Horse racing notes: Santa Anita Oaks grad Corposo hits the road
SANTA ANITA LEADERS
(Through Thursday)
Jockeys / Wins
Kyle Frey / 13
Juan Hernandez / 12
Hector Berrios / 10
Umberto Rispoli / 10
Edwin Maldonado / 10
Antonio Fresu / 10
Trainers / Wins
Mark Glatt / 9
Jeff Mullins / 6
Librado Barocio / 6
Phil D’Amato / 6
Richard Baltas / 5
Craig Lewis / 5
Peter Miller / 5
John Sadler / 5
WEEKEND STAKES
SANTA ANITA
Saturday
• $100,000 Mizdirection Stakes, fillies and mares, 4-year-olds and up, about 6 1/2 furlongs on turf
Sunday
• $100,000 Desert Code Stakes, 3-year-olds, about 6 1/2 furlongs on turf
LOS ALAMITOS
Sunday
• $30,000 Adequan California Derby Challenge, 3-year-old quarter horses, 400 yards
DOWN THE STRETCH
• Corposo, third in the Santa Anita Oaks for trainer Peter Eurton, is a 5-2 morning-line favorite with jockey Tyler Gaffalione for the $300,000, Grade II Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico on Friday. Among Californians entered on the Preakness undercard Saturday, Phil D’Amato has Beer Can Man seeking a repeat in the Jim McKay Turf Sprint and Balnikhov in the Dinner Party Stakes, and Bob Baffert has Mirahmadi in an allowance race.
• Miss Lizzy, Getthemoney, Lucky Girl and Chismosa – all of whom chased Ag Bullet in the Grade III Monrovia – are hard to separate going into the Mizdirection Stakes at Santa Anita on Saturday. Get the Money and Juan Hernandez may control the pace.
• Eagles Flight, a 3-year-old by Curlin out of Feathered – and thus a half-brother of Flightline – is likely to debut before the end of the Santa Anita meet June 16, trainer John Sadler told a track publicist. Eagles Flight recorded his second fastest-of-the-morning workout Saturday, going 5 furlongs in 58 3/5 seconds. Flightline himself raced for the first time in April of his 3-year-old season in 2021 and went on to be Horse of the Year at 4 and retire undefeated in six starts.
• Turf Paradise will continue racing from November to May through at least 2027 under an agreement between owner Jerry Simms and horsemen, the Daily Racing Form was first to report. Simms said last year he planned to close the Phoenix track, but he was unable to sell the property.
• Golden Gate Fields, in Albany, Calif., is struggling to attract entries as it nears its permanent closing day June 9. Cancellation of Friday racing May 17 and 24 marks the third and fourth days lost this season.
• Cedar Hill and jockey Oscar Peinado won the Robert Adair Kindergarten Futurity in a 13-1 upset at Los Alamitos on Sunday. Trained by Oklahoma-based Eddie Willis, the 2-year-old quarter horse broke fast and held off My Budd by a neck, while favorite Fear N Fridays had a rough start and came in ninth.
• There might not be an upset all year bigger than the win at 208-1 odds by Ten Happy Rose and unheralded jockey Akihide Tsumura in the $2 million, Group 1 Victoria Mile in Tokyo on Sunday. The 6-year-old mare, who’d never won at close to this level, earned a “win and you’re in” entry in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf at Del Mar on Nov. 2.
— Kevin Modesti