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Smooth Like Strait Prompt Favorite In Mathis Brothers Mile

Cannon Thoroughbreds' homebred Smooth Like Strait continued his dominance of the West Coast's 3-year-old male turf division in Saturday's Grade 2 Mathis Brothers Mile Stakes on opening day at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif., taking over from front-running Storm the Court in the stretch and winning comfortably by three-quarters of a length.

Ridden by Umberto Rispoli, the Midnight Lute colt trained by Michael McCarthy covered one mile on a firm turf course in 1:33.51 and paid $3.60 as the 4-5 favorite. Storm the Court held second by a half-length at 10-1 odds after setting fractions of :23.02, :46.49, 1:10.12 and 1:21.67. Whisper Not, the 5-2 second choice in the wagering, finished third in the field of seven 3-year-olds, a head in front of Field Pass, with Scarto fifth, Strongconstitution sixth and Heywoods Beach seventh.

Smooth Like Strait, coming off a head defeat to East Coast invader Domestic Spending in the G1 Hollywood Derby at Del Mar on Nov. 28, broke smoothly and sat just off Storm the Court throughout. Rispoli edged the colt up alongside Storm the Court at the top of the stretch and quickly put his head in front, but Storm the Court fought back and only gave way grudgingly in the final sixteenth.

“We knew Storm the Court would be going for the lead, so I just wanted to sit back of him,” said Rispoli, who has now won two of his last three races aboard Smooth Like Strait. “We got the perfect trip…When it came time to ask him in the stretch, he was ready to go.”

The victory was the sixth in 12 stars for the Kentucky-bred Smooth Like Strait, who was produced from the Flower Alley mare, Smooth As Usual. He's won four graded stakes, all in Southern California, and added the listed War Chant at Churchill Downs in May.

“I was surprised at how well he came out of the Hollywood Derby,” said McCarthy. “He put in a couple of works that were I thought maintenance type works, but everything he was showing me in the morning, and the way he was acting around the barn. I thought about it for a couple of days whether we should go or wait until March, give him a little bit of a break over the winter. But he acted like he had his mind on running today and I'm glad we got him over here.”

McCarthy said Smooth Like Strait will get a short break before pointing to two G1 races in the spring, the Frank E. Kilroe Mile on March 6, and the Shoemaker Mile on May 31.

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Romans Has Trio Nominated To Jan. 2 Mucho Macho Man At Gulfstream Park

Albaugh Family Stables LLC's Smiley Sobotka and Sittin On Go are prominent on the list of nominations for the $100,000 Mucho Macho Man, a one-turn mile stakes that will kick off the Road to the Florida Derby (G1) for newly turned 3-year-olds Jan. 2 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

The Mucho Macho Man will headline a program with four other stakes that will be renewed this year Lasix-free, including the $75,000 Ginger Brew, the $75,000 Dania Beach, the $75,000 Limehouse, and the $75,000 Glitter Woman.

Dale Romans-trained Smiley Sobotka and Sittin On Go are both sons of Albaugh Family Stables LLC's Brody's Cause, whom Romans saddled for victories in the 2015 Breeders' Futurity (G1) and 2016 Blue Grass (G1).

Smiley Sobotka followed up a dominating maiden score at Keeneland with a close-up second in the Nov. 28 Kentucky Jockey Club (G2) at Churchill last time out. The Ontario-bred colt was pressured while setting or prompting the pace from the inside throughout the 1 1/16-mile race but held gamely to finish less than a length behind Keepmeinmind.

Sittin On Go finished an even sixth in the Kentucky Jockey Club and finished well back in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) at Keeneland, but the Kentucky-bred colt had won his previous two races, including the Iroquois (G3) at Churchill.

Romans is also represented on the list of nominations by Jim Bakke and Gerry Isbister's Ultimate Badger, who finished off the board in the Kentucky Jockey Club.

