HOLLYWOOD PARK NOTEBOOK
JULY 4, 2012
by John Mucciolo
A pair of Grade 1 contests highlighted the weekend at Hollywood Park.
Shoemaker Mile (G1): B J Wright’s JERANIMO (Congaree) was last turning
for home but absolutely flew home to blow past this field for trainer Michael
Pender, bagging his first Grade 1 victory in the process. The six-year-old
stopped the teletimer in a solid 1:33 4/5 under the guidance of Garrett Gomez,
going away by 1 1/4 lengths under the wire.
Triple Bend H. (G1): Miller et al’s CAMP VICTORY (Forest Camp) ran
down the 4-5 favorite just after midstretch and strode home a powerful 3
1/4-length winner under Joe Talamo. The gelded five-year-old sped seven panels
on the Cushion oval in a solid 1:22 3/5, posting an emotional victory for
friends and family of trainer Mike Mitchell, who is recovering from recent brain
surgery.
Track Stats
From a total of 35 races held at the Inglewood, California, racetrack during
the past week, favorites won at a 29 percent clip and the top two betting
choices combined for 51 percent of the wins. From 22 frays contested on the
Cushion oval, five animals won in wire-to-wire fashion (23 percent), while six
of the 13 grassy tussles went all the way on the lead (46 percent).
We thought the main oval was biased from Friday through Saturday, with many
deep closers and horses breaking from outside posts having success. The track
was much more balanced on Sunday in our opinion.
The turf oval produced a bunch of wire-to-wire winners this week, with all
but one coming in a route race. With that said, a trio of runners won going
last-to-first, so it was not impossible for the right runner to get the job done
on the lawn.
Meet Totals
| RACES: | 360 | |
| CUSHION: | 246 | |
| TURF: | 114 | |
| FAVORITES: | 121 (34 percent) | |
| 2ND CHOICES: | 86 (24 percent) | |
| TURF WIRE: | 28 (25 percent) | |
| CUSHION WIRE: | 72 (29 percent) |
HORSES TO WATCH
Thursday (6/28)
1ST — FLASHY DAME (Afleet Alex) finally got the job done after some close
calls, crushing this field late in her route debut. The Peter Eurton trainee is
in very good form and could evolve into a useful horse. She’ll be live in her
first run with winners for a barn that is really heating up.
2ND — RUN’N ON RESIDUALS (Bertrando) pressed the pace, took a sizable edge
in the lane and was just run down late in a fine first run for conditioner Kathy
Walsh. We’ll tab this one for a graduation very soon, getting claimed out of
here wisely by conditioner Peter Miller.
6TH — JOHN SCOTT (Bertrando) stubbornly held on against a fine field in this
one, keeping a Grade 1 winner at bay late under Victor Espinoza. The
five-year-old has returned incredibly well following a nearly three-year layoff,
and deserves a stakes try soon.
8TH — EXECUTIVEPRIVILEGE (First Samurai) made a fine account of herself at
first asking in this spot for conditioner Bob Baffert, powering home a very
impressive 4 1/2-length winner under Rafael Bejarano. The juvenile filly could
be any type at all and we’ll surely see her in the stakes ranks somewhere this
summer.
Friday (6/29)
7TH — We think trainer Robertino Diodoro made a fine claim of QUAIL HILL
(Candy Ride) in this one, as the peaking colt ran off to his second straight
tally on the lawn. The four-year-old has proven capable at distances from a mile
to this one, 1 3/16 miles, and has a lot of options going forward.
Saturday (6/30)
5TH — DREAMCATCHER (Tapit) made a nice late run to be second to a
wire-to-wire leader in this race and should be tough next time with even slight
improvement. The John Sadler trained sophomore has gotten better since running
on the lawn and should be a nice check earner going forward.
7TH — JOLLY DAYS (Street Cry) sat in last for the opening six panels and
then inhaled her foes in the lane to post a smart tally, her second in
succession. The talented miss is in prime form right now and we’d keep an eye on
her, as well as everything else for this bran that is heating up.
8TH — Give Baffert and his charge, TAKE CONTROL (A.P. Indy), tons of credit
for winning over this solid field after being off the shelf since December of
2009. The blue-blooded five-year-old out of Hall of Fame mare Azeri is unbeaten
in two lifetime tries and we can only hope he stays healthy.
A Look Ahead
The Grade 2 Swaps is the feature for the July 4 Holiday, while Saturday plays
host to the Grade 1 Hollywood Gold Cup and the Grade 2 Royal Heroine Mile.