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Mucho Gusto Returns in San Antonio

GI Pegasus World Cup S. victor Mucho Gusto (Mucho Macho Man) returns to action in Saturday’s GII San Antonio S. after 10 months on the sidelines. A three-time graded winner as a sophomore last term, the $625,000 EASMAY buy hit the board in both the GI Haskell Invitational S. and GI Runhappy Travers S. last summer. Closing out 2019 with a fourth as the favorite in the GIII Oklahoma Derby last September, the ‘TDN Rising Star’ was privately purchased from Michael Lund Petersen by HRH Prince Faisal Bin Khaled with an eye on the inaugural Saudi Cup. The chestnut prepped for that with a dominant score in the Pegasus World Cup Jan. 25 and was fourth to champion Maximum Security (New Year’s Day) in the $20-million Saudi Cup Feb. 29. Given some time off as his Hall of Fame conditioner Bob Baffert picked up some of the top trophies in the older dirt male division with Maximum Security and Improbable (City Zip), Mucho Gusto displays a bullet laden worktab leading up to this event, which his trainer is likely using as a prep for next month’s Pegasus.

The top three from the GIII Native Diver S.–Extra Hope (Shanghai Bobby), Midcourt (Midnight Lute) and Combatant (Scat Daddy)–take a crack at the Baffert heavy hitter here. Combatant scored a career-high earlier this year with a neck success in the GI Santa Anita H. Midcourt is still awaiting a top-level score, but has placed in several Grade Is this term, including the Aug. 22 GI Pacific Classic and Sept. 26 GI Awesome Again S.

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Midcourt A Standout In Del Mar’s Native Diver Stakes

C R K Stable's Midcourt, the defending champion in Saturday's $100,000 Native Diver Stakes, looms as the one to catch and the one to beat in the 42nd edition of the nine-panel headliner that honors one of California's all-time great racehorses.

The Grade 3 stakes has drawn a short field of five and will be presented early on the nine-race Del Mar program – Race 2 to be exact. With the regular 12:30 first post in place, the stakes should go off shortly after 1 p.m.

Native Diver was the first California-bred to win $1 million in purses as he raced a remarkable 81 times between 1961 and 1967. The near-black speedster by Imbros out of the Devil Diver mare Fleet Diver – so popular and so ubiquitous that he earned the nicknames “The Diver,” “The California Comet” and “The Black Horse” — won an equally remarkable 37 races including a trio of local victories in the San Diego Handicap and a tally in the Del Mar Handicap on Sept. 4, 1967 that was the final start of his exceptional career.

Midcourt, a gelded 5-year-old by Midnight Lute, has won five of his 14 starts, including his 5 3/4 length triumph in last year's Native Diver. The John Shirreffs-trained runner – a winner of $546,695 in purses — has been handled by Victor Espinoza in most of his career starts and will have the Hall of Fame rider in the tack again Saturday. He's been running very competitively with Grade 1 horses of late and is listed as a solid 4/5 favorite on the Native Diver morning line.

Here's the lineup for the Saturday feature from the rail out with riders and morning line odds:

Hronis Racing's Combatant (Umberto Rispoli, 8-1); Don Alberto Stable's Stellar Sound (Tyler Baze, 6-1); Fox Hill Farms or Siena Farms' Royal Ship (Mike Smith, 4-1); Midcourt, and Jay Em Ess Stable's Extra Hope (Juan Hernandez, 3-1).

Combatant has a notable bankroll – all $1,049,498 of it. The 5-year-old ridgling by the late sire Scat Daddy has a claim to fame in capturing this year's edition of the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap back in March, one of his four wins (to go with five seconds and five thirds) in 28 total starts. John Sadler trains Combatant.

Extra Hope chased home Midcourt in last year's Native Diver. The now 4-year-old homebred colt by Shanghai Bobby is a winner of three of 13 outings and has banked $234,831. He's trained by Hall of Fame conditioner Richard Mandella.

The first 36 runnings of the Native Diver were held at the now defunct Hollywood Park in Inglewood near Los Angeles International Airport. Upon his death, Native Diver was buried on the Hollywood Park grounds. But when the track was closed (and remade into what is now SoFi Stadium where the L.A. Rams and the L. A. Chargers play professional football), the horse's remains were dug up and shifted to Del Mar where they were reinterred in its infield.

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Wide Open Field Of Seven To Contest Sunday’s Tokyo City Cup

In a marathon devoid of any clear standout, Richard Mandella's Tizamagician, Bob Baffert's Azul Coast and John Sadler's Combatant all figure prominently among a field of seven 3-year-olds and up in Sunday's Grade 3, $100,000 Tokyo City Cup, to be contested at a mile and one half at Santa Anita Park.

A gate to wire first condition allowance winner going one mile on Sept. 5 at Del Mar, Tizamagician broke his maiden on Jan. 1 and now has two wins from six starts this year. A non-threatening fifth on turf in the Grade 3 La Jolla Handicap Aug. 9, Azul Coast was second to his eventual Kentucky Derby winning stablemate Authentic five starts back in the Grade 3 Sham Stakes Jan. 4.

Combatant, an upset winner of the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap on March 7, has been well beaten in three subsequent graded stakes.

TIZAMAGICIAN

Owner: MyRacehorse.com & Spendthrift Farm, LLC

Trainer: Richard Mandella

The only horse in the field to exit a win in his last start, this 3-year-old Tiznow colt will hope to stretch his considerable speed an additional half mile on Sunday. A close fourth to current Preakness hopeful Thousand Words subsequent to his maiden win in the Grade 3 Robert B. Lewis Stakes on Feb. 1, Tizamagician ran what appears to be the best race of his career on Sept. 5 and will retain the services of Drayden Van Dyke.

