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Unbeaten Magic At Midnight Bidding For Fifth Straight In Senator Ken Maddy Stakes

Unbeaten in four starts by a combined 25 1/2 lengths, trainer Mark Glatt's Magic At Midnight will try stakes competition for the first time as she squares off with Wesley Ward's multiple stakes winning Jo Jo Air in Saturday's Grade 3, $100,000 Senator Ken Maddy Stakes, which has attracted a field of seven fillies and mares 3 years old and up at 5 1/2 furlongs over the turf at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.

Named for the late Central Valley-based California state senator, the Maddy Stakes, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary on Saturday, was run as the Autumn Days Handicap prior to 1999.

MAGIC AT MIDNIGHT
Owner: Michael A. and Michael L. Moran & Joseph Moran
Trainer: Mark Glatt
Claimed for $30,000 out of a first-out 13-length romp on July 14 at Los Alamitos, this 4-year-old daughter of Midnight Lute has been nothing short of tremendous in three subsequent starts for Glatt, including a 2 3/4-length score in her only try on grass two starts back in a five-furlong turf allowance at Del Mar Aug. 14. Brilliantly fast, Magic At Midnight has never been headed in all four of her starts and has been favored in her last three, the most recent in which she overcame a stumble at the break en route to a one-length score in a 6 1/2-furlong allowance on Sept. 7. Out of the stakes placed Dixie Union mare Magical Blend, Magic At Midnight's value would be greatly enhanced should she win the G3 Maddy.

JO JO AIR
Owner: Andrew Farm & Mrs. Charlie O'Connor
Trainer: Wesley Ward
A two-time non-graded stakes winner, this 4-year-old filly by Scat Daddy is well traveled, evidenced by the fact her appearance in the Maddy will mark the ninth different track she's competed at in what will be her 13th start—all of them turf sprints. Most recently well beaten as the 4-5 favorite over a yielding course in a five-furlong stakes at Pimlico Oct. 1, Jo Jo Air rallied to take Del Mar's five-furlong Daiseycutter by a neck two starts back on July 24 under Flavien Prat, with whom she'll be reunited on Saturday. A $325,000 Keeneland September Yearling, Jo Jo Air, who is out of the Grand Slam mare Tessie Flip, will be competing in her first ever graded stakes. With an overall mark of 12-4-1-0, she has earnings of $201,474.

AN EDDIE SURPRISE
Owner: Reddam Racing, LLC
Trainer: Doug O'Neill
The leading money earner in the field, this Reddam Racing homebred 5-year-old mare by Square Eddie has been idle since rallying to win the 5 1/2-furlong turf Wishing Well Stakes at Santa Anita on Feb. 17 and looms dangerous over a course she adores. A California-bred, she's out of the High Demand mare Dani Reese and all five of her career wins have come over the Santa Anita lawn. With an overall mark of 26-5-9-4, An Eddie Surprise will be handled by regular rider Mario Gutierrez as she tries to pad her earnings of $341,952.

G3 SENATOR KEN MADDY STAKES
WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER

Race 8 of 10 Approximate post time 4:30 p.m. PT

Jo Jo Air—Flavien Prat—124
Biddy Duke—Juan Hernandez–118
An Eddie Surprise—Mario Gutierrez—124
Lakerball—Mike Smith—124
Magic At Midnight—Abel Cedillo—122
Aqua Seaform Shame—Umberto Rispoli–118
Zee Drop—Ricky Gonzalez—122

First post time for a 10-race card on Saturday is at 1 p.m. Santa Anita's races can be viewed live and free of charge at santaanita.com

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Warren’s Showtime Gives Craig Lewis 1,000th Career Victory In Autumn Miss Stakes

In what amounted to a storybook ending, Benjamin and Sally Warren's homebred Warren's Showtime pinned her ears late and would not be denied en route to a gutty neck victory in Saturday's Grade 3, $100,000 Autumn Miss Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif. Ridden by Flavien Prat, the 3-year-old chestnut daughter of Clubhouse Ride provided trainer Craig Lewis with his 1,000th career victory while getting a flat mile on turf in 1:33.77.

Breaking sharply from her number five post position, Warren's Showtime was immediately taken off the pace while a joint fourth, about six lengths off of pace-setting Quiet Secretary mid-way around the clubhouse turn. Fifth by a similar margin three furlongs out, Warren's Showtime wheeled four-wide at the top of the stretch and, in a resolute effort, overhauled Going to Vegas close home to notch her first graded stakes win while providing Lewis with his career milestone.