Shadwell Stable's Mutasaabeq, a winner on both turf and dirt, is also a Mucho Macho Man nominee with a high profile. After 4 ½-length debut winner and third-place finisher over Saratoga's main track, Mutasaabeq earned graded-stakes status with a going-away 2 ½-length romp in the Bourbon (G2) over Keeneland's turf course. The Todd Pletcher-trained son of Into Mischief turned in a disappointing off-the-board finish in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) at Keeneland in his 2020 finale. Mutasaabeq is also nominated to the Dania Beach and the Limehouse.

Repole Stable, St. Elias Stable and Stonestreet Stables LLC's Likeable, an impressive maiden winner at Belmont prior to finishing off the board in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) at Keeneland, is also nominated.

Trainer Gustavo Delgado is represented on the noms list by a pair of impressive debut winners, OGMA Investments LLC and Off the Hook LLC's Jirafales and Top Racing LLC's Ocean Ride. Jirafales overcame a jump at the start of his Gulfstream Park West debut to pull away by nearly five lengths Nov. 19. Ocean Ride overcame the rail post, a slow start and a bump to graduate at first asking at Gulfstream Park West Nov. 28. Both colts are also nominated to the Limehouse.

Breeze Easy LLC's Easy Time, a Mark Casse-trained son of Not This Time, has been nominated to the Mucho Macho Man off a strong debut score at Woodbine.

Alex and Joanne Lieblong's Big Thorn, a David Fawkes-trained son of The Big Beast, earned a Mucho Macho Man nomination while winning the Gulfstream Park West Juvenile Sprint by 4 ½ lengths.

Trainer Kathy Ritvo, who saddled Mucho Macho Man for a victory in the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Santa Anita in 2013, is represented on the noms list by Raison d'Air, who graduated by 13 ½ lengths before finishing fourth in the Armed Forces. Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, who campaigned Mucho Macho Man, owns Raison d'Air.

The Ginger Brew, a mile turf stakes for 3-year-old fillies, drew 20 nominations, including multiple stakes-placed Con Lima, a Pletcher-trained daughter of Commissioner who scored by more than five lengths in her recent turf debut at Gulfstream.

The Dania Beach, a mile turf stakes for 3-year-olds attracted 21 nominations, including Patricia's Hope LLC's Like a Saltshaker, who finished second in the Awad on turf at Belmont two starts back and previously won a stakes over Presque Isle Downs' synthetic surface.

The Limehouse, a six-furlong sprint for 3-year-olds, received 18 including a trio of highly promising colts trained by Saffie Joseph Jr.

The Glitter Woman, a 6 ½-furlong sprint for 3-year-old fillies, draw 17 nominations, including Mark Casse-trained Dirty Dangle, a stakes winner at Woodbine before finishing off the board in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Filly Turf (G1).

Three stakes will ring in the New Year on the Jan. 1 program – the $75,000 Cash Run, a mile stakes for fillies and mares, the $75,000 Abundantia, a five-furlong turf sprint for fillies and mares, and the $75,000 Janus, a five-furlong turf dash for 4-year-olds and up.

Saturday Rainbow 6 Guarantee $400,000
The 20-cent Rainbow 6 will have a guaranteed pool of $400,000 when racing resumes Saturday, Dec. 26.

The sequence will begin with the H. Allen Jerkens at two miles and include the Tropical Park Derby and Tropical Park Oaks.

The jackpot pool is only paid out when there is a single unique ticket sold with all six winners. On days when there is no unique ticket, 70 percent of that day's pool goes back to those bettors holding tickets with the most winners, while 30 percent is carried over to the jackpot pool.

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California-Bred Play Chicken All Heart In King Glorious At Los Alamitos

Play Chicken, a 13-1 outsider, held off Moving Fast, another longshot at 16-1, to win the $100,000 King Glorious Stakes Sunday, the final day of the Los Angeles County Fair Winter meet at Los Alamitos in Cypress, Calif.

Under jockey Mario Gutierrez, the son of Square Eddie and the Distorted Humor mare Smoove was reserved just off the pace, gained the advantage with an eighth of a mile to run and held sway by a neck in the race for 2-year-olds bred or sired in California.

