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Breeders’ Cup Workouts and Final Week at Santa Anita

Santa Anita Closing Week

There is just one week left at Santa Anita this fall and then the circuit moves quickly down south to Del Mar for four weeks of racing starting on Thursday, October 31. Then one day later, the Breeders' Cup World Championships of horse racing take place with the two year olds in the spotlight on Friday, and then the single best day of racing in America taking place on Saturday.

First things first and we still have 3 days of racing left at Santa Anita Park, one of the more gorgeous race tracks left in America. The main track continues to favor early speed, but that doesn’t mean a horse can’t win from off the pace like Tecumseh Caroline did on Sunday and come from 9 lengths back on the back side and get up to pay $21.40.

Early Speed Dominates Santa Anita's Main Track

In 80% of the races early speed has been dominant on the main track. Conversely the turf course continues to favor off the pace runners, regardless of where the inner rails are placed. But here again, that doesn’t mean a horse can’t go wire to wire like Fearless Soldier did on Saturday at 10 furlongs and pay $4.80 on the front end. But at least 70% of the time the winners are coming from off the pace on the turf and that includes sprints as well as routes. But always keep in mind, there are no certainties when it comes to thoroughbred racing.

On Sunday there was a carryover in the pick six of $36,681 and for the second consecutive day, nobody hit the wager, which of course is now a $2 wager at Santa Anita. So when Friday comes around this week, the carryover pool will be at $153,105 and they predict a total pool of around $700,000. I personally doubt it will get that high as too many people are turned off by the wager being in $2 increments. But that’s the way management likes it because it produces more carryovers and that generally leads to higher handles at the track. And when the only way they can increase purse money and still try and make a profit without any other form of gambling available at the track, one does what they have to do in order to survive. The carryover on Sunday came about when three different horses paid out with mutuels in the $20 range in the six race sequence. We did have two of them on our sheet with Red On Sunday in the first leg at $24.00 and then Schilflied was right on top of our sheet in the finale at $24.60. Tecumseh Caroline in the 7th at $21.40 was nowhere to be found.

 

Santa Anita Weekend Stakes Results

They had two stakes races set up for the weekend but the one on Sunday failed to fill with just four entries so they had to cancel the race. The Sunday race was the Anoakia stakes for two year old fillies at six furlongs on the main track. Now that just happens to be right up Bob Baffert’s alley as he could have probably come up with five runners himself and run the race. As it is, he added one more to the mix and they will run the race this Friday with five runners. Baffert has three of them and trainer Tim Yakteen has the other two.

They did have 9 runners on Saturday for the Lure stakes at a mile on the turf and this was a good race. Trainer Richard Mandella had two in this restricted stakes and had the favorite with Seal Team, who went off at 2/1 and bet down from a morning line of 7/2. But he was coming off a 12 month layoff but had 7 consecutive six furlong drills, so he certainly seemed fit enough. But when the real racing began, he had nothing to offer and finished fifth as a Turfdom Best Bet on the day. The other Mandella entry got the money and he was almost as hard to find as Sumter had lost his last 16 consecutive starts. But under a terrific ride by Mike Smith, he moved early on him at the 3/8 pole, quickly engaged and passed the pace maker, Man O Rose, and still had enough in the tank to stave off the late runners Mi Hermano Ramon and El Potente. The winning margin was just a neck and the winner paid $10.80 to win in the very sharp time of 1:32.90 for the mile. Man O Rose set sizzling fractions of 23.22 for the quarter and 45.62 for the half but had nothing to offer at the 3/8 pole when Sumter came up to test him. He is probably just a sprinter, at least on the turf course. Sumter moved his earnings up to $385,060 with the victory, his 4th in 23 career starts. The victory was a bit ironic for Mike Smith, as he has always said that Lure was the best turf horse he has ever ridden. 59 year old Smith is riding as good as ever right now and he will have plenty of Breeders’ Cup mounts the following week, as he has won more Breeders' Cup races than any other rider in the history of those races.

Upcoming Santa Anita Stakes Races

With the Anoakia stakes set for Friday, Santa Anita will run three stakes this week, one for each of the three remaining days of the meet. The weekend stakes are both on the turf with three year olds going 9 furlongs in the Twilight Derby while three year old fillies will go a mile on the grass Sunday in the Autumn Miss stakes.

Santa Anita Jockey's Updates

Winning the finale on Sunday at $24.60, J.J. Hernandez got the hat trick and moved out to a three length lead in the jockey standings over Umberto Rispoli, who is still the best turf rider on this circuit, day in and day out. J.J. has 18 wins, Rispoli has 15, and Antonio Fresu is third with 11. Fresu had to miss four days of racing the previous week due to a suspension from the Del Mar summer meet due to careless riding. Mike Smith has the best win percentage at the meet at 29% of any of the riders in the top 15. But the training title will probably go down to the final day.

Santa Anita's Trainer's Updates

Phil D’Amato, the turf trainer, has 13 wins while Bob Baffert, the dirt trainer has 11 wins, while George Papaprodromou is right between them both at 12 wins. Baffert and D’Amato have won countless training titles but the “Papa” man has never won any and everyone is pulling for him to pull it off. He probably doesn’t have the stock to do it, but he may be sending out most of his barn the final week. D’Amato has four in for Friday, Baffert has two, while the Papa man has just one. George P. does have the best win percentage of any trainer in the top 15 at 37%.

Breeders' Cup Workouts

Four of the top trainers on this circuit worked out their stock Sunday morning for various Breeders’ Cup races on Nov. 1st and 2nd. Baffert had the most workers on this particular day with six different horses in as many as six different races.

Newgate who is headed for the Breeders' Cup Classic went 5/8 in 59.20 and it was a bullet work out of 51 horses at this distance.

Citizen Bull who is headed for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile went 5/8 in 50.80.

Gaming who is headed for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies went ¾ in 1:12.40.

Muth who will probably go in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile went 5/8 in 59.80 as did

Fort Bragg who is headed for the Breeders' Cup Dirt Sprint, but his work was from the gate.

Non Compliant, yet another Baffert runner who is headed for the Breeders' Cup   Juvenile, also went 5/8 in 59.80.

Phil d’Amato worked three of his horses and all were headed for turf races on Breeders’ Cup days.

Motorious who is headed for the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint went 5/8 in 59 flat on the synthetic training track and it was a bullet work.

Gold Phoenix who is headed for the Breeders' Cup Turf went 5/8 in 1:00.20 while

Hang the Moon, who is headed for the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf, went an easy half mile in 49.40 and all of these drills were on the synthetic training surface.

Doug O’Neill also had three workers on Sunday, all on the main track.

Mixto who is headed for the Breeders' Cup Classic put in a gate work at 5/8 in 1:01.20.

Katonah who will go in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile went 5/8 from the gate in 1:01.40.

Pali Kitten will go in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint on Friday went an easy 3 furlongs in 39 flat.

John Sadler worked Full Serrano, his Argentina import ¾ in 1:11.80. “Serrano” is a very quick runner who may very well set the pace in the Breeders' Cup Mile.