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D’Amato Has Trio Of Turf Runners Pointing To Feb. 6 San Marcos

Phil D'Amato has three horses nominated to next Saturday's Grade 2 San Marcos Stakes at a mile and a quarter on turf at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif., and all are possible starters for the trainer who celebrates his 45th birthday March 11.

The three are Acclimate, Count Again and Salvator Mundi. Although they gained a week due to rain, each would be coming back on a relatively short turnaround, led by Acclimate, third as the 19-10 favorite in the Unusual Heat Turf Classic on Jan. 16.

Count Again disappointed at even money when eased in the G2 San Gabriel Stakes on Jan. 2, while Salvator Mundi was a creditable third in an overnight race on Jan. 8.

“They're all under consideration,” D'Amato said. Count Again won the G2 Seabiscuit at Del Mar last Nov. 28, but was eased as the even-money favorite in the San Gabriel after being just three lengths off the pace midway through the race.

“He took a funny step right at the top of the stretch and Juan (Hernandez) just kind of wrapped up on him to make sure he was all right. Luckily, he was.

“For sure I'll run Acclimate and Salvator Mundi. It's a rather quick comeback for Acclimate, but I had this race in the back of my mind for him. It was hard to pass up 200 grand ($200,000 purse) against Cal-breds (in the Unusual Heat Turf Classic presented by City National Bank at a mile and an eighth), but at the same he's coming back at a distance he prefers (in the San Marcos).

“I always had this race planned for him, if he came out of the Unusual Heat in good shape, and he really has, so we'll look to wheel him back going a mile and a quarter.”

Salvator Mundi, a 5-year-old son of outstanding turf miler and grass sire Artie Schiller, was claimed for $40,000 in September of 2019 at Keeneland and has won twice in seven starts for D'Amato since. The San Marcos would be only his third stakes race in 16 career starts.

“He's just kind of learning where he needs to be placed to be most effective,” D'Amato said of the bay gelding who stalked the pace before weakening to finish sixth in the G2 John Henry Turf Classic at a mile and a quarter last Sept. 26.

“I think he merits another chance at a mile and quarter for sure, the way he's come out of that race.”

This will be the 69th running of the San Marcos, won last year by LNJ Foxwoods' United, ridden by Flavien Prat and trained by Richard Mandella.

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Count Again Will Try To Maintain Momentum In San Gabriel

Canadian-bred Count Again, fresh off the biggest win of his career in what was his first start for Phil D'Amato, will try to employ similar tactics under Juan Hernandez as he heads a field of seven older horses going a mile and one eighth on turf in Saturday's Grade 2, $200,000 San Gabriel Stakes at Santa Anita.

A 6-year-old gelding by Awesome Again, Count Again is one of five horses exiting the G2 Seabiscuit Stakes, which was run at a mile and one sixteenth over the Del Mar turf on Nov. 28. Previously headquartered in Toronto at Woodbine Racecourse, Count Again took a G3 turf stakes there three starts back at a mile and one quarter and should relish the added sixteenth of mile on Saturday. With four wins from eight starts, Count Again earned a career best 100 Beyer Speed figure in the Seabiscuit.

Peter Miller's Anothertwistafate, fourth as the 2-1 favorite with Joel Rosario in the Seabiscuit, will try to turn the tables on Count Again in what will be his second turf try. A lightly raced 5-year-old colt by Scat Daddy, he won the G3 Longacres Mile in his first start of 2020 on Sept 10. With Rosario riding him back in the San Gabriel, he'll be seeking his fifth win from 10 career starts.

Richard Baltas will be represented by a pair of horses coming off solid third place finishes, Bob and Jackie, who was third going a mile on turf in the G3 City of Hope Mile here Oct. 3, and the venerable Next Shares, who rallied to be third in the Seabiscuit at odds of 20-1.

Off the board in just two of eight starts, Bob and Jackie sat a close second early in the City of Hope and finished third, beaten three lengths while earning a career best 100 Beyer with Heriberto Figueroa, who has guided him to four wins from eight overall starts. A three-time minor stakes winner, this 5-year-old horse by Twirling Candy will seek his first graded win on Saturday.

Next Shares, an 8-year-old gelding by Archarcharch, rallied to be beaten 1 ½ lengths by Count Again in the Seabiscuit and must be respected as a late threat. A winner of the 2019 San Gabriel, Next Shares is the leading money earner in the field with $1,833,071 from an overall mark of 36-7-5-4.

THE GRADE II SAN GABRIEL WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER

Race 7 of 9 Approximate post time 3:30 p.m.

Cleopatra's Strike—Kent Desormeaux—120
Next Shares—Jose Valdivia, Jr.—120
Bob and Jackie—Heriberto Figueroa—120
Multiplier—Abel Cedillo—120
Count Again—Juan Hernandez—124
Anothertwistafate—Joel Rosario—122
Bowies Hero—Flavien Prat—120

First post time for a nine-race card on Saturday is at 12:30 p.m. All of Santa Anita's races are offered free of charge at santaanita.com/live and fans can watch and wager at 1st.com/Bet.