The win was the third in the King Glorious for Gutierrez, owner-breeder J. Paul Reddam's Reddam Racing LLC and trainer Doug O'Neill. They teamed to win back-to-back runnings with Found Money (2015) and Ann Arbor Eddie (2016).

Making his first start in blinkers, Play Chicken completed the mile in 1:38.10 and returned $29, $10.60 and $7.80. He's now won twice in three races and earned $94,000. He broke his maiden at the King Glorious distance on turf in his debut Oct. 17 at Santa Anita.

“I thought it was great,'' said O'Neill assistant Stephanie Murray. “He showed a lot of heart. He was very gutsy, couldn't have asked for him to do anymore. We just wanted to play the break and see how the race unfolded.

“It was kind of his (Gutierrez) decision from the get go, so I think Mario gets all the credit.''

Moving Fast, who drew into the race from the also eligible list after the scratch of Positivity (he ran in the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity Saturday), rallied after breaking last in the field of 10 to outfinish 15-1 shot Club Cal by a half-length. He paid $11 and $7.20 after his initial race in blinkers while the show price on Club Cal, a four-length maiden winner two weeks earlier in his Los Alamitos debut, was $5.80.

Mister Bold, the 19-10 favorite and the pacesetter, wound up fourth, a nose in front of 2-1 second choice Good With People. Tacoflavoredkisses, From the Get Go, Ascot Storm, Wedding Groom and Govenor's Party completed the order of finish.

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Jevian Toledo Seizes The Day With Four Winners At Laurel Park

Robert L. Cole's Seize the Day went all the way on the lead to cap a four-win afternoon for jockey Jevian Toledo Sunday at Laurel Park in Laurel, Md.

Seize the Day ($3.60), trained by Ben Feliciano Jr., was a pickup mount for Toledo in Sunday's ninth-race finale, replacing Julian Pimentel in the seven-furlong claimer for 3-year-olds and up.

Toledo also won twice Sunday for trainer Anthony Farrior aboard Lectric Choke ($10) in Race 2 and Union Song ($14.60) in Race 4. Toledo's other win came with Carlos Mancilla-trained Catch the Sky ($4.80) in Race 7.

“It was a really nice day. I looked at the program and my horses, a couple of them were favorites but the other ones weren't but they had some chance. Thank God we had some really nice trips,” Toledo said. “A few of them, I could go to the rail and it opened up for me and that was the key. When you have a good horse with a nice trip, you're going to win races.”

Union Song, a 4-year-old daughter of Belmont Stakes (G1) winner Union Rags, was being ridden for the third straight race by Toledo. Two starts back she was beaten a neck when second in a one-mile claimer Nov. 8, and last out she reared at the break and raced wide when fourth in an optional claimer going the same distance Dec. 3.

“They were schooling her for this race,” Toledo said. “The last time she kind of broke bad and they worked with her for this race. Anthony did a really good job with her and we got some room on the rail and she went through perfect.”

Represented by agent Marty Leonard, Toledo is second with 33 wins at Laurel's fall meet which wraps up Dec. 27. He trails Leonard's other client, Sheldon Russell, by nine wins with two days remaining.

“We're having a really good meet. I have to thank God and all the trainers and owners and my agent for doing a really good job,” Toledo said. “They've been helping me a lot and we've been doing good.”

Notes: Five-pound apprentice Alexander Crispin visited the winner's circle twice Sunday with Bananas On Fire ($4) in Race 3 and Oxide ($7) in Race 8 … There will be a $9,551.29 jackpot carryover in the 20-cent Rainbow 6 when live racing returns to Laurel Park Saturday, Dec. 26. Multiple tickets with all six winners Sunday each returned $704.98 … There will be no live racing at Laurel on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. The Christmastide Day program Dec. 26 will feature eight stakes worth $850,000 in purses led by the $150,000 Allaire du Pont (G3).

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