Ronald Charles and Clear Valley Stables’ URAIB (Ire) (Mark of Esteem [Ire]) treated
the Santa Anita fans to an exciting finish in the $150,000 Buena Vista H. (G3)
as the five-year-old mare got up to clinch the race by a nose, defeating a
shortened field due to the sloppy conditions. The 3-2 favorite, Resplendency
(Tale of the Cat), went to the early lead of the one-mile event, which was taken
off the turf due to heavy rains that have fallen in the area, while the Sanford Shulman-trained
Uraib rated at the back.
The pacesetter led through splits of :21 3/5 and :44 while Jon Court and
Uraib were content to lag at the back of the five-horse field. They began to
make up ground along the inside of the second turn and Uraib went three-wide down the stretch to
nip Resplendency, whose jockey, Pat Valenzuela, dropped the whip inside the
sixteenth pole, in the final strides. The winner stopped the clock in 1:33 3/5.
The
Buena Vista was automatically downgraded to a Grade 3 status due to the move to the main track
and will be reviewed by the American Graded Stakes Committee.
Uraib left the gate at 9-2 to pay $10.80, $4.20 and $2.40, leading $1 exotics
of $16.50 (exacta), $30.30 (trifecta) and $54.40 (superfecta). Resplendency gave
back $3.40 and $2.20 while Elusive Diva (Elusive Quality), who was sent off at 8-5, returned $2.20
after finishing five lengths back. Any for Love (Arg) (Southern Halo) and Irgunette (Aus) (Irgun)
followed.
Solar Echo (Spinning World), Katdogawn (GB) (Bahhare), Miss Terrible (Arg)
(Numerous), Hoh Buzzard (Ire) (Alhaarth), Intercontinental (GB) (Danehill), Ask
for the Moon (FR) (Dr Fong), Belle Ange (FR) (Ganges) and Megec Blis (Ire)
(Soviet Star) all scratched.
This was Uraib’s 2005 debut and she now holds a record of 20-5-4-3. It was
her fourth victory in the United States and her first graded stakes score.
She was bred by Shadwell Estate Company Limited and is out of the Sadler’s Wells
mare Hamsaat.