“What was going through my mind was she might not get there!” said Lewis. “I've been very fortunate. I've had a lot of great horses in my career. Cutlass Reality…Music Merci…Larry the Legend. I've had multiple other good horses and a lot of great owners. I'm very thankful and feel very fortunate, very grateful to be in this situation.

“Fillies like her (bring me back). There are a lot of bumps in the road. A trainer's life is not all pie and ice cream, but when things like this happen it makes it all worthwhile. The early mornings, the things that go wrong. The difficult situations, but situations like this overcome all the negative involved.”

Most recently a close third at a mile and one eighth on turf in the G1 Del Mar Oaks Aug. 22, Warren's Showtime, who is out of the Warrens' G1 stakes winner Warren's Veneda, was the solid 3-5 favorite in a field of seven sophomore fillies and paid $3.40, $2.60 and $2.20.

“I've been on her in the morning and I was pretty pleased with the way she was going,” said Prat, who had never ridden Warren's Showtime in the afternoon. “She's always running in great races. She definitely deserved a graded stakes (win). She definitely gives you everything. I thought it was a pretty strong pace up front, so I was taking my time and when I asked her to go she responded well.”

The lone California-bred in the field, Warren's Showtime picked up her fifth stakes win and improved her overall mark to 13-6-0-5. With the winner's share of $60,000 she increased her earnings to $520,251.

Attentive to the pace throughout, longshot Going to Vegas ran too good to lose under Mario Gutierrez, as she finished a half length in front of her stablemate Nasty. Trained by Richard Baltas, Going to Vegas was off at 14-1 and paid $8.40 and $3.80.

Second throughout, Nasty got on terms with Quiet Secretary at the quarter pole and made the lead inside the eighth pole, but was third-best on the day. Off at 7-1 with Ricky Gonzalez up, she paid $4.20 to show.

Fractions on the race were 22.50, 45.42, 1:09.69 and 1:21.65.

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Justify, Hoppertunity Disqualification Hearings Should Be Held, California Judge Rules

The connections of 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify and Grade 1 winner Hoppertunity on Thursday were thwarted in their attempt to stave off an Oct. 29 hearing before California Horse Racing Board stewards concerning possible disqualification from April 2018 victories by the two horses at Santa Anita Park because of failed drug tests.

Both horses tested positive for the banned substance scopolamine: Justify, after his win in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby; and Hoppertunity in the Grade 3 Tokyo City Cup.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge James C. Chalfant denied an application for a temporary restraining order requested by attorneys for WinStar Farm, China Horse Club, Head of Plains Partners, and Starlight Racing, the owners of Justify, and Michael Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman, the owners of Hoppertunity. Trainer Bob Baffert and jockeys Mike Smith and Flavien Prat were also named as petitioners in the case.

Earlier this year, the CHRB settled a lawsuit filed by Mick Ruis, owner of Santa Anita Derby runner-up Bolt d'Oro, conditional on the stewards conducting a hearing into Justify's positive drug test. The case was not pursued in 2018 after CHRB members voted unanimously in closed-door executive session – upon the recommendation of equine medical director Dr. Rick Arthur and then-CHRB executive director Rick Baedekr – not to file complaints. Arthur and Baedeker had investigated the cases and concluded the positive tests were a result of hay contaminated with jimson weed.

Ruis filed suit after learning of the CHRB's actions from a 2019 report in the New York Times.

Attorneys for the connections of the two horses argued that the CHRB was violating government code by reopening a case more than two years after the fact. Attorneys for the state said the petitioners were premature in seeking judicial review because the cases had not yet gone through the administrative process (i.e., a stewards hearing).

“At this hearing, the parties will have the opportunity to present evidence and make argument,” the state said in its opposition to the restraining order. “After the hearing, the Board of Stewards will render a decision. The decision by the Board of Stewards could be in favor of Petitioners or could be against Petitioners. If Petitioners take issue with the decision by the Board of Stewards following the Oct. 29, 2020, hearing, they can file a petition for writ of mandate. … Instead of following the procedures set forth by California law, Petitioners want this court to prematurely intervene and short-circuit the administrative processes of the CHRB.”

Darrell Vienna, an attorney for Ruis, issued a statement after the ruling that stated: “We are pleased that Judge Chalfant saw through this flimsy attempt to delay or avoid a long overdue and proper treatment of the positive tests involving these two horses.”

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Prat Takes Over On Warren’s Showtime For Autumn Miss Stakes

A four-time stakes winner in search of her first graded victory, California-bred Warren's Showtime heads a field of seven sophomore fillies going one mile on turf in Saturday's Grade 3, $100,000 Autumn Miss Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.

