldonado Hit It Big
Mullins Bags 3 Wins On Friday’s 8-Race Card

Saturday’s GI Santa Anita Derby Will Be Aired On CNBC

Stable Notes By Victor Ryan

ARCADIA, CALIF.—Santa Anita gets its turn in the national spotlight this Saturday with a blockbuster card highlighted by the GI, $750,000 Santa Anita Derby and GII, $300,000 Santa Anita Oaks.

The 87^th Santa Anita Derby at 1 1/8 miles will be aired on CNBC and streamed on Peacock. The broadcast is from 4 to 5 p.m. PT with the Santa Anita Derby scheduled to go off at around 4:45 p.m., according to officials. Actual post time for the Santa Anita Derby will be set when the card is drawn on Wednesday.

Among the leading contenders expected for this year’s Santa Anita Derby are Maymun and Imagination for trainer Bob Baffert and Stronghold for trainer Phil D’Amato.

Top contenders for the 85^th Santa Anita Oaks, contested at 1 1/16 miles, are Kinza for Baffert and Kopion for Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella. Kinza most recently improved to 3-for-3 when taking the GIII Santa Ysabel at 1 1/16 miles here March 9.

Kopion hasn’t started since being beaten two lengths by Kinza in the one mile GIII Las Virgenes here Feb. 10. The Omaha Beach filly previously won the GIII Santa Ynez at seven furlongs here Jan. 7.

Three other stakes will also be run Saturday at Santa Anita including the GIII Monrovia for older fillies and mares on the hillside turf course. California-breds will round out the stakes slate with the Echo Eddie for 3-year-olds at 6 ½ furlongs on dirt and the Evening Jewel presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance for statebred 3-year-old fillies, also at 6 ½ furlongs on dirt.

Led by returning Grade I winner Gold Phoenix, top turf trainer Phil D’Amato has a combined six horses entered in Thursday’s two graded stakes, the GIII American Stakes and GIII Wilshire Stakes, both at a mile on grass.

In the American for older horses, Gold Phoenix makes his first start since a respectable fourth at 51-1 against what was a stacked field in the Breeders’ Cup Turf here Nov. 4. Set to join Gold Phoenix in the American starting gate is stablemate Prince Abama, who makes his second start following a 13-month layoff.

In seven starts last year, Gold Phoenix won both the GI Frank E. Kilroe Mile at Santa Anita and 1 1/8-mile GII Eddie Read at Del Mar prior to his effort in the Breeders’ Cup Turf going 1 ½ miles under Juan Hernandez. The now 6-year-old gelding received a three-month break before returning to the work tab Feb. 12.

“He had a pretty active campaign last year and we gave him some time to rest after the Breeders’ Cup,” D’Amato said Sunday morning. “This was definitely the plan to bring him back here. The last couple years we started him off at a mile and gradually went further. Hopefully we can find the right path to get him back to the Breeders’ Cup.

This year’s Breeders’ Cup will be held Nov. 1-2 at Del Mar.

Gold Phoenix is campaigned by Little Red Feather Racing, Sterling Stables and Marsha Naify. He has a record of 17: 6-3-3 with $1,221,757 in earnings.

Prince Abama won the GII Hollywood Turf Cup in the fall of 2022 and the GIII San Marcos here last February before hitting the sidelines. He returned March 3 in the Kilroe Mile where he stalked a lively pace under Frankie Dettori before fading to seventh.

“I think he needed one,” D’Amato said of the 6-year-old Ireland-bred gelding by Tamayuz. “I also did not expect him to be that close to a fast pace. He likes to come from out of it. I think he’ll show more Thursday.”

Prince Abama will be ridden by Antonio Fresu for the first time. On Friday, Prince Abama worked a sharp five furlongs in 59.40. It was the third-fastest of 129 works at the distance.

“It was a really good breeze. He did it the right way,” D’Amato said. “He looked like the horse of old.”

The American goes as the ninth and final race Thursday with post time at approximately 5 p.m. PT. 