AZUL COAST

Owner: Mike Pegram, Karl Watson & Paul Weitman

Trainer: Bob Baffert

Fifth, beaten 7 ¾ lengths on turf in the Grade III La Jolla Handicap last time out, Azul Coast showed much promise early, breaking his maiden going one mile at first asking on Dec. 8 at Los Alamitos and then running a respectable second to an outstanding horse in the Grade III, one mile Sham. Last, beaten 13 ½ lengths by Honor A.P. two starts back in the Santa Anita Derby, Azul Coast, a colt by Super Saver, was then a handy 1 ¼ length winner of the El Camino Real Derby three races back at Golden Gate Fields. Ridden by five different jockeys in as many starts, he'll be handled for the first time on Sunday by Luis Saez as he bids for his first graded stakes win in his sixth career start.

COMBATANT

Owner: Hronis Racing, LLC

Trainer: John Sadler

Although a winner at 9-1 of the Grade I Santa Anita Handicap four starts back on March 7, he's been soundly beaten in three consecutive races since; the Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap (turf) on Aug. 22, the Grade 2 San Diego Handicap on July 25 and the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap May 2. Like the rest of the field, he'll be trying a mile and one half for the first time. With his Big 'Cap win, he does have proven ability at a mile and one quarter but he'll have to overcome an unattractive form cycle with Umberto Rispoli up.

THE GRADE 3 TOKYO CITY CUP WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER

Race 10 of 11 Approximate post time 5 p.m. PT

Cupid's Claws—Flavien Prat—122
Combatant—Umberto Rispoli—126
Tizamagician—Drayden Van Dyke—118
Bold Endeavor—Tyler Baze—122
Muralist—Juan Hernandez—122
Potantico—Abel Cedillo—122
Azul Coast—Luis Saez—120

First post time for an 11-race card on Sunday is at 12:30 p.m. Although there is no pubic admittance, Santa Anita's races can be viewed free of charge via the track's livestream video at santaanita.com

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‘You’ve Got To Run When You’re Ready’: Higher Power Takes On Maximum Security In San Diego

Trainer John Sadler has saddled the winner of the last three runnings of the San Diego Handicap at Del Mar. A fourth would appear to be a tough task considering the intimidating record and presence of rival Maximum Security.

But Sadler, and his major client Hronis Racing, are hardly ones to be intimidated. And there's recent history on their side.

“Maximum Security is one of the best horses in the world,” Sadler said. “But you've got to run when you're ready, and we're ready right now.”

Sadler has entered TVG Pacific Classic defending champion Higher Power for the Grade II $150,000 San Diego, a 1 1/16-mile main track event that is the primary stepping stone to the Classic. His 5 ¼-length convincing Pacific Classic victory was the highlight of a 2019 campaign as a 4-year-old in which the son of Medaglia d'Oro won three times and compiled earnings of more than $1.2 million for Hronis.

Higher Power opened 2020 with a last-place finish of 10 as the favorite in the Pegasus World Cup in January at Gulfstream Park, then went unraced until a runner-up finish, beaten 3 ¼ lengths by Improbable, in the Hollywood Gold Cup on June 6 at Santa Anita.

“We were very happy with it,” Sadler said. “It was a very good second, coming as it did off a really extended layoff because of travel and COVID. We brought him down here where he's run well before and plan to run him twice – the San Diego and the Pacific Classic.”

Sadler and Hronis also have Combatant, a 5-year-old son of Scat Daddy who is also entered in Sunday's Grade II, $200,000 Eddie Read Stakes on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course.

Combatant won the Grade I Santa Anita Handicap on March 7 in his second start for Sadler after previously being based in the Midwest with Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen. A venture to Hot Springs, Ark., in May for the Oaklawn Handicap produced only an 11th place finish in a field of 13. Combatant, generally a come-from-behind type, has four wins from 25 lifetime starts and earnings of $1,033,998. One victory, and $294,740 in earnings, came from turf races.

“He got cut off and generally had a bad trip at Oaklawn, so we've given him time off,” Sadler said. “Even if I go with him on the grass instead of the San Diego he's still a candidate for the Pacific Classic.”

Catalina Cruiser secured victories in the San Diego Handicap for Sadler, carrying Hronis colors, in 2018-19. In 2017 eventual champion Accelerate did the honors. Accelerate's victory was over the Bob Baffert-trained Arrogate, then the No. 1 ranked horse in the world. Arrogate finished fourth, beaten 15 lengths. Baffert will saddle Maximum Security on Saturday.

The San Diego Handicap, planned for July 18, was rescheduled a week later due to COVID-19 and post positions were re-drawn. It made no difference for Higher Power.

“They drew the race twice and I got the rail both times,” Sadler said. “The post is not my favorite, but we'll live with it.”

The field from the rail: Higher Power (Flavien Prat); Ax Man (Mike Smith); Sharp Samurai (Jorge Velez); Combatant (Drayden Van Dyke); Maximum Security (Abel Cedillo), and Midcourt (Victor Espinoza).

Prat's agent, Derek Lawson, was asked how he felt about going up against Maximum Security with Higher Power. “The same as I felt going up against Maximum Security with Country House in the Kentucky Derby,” Prat said.

Racing fans know how that turned out.

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