Owned by Ben and Sally Warren and bred by Ben Warren, Warren's Showtime is trained by Craig Lewis and is by red-hot sire Clubhouse Ride, out of the Warrens' G1-winning Warren's Veneda. Most recently a close third in the G1 Del Mar Oaks, Warren's Showtime is the leading money earner in the field with $460,251.

The Jeff Mullins-trained Croughavouke, a sharp recent one mile turf allowance winner, the Simon Callaghan-trained Mind Out, who fetched $850,000 as a yearling, Leonard Powell's French-bred Guitty, who faced colts in the Del Mar Derby and midwestern invader Nasty, who will be making her first start for Richard Baltas, all would appear to have legitimate chances.

WARREN'S SHOWTIME
Owner: Ben & Sally Warren
Trainer: Craig Lewis
Most recently third, beaten 1 1/2 lengths going a mile and one eighth on turf in the G1 Del Mar Oaks Aug. 22, she has been a gem of consistency for her connections, winning three times from seven starts this year while third on three occasions and banking $333,980. In the Oaks at Del Mar, she appeared to have the race in hand under Mike Smith as she made the lead and opened up by one length a furlong out but may have lost her focus late. Ridden in her 11 previous tries by Jorge Velez, she'll get the first-time services of Flavien Prat and will get back to what may be a preferred distance, as she's four for seven at a mile on turf. With three wins from four tries over the Santa Anita grass, she's 12-5-0-5 overall.

CROUGHAVOUKE
Owner: Red Baron's Barn & Rancho Temescal, LLC
Trainer: Jeff Mullins
Highly regarded by Mullins since her arrival from her native Ireland late last year, she's placed in a total of four turf stakes in nine Southern California starts, including a close third in the G3, mile and one eighth Honeymoon three starts back on May 30. Closer to the pace in her one mile turf allowance score on Aug. 29 at Del Mar, she rolled to an impressive three quarter length win as the 2-1 favorite under Umberto Rispoli, who rides back in the Autumn Miss. With an overall mark of 11-2-3-2, Croughavouke seeks her first graded stakes victory on Saturday.

MIND OUT
Owner: Gainesway Stable, LNJ Foxwoods & Andrew Rosen
Trainer: Simon Callaghan
Most recently fourth, beaten three lengths by loose on the lead winner BulletproofOne in the 5 1/2-furlong turf Unzip Me Stakes, this chestnut daughter of Tapit is better suited at one mile on turf and figures to run a huge race on Saturday. A close third to Warren's Showtime in her second career start, the one mile turf Surfer Girl Stakes five starts back on Oct. 6, 2019, Mind Out has the class and running style to spring a mild upset. She'll be ridden for the first time by Drayden Van Dyke.

GUITTY
Owner: Benowitz Family Trust, Madaket Stables, LLC, M. Mathiesen & M. Powell
Trainer: Leonard Powell
A deep closer at any distance, she was far back early going a mile and one eighth on turf in the G2 Del Mar Derby Sept. 6 and finished well to be beaten 5 1/4 lengths. An even seventh two back in the G1 Del Mar Oaks at the same distance Aug. 22, she flew late to be second, beaten three quarter of a length in the G2 San Clemente at one mile on turf July 25. With two wins, both at a mile on turf, from 10 overall starts, Guitty will hope to be rolling from off the pace with top jock Juan Hernandez engaged.

NASTY
Owner: LNJ Foxwoods
Trainer: Richard Baltas
Most recently well beaten as the 7-2 favorite in an ungraded one mile turf stakes running over a yielding course at Indiana Grand Aug. 12, this Kentucky-bred filly by Street Sense had pressed the pace in two previous 1 1/16-mile turf races at Indiana, breaking her maiden by eight lengths on June 18 and taking a second condition allowance by one length on July 13 while favored on both occasions. Previously trained by Brad Cox, she has two wins from five starts and will debut for Baltas while ridden for the first time by Ricky Gonzalez. Out of the Lion Heart mare Valiant Passion, Nasty was purchased for $230,000 as a Keeneland September Yearling.

G3 AUTUMN MISS STAKES WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER

Race 9 of 10 Approximate post time 5 p.m. PT

Mind Out—Drayden Van Dyke—120
Quiet Secretary—Victor Espinoza—120
Nasty—Ricky Gonzalez—120
Guitty—Juan Hernandez—120
Warren's Showtime—Flavien Prat—122
Going to Vegas—Mario Gutierrez–120
Croughavouke—Umberto Rispoli—120

First post time for a 10-race card on Saturday is at 1 p.m. Although there is no public admittance, Santa Anita's races can be viewed free of charge, via livestream video at santaanita.com.

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