In the Wilshire, D’Amato will saddle four of the 10 starters in School Dance, Turnerloose, Leisurewear and Adaay in Asia. All but Turnerloose are seeking their first graded stakes win.

School Dance, who breaks from the rail under new rider Kazushi Kimura, stretches out to two turns in her second start following a six-plus month layoff. She returned Feb. 25 in the Wishing Well at about 6 ½ furlongs on the hillside turf course where she showed late interest to be beaten two lengths by winner AG Bullet.

“I think it was a good prep. She had some trouble late,” D’Amato noted. “It was an experiment to try her down the hill. Now we’re stretching her out and this is what she does best. I think that last race set her up for a good performance.”

Turnerloose, a GII winner on dirt as a 3-year-old in 2022, makes her first start since finishing third in the GIII Bayakoa on dirt Dec. 15 at Los Alamitos. Fresu has the call.

“We gave her some extra time. Hopefully it will pay off,” D’Amato said. “She’s training well and should be fit and ready to go.”

Leisurewear, who will have Hernandez in the irons, cuts back in distance after setting the pace and fading to fourth in the 1 1/4-mile GIII Santa Ana here Feb. 24.

“She’s another one that’s been training well,” D’Amato said. “There was really nowhere to go with her, and she needs to run. We landed on this spot. She’s been knocking on the door. We’ll see if she can break through Thursday.”

Adaay in Asia makes her second start for D’Amato after previously being based in the east with trainer Christophe Clement. She made her local bow in the GIII Las Cienegas on the hillside turf course and was never a factor.

“She’s very steady. We’re kind of experimenting with her, seeing what she does best,” D’Amato said. “She ran good races at a mile in New York. We’ll see if the added distance helps her out.”

Edwin Maldonado rides the 5-year-old Adaay mare for the first time.

The Wilshire goes as the seventh race at approximately 4 p.m. PT.  

Million-Dollar Men: Jockeys Hernandez, Maldonado Hit It Big

It was a lucrative Saturday on multiple continents for Santa Anita-based horses, horsemen and jockeys.

At Oaklawn Park in Arkansas, Santa Anita’s leading rider Juan Hernandez won his first-ever seven-figure race aboard Zedan Racing’s Muth in the GI, $1.5 million Arkansas Derby. Muth, trained by Bob Baffert, and Hernandez attended the pace before kicking clear in the stretch to win by two lengths.

In Dubai, jockey Edwin Maldonado won his second seven-figure race in the past 5 ½ months for trainer Doug O’Neill. He came from off the pace aboard Santa Anita-based Two Rivers Over to take down the GII, $1 million Godolphin Mile at Meydan Racecourse.

Last September, Maldonado and O’Neill teamed to win the GI, $1 million Cotillion at Parx with Ceiling Crusher.

Two Rivers Over is owned by Todd Cady and Ty Leatherman.

Hernandez is poised to win his fourth consecutive Santa Anita rider’s title at the Classic Meet, which ends this Sunday. He enters the final week of the stand with 50 victories, eight more than runner-up Flavien Prat.  His score in the Arkansas Derby pushed his earnings for the year to $3,690,486, which ranks sixth in North America. Prat tops the list with $6,282,962.

FINISH LINES……………………

Trainer Jeff Mullins won three races Friday, moving him into a tie for seventh in the trainer’s standings. Mullins scored with Sugar Fish ($5) in the second, The Wild Grazer ($8) in the fourth and Eight Clap ($3.20) in the fifth. Mullins now has 14 wins at the stand, which is tied with Richard Mandella…

The main track will be open for workers Tuesday following a wet weekend at Santa Anita. The main track is usually closed on Tuesdays…

The new synthetic training track opened for workers under rainy conditions Saturday. Seven horses recorded timed workouts Saturday including Sumter, who is entered in Thursday’s GIII American Stakes for Mandella. Sumter went four furlongs in 49.80 seconds …

Sunday is the final day of the Classic Meet. Live racing will resume Friday, April 19 with the start of the Hollywood Meet, which runs through June 16.