Tamara comes back a winner under a hand ride by Mike Smith. (Benoit Photo)
Santa Anita Press Box
ARCADIA, Calif.—Making her first start since last November, blue-blooded filly Tamara returned a winner Saturday at Santa Anita when rolling to a 3 ¾-length win in the Grade III, $100,000 Chillingworth Stakes for fillies and mares sprinting 6 ½ furlongs Saturday at Santa Anita.
Sent off the heavy 2-5 favorite, Tamara, stalked pacesetter Silent Law (3-1) through fractions of 21.83 and 44.06 for the opening half mile. She collared the leader when entering the stretch and then motored through the lane under only a hand ride from Hall of Famer Mike Smith for her second graded stakes victory.
“She was very eager leaving there. She actually wanted to go head-to-head with (Silent Law) and I had to talk her out of it a little bit,” said Smith, who has ridden Tamara in all five of her starts. “Once she hit her left lead, she hit another gear. I thought, ‘Oh my. She’s back.’ I think I’m blowing more than she is from just trying to pull her up.”
Trained by fellow Hall of Famer Richard Mandella, Tamara won in a time of 1:15.21.
“You really couldn’t ask for it to go any better today,” Mandella said. “Now we have to see how she comes out of this race.”
Silent Law finished 14 ½ lengths ahead of Ang N Ash (45-1) in third with Chismosa (6-1) completing the superfecta.
By Bolt d’Oro out of Hall of Fame racemare Beholder, Tamara was making her first start since Nov. 15 at Del Mar when finishing second by a nose in a classified allowance going six furlongs. After that, she was scheduled to return in the GI La Brea in December on opening day of Santa Anita’s Classic Meet but got sick. Then in January, she injured herself.
“She kicked the rail coming onto the track and chipped a sesamoid,” Mandella said. “We had the chip removed and put her out to rest. It looks good now.”
Next up for Tamara, a homebred for Spendthrift Farm, is a likely return trip to the Breeders’ Cup this time for the Filly & Mare Sprint going seven furlongs on Oct. 31 at Del Mar.
Her outing last November at Del Mar was Tamara’s only other start since the 2023 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies when finishing seventh as the odds-on favorite at Santa Anita.
Tamara improved to 5: 3-1-0 with $321,400 in earnings. In 2023, prior to the Breeders’ Cup, Tamara won the GI Del Mar Debutante.
Tamara paid $2.80, $2.10 and $2.10. Silent Law, ridden by Juan Hernandez for trainer Bob Baffert, returned $2.60 and $2.40. Ang N Ash, with Adrian Escobedo up for trainer Ryan Hanson, paid $6.80.
