SANTA ANITA NOTEBOOK
JANUARY 14, 2015
by John Mucciolo
A pair of Grade 2 events headlined the third week of racing at Santa Anita.
San Pasqual S. (G2): Watson, Weitman and Pegram’s HOPPERTUNITY (Any Given
Saturday) broke slowest of all, got into contention while saving ground and
proved much the best with a big closing kick en route to a 1 3/4-length score
under Martin Garcia. The Bob Baffert trainee clocked 1 1/16 miles on the fast
main strip in 1:41 3/5 to bag a second straight graded trophy.
Sham S. (G2): Richard Pell’s CALCULATOR (In Summation) moved to the fore in
early stretch and powered home a convincing 4 1/4-length winner for conditioner
Peter Miller, breaking his maiden in fine fashion. The talented Florida-bred
sped one mile on the fast main strip in 1:34 4/5 under the guidance of Elvis
Trujillo.
Track Stats
From a total of 34 races held at the Arcadia, California racetrack during the
past week, favorites won at a 47 percent clip and the top two betting choices
combined for 68 percent of the wins. From 27 frays contested on the dirt oval,
nine animals won in wire-to-wire fashion (33 percent), while one of the seven
grassy tilts were taken all the way on the front end (14 percent).
Speed was dominant on Sunday over the sealed oval, and that is something to
keep in mind the next time precipitation falls at Santa Anita. From nine races,
five winners led at every call and eight of the nine were first or second in the
early going.
A high percentage of winning favorites during the week says the track played
fairly for the most part, except for on Sunday, and kudos to the handicappers
who saw and cashed in on the bias to close out the week.
It remains tough to lead at every call on the lawn through three weeks of
racing, as just two have done so, both coming in downhill sprint runs.
Meet Totals
| RACES: | 104 | |
| DIRT: | 75 | |
| TURF: | 29 | |
| FAVORITES: | 42 (40 percent) | |
| 2ND CHOICES: | 21 (20 percent) | |
| TURF WIRE: | 2 (7 percent) | |
| DIRT WIRE: | 21 (28 percent) |
HORSES TO WATCH
Thursday (1/8)
2ND — BENCH LIGHT (Benchmark) was all heart in the lane and fell just short
for conditioner Mike Pender. The gelding has really come to hand since focusing
upon marathon turf routes and is going good presently.
5TH — FOREST CHATTER (Dixie Chatter) was geared down late after putting his
foes away near midstretch in a fine maiden tally, and the Richard Mandella pupil
will loom large against winners right back.
Friday (1/9)
5TH — ENTRECHAT (Giant’s Causeway) was wide every step of the way but still
ran a big one when surging late, finishing a fine second in her debut on the
tricky downhill turf course under Kieren Fallon. The sophomore filly from the
Neil Drysdale barn ran huge for a conditioner that doesn’t have them cranked up
at first asking and could be a nice one with more seasoning.
7TH — CONSCIENCE (Indian Charlie) came up a little short but we still have
faith in the Tom Proctor trainee, who is searching for his niche. The
four-year-old gelding has a lot of speed and has shown versatility in handling
multiple surfaces to this point.
Saturday (1/10)
2ND — GLORY (Tapit) has impressed us to this point and is surely a sophomore
to watch this season for conditioner Jerry Hollendorfer. The bay filly is bred
to run all day so that makes her running big in a pair of sprint runs so far all
the more impressive.
We’re not sure what WILD AT HEART (Indian Charlie) finished in front of in a
fine runner-up finish, but the Richard Mandella pupil surely has ability after
crossing the wire more than nine lengths clear of her nearest foe.
6TH — ROCK SHANDY (Rock Hard Ten) was well clear of second in his dirt debut
and could have a nice year ahead of him for Miller. The versatile sophomore will
be stakes bound in his subsequent outing and is a player on any surface.
8TH — We simply love Hoppertunity and think he might be among the top
handicap runners on the loaded West Coast, which is a big compliment considering
the stars he will likely be facing in 2015.
A Look Ahead
The Holiday Weekend will play host to a pair of Grade 2, $200,000 races at
Santa Anita. The co-features are the La Canada Stakes on Saturday and the Santa
Monica Stakes on Monday.