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Count Again Wallops Seabiscuit Handicap Rivals With Strong Stretch Punch

Agave Racing Stable or Sam-Son Farm's Count Again trailed early, but came roaring through the lane to take down honors in the $203,500 Seabiscuit Handicap Saturday at Del Mar. He ran the 1 1/16 miles on firm turf in 1:40.84 to establish a stakes record.

Juan Hernandez gave the 5-year-old Awesome Again gelding a well-timed ride that saw him get home by three-quarters of a length in the Grade 2 feature for 3-year-olds and up. Phil D'Amato trains the bay who was making his California debut after racing in Canada for trainer Gail Cox earlier this year.

“He'd been running longer races (10 and 12 furlongs) and when he broke a little slow today I didn't rush him,” said Hernandez. “We were in a good spot on the backside and I could feel I had plenty of horse. When we hit the three-eighths (pole) I wheeled him outside and we started to pick them up. He ran hard through the stretch and we got it done.”

Finishing second in the Seabiscuit was Juddmonte Farms' favored Flavius and running third was Iavarone, McClanahan or Peskoff, et al's Next Shares.

Count Again returned $18.80, $8.40 and $5.80 across the board. Flavius paid $4.20 and $3.40, while longshot Next Shares returned $10.00 to show.

Co-owner Sam-Son Farm's of Ontario, Canada, is also the breeder of the winner.

“Gail Cox delivered this horse to me in excellent condition and I was really glad to have him,” said D'Amato. “She got him going really good and his confidence up as well and I just kind of trained on from that. I'm just fortunate to have him. Juan (jockey Hernandez) followed our plan. I just told him to save all the ground and come with one run. If the race sets up for us, great, if not we'll stretch him out next time. He followed those instructions to a 'T' and he came with a monstrous run. ”

The stakes win was the first of the meet for trainer D'Amato, but his third in the Seabiscuit. He now has 29 stakes wins at Del Mar.

Count Again registered his fourth win in his eighth career start and pick up $120,000 as the winner's share of the purse. He now has career earnings of $271,165.

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Counting on a Northern Dancer Turf Win

Sam-Son Farm’s Count Again (Awesome Again) will try to add his third win of the season in Sunday’s 12-furlong GI Northern Dancer Turf S. at Woodbine. A second-out winner going a mile for trainer Neil Howard at Keeneland last fall, the gelding won his sole start for Kent Sweezey in a Tampa allowance in April before finishing third for current trainer Gail Cox in an 8 1/2-furlong Woodbine optional claimer in June. Just missing in second behind Woodbridge (Langfuhr) while stretching to 10 panels at the Etobicoke oval Aug. 29, Count Again closed with purpose to take his latest start in the GIII Singspiel S. Sept. 19. Luis Contreras, aboard for the bay’s three most recent starts, returns for the gelding’s Grade I debut.

“He ran great,” said Cox of Count Again’s Singspiel performance. “It was exactly what he wanted to do, which is to go a distance. A mile-and-a-sixteenth was always a little short for him. So, with the added distance..he was really good. He did win pretty easily.”

She continued, “He’s a very nice horse. I know anyone that’s trained him has really liked him. He just had this and that which had bothered him, which led to him having some time off. He needed to get really good and comfortable. He seems to like training [at Woodbine]. He does a fair amount of training on the dirt here, but he’s been happy, and has come out of his races really well.”

Cox and Sam-Son are also represented in the Northern Dancer Turf by Say the Word (More Than Ready). Third to stablemate Count Again in the Singspiel, the dark bay was sixth in the 2018 Queen’s Plate, going on to finish second in the Canadian Triple Crown’s final jewel, the Breeders’ S. Prior to the Singspiel, the gelding closed to win a 9 1/2-furlong Saratoga optional claimer Aug. 14.

“He was closing ground [in the Singspiel] and he didn’t have the easiest of trips,” said Cox. “I think he’ll love this distance. He’s another one that we had to send away to run farther. And that worked out. But he needs the distance and he doesn’t like the Tapeta. He was originally set to run on it, but he just didn’t like it.”

Staghawk Stables’ Nakamura (Animal Kingdom), stakes placed at three, reeled off three consecutive wins for Graham Motion last season, including his most recent victory in an 11-furlong optional claiming test at Saratoga in August. Despite failing to return to the winner’s circle in three remaining starts in 2019, he finished runner-up in the 12-panel GIII Sycamore S. at Keeneland in October. This term, the Maryland-bred came home third in both Keeneland’s GII Elkhorn S. and an 11-furlong optional claimer at Saratoga Aug. 16 before finishing fourth–beaten two lengths–in the Singspiel. Accompanied by Kazushi Kimura last time, the rider gets the return call this time.

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