Phil D'Amato | Horse Racing Free Tips

Going Global Makes Stylish U.S. Debut In Sweet Life Stakes

In her first stateside start, Irish-bred Going Global unleashed a furious stretch rally to take Sunday's Grade 3, $100,000 Sweet Life Stakes at Santa Anita by a widening half length under Flavien Prat. Trained by Phil D'Amato, Going Global, who had been idle since Nov. 11 in her native Ireland, got six furlongs on turf in 1:07.68 at the Arcadia, Calif., oval.

Unhurried but in contention while about 6 ½ lengths off the lead at the half-mile pole, Going Global, in an eye-catching move, was able to save ground while full of run at the rail around the far turn, shifted into the four-path a furlong out and blew by front-running Five Pics Please in the shadow of the wire in a most impressive effort.

“I watched her last race and you could see she could run,” said Prat. “Phil talked to me this morning and said they really liked her. She's a little tough, likes to do things her way, but she was very professional.”

Purchased for $16,900 at public auction as a yearling, Going Global, who registered a 1 ¼-length win versus 13 rivals that included males on Nov. 11, had a steady series of drills on Santa Anita's inner dirt training track and paid $19.80, $9.60 and $6.60 while off at 8-1 in a field of 12 sophomore fillies.

“We were trying to point for an allowance race for the last couple weeks and it didn't come,” said D'Amato, who registered his sixth stake win of the meet. “It was one of those things. She trained well enough to where I thought she merited a chance in here. So, either run or wait a while until the allowance goes. Luckily, we were able to get Flavien here and a beautiful trip.

“I think the sky is the limit for this filly. Flavien hinted that she could definitely use some more ground, so we'll definitely look at the two turn stakes schedule here and go from there.”

Owned by Saul Gevertz, Michael Nentwig and Ray Pagano, Going Global, a filly by Mehmas out of the Invasor mare Wrood, now has two wins from five overall starts. With the winner's share of $60,000, she increased her earnings to $68,792.

Ridden by Tyler Baze, Five Pics Please set fractions of :21.65, :44.16 and :55.85 and held second by three quarters of a length over Nimbostratus. Off at 9-1, Five Pics Please paid $10.40 and $7.00.

French-bred Nimbostratus, with Joel Rosario up, paid $5.40 to show and finished 2 ½ lengths in front of 9-5 favorite Majestic Steps, who had no apparent excuses.

Note: Prat also went on to win Sunday's eighth and ninth races, giving him four on the day and 27 for the meet, putting Prat and Umberto Rispoli in a tie for the lead.

Racing resumes with an eight-race Presidents Day holiday card on Monday with a 12:30 p.m. PT first post.

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Mehmas Filly Flies Home in Sweet Life

The Phil D'Amato barn continued its hot streak with European imports in turf sprints as Going Global (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) uncorked a powerful rally to take Sunday's GIII Sweet Life S. at Santa Anita. Fourth in her best of three turf tries for Mick Halford in her native country, the bay broke through over seven furlongs of all-weather at Dundalk Nov. 11 before being acquired privately. She was let go at 8-1 in a full and competitive field despite her trainer's excellent numbers with European acquisitions, including four wins from his last four starts in the category. Finding a foothold at the fence and off the pace as Five Pics Please (Cinco Charlie) sped clear, Going Global made her move into a :44.16 half. She still had work to do as the frontrunner threatened to complete her theft, but Flavien Prat got her out in the clear with a sixteenth to race and she zoomed home to get up in the shadow of the wire. Nimbostratus (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) filled out the trifecta for some of the same owners as the winner.

Sunday, Santa Anita Park
SWEET LIFE S.-GIII, $103,500, Santa Anita, 2-14, 3yo, f, 6fT, 1:07.68, fm.
1–GOING GLOBAL (IRE), 122, f, 3, by Mehmas (Ire)
                1st Dam: Wrood, by Invasor (Arg)
                2nd Dam: Ras Shaikh, by Sheikh Albadou (GB)
                3rd Dam: Aneesati (GB), by Kris (GB)
1ST BLACK- TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. (€15,500
Ylg '19 GOFSPT). O-CYBT, Saul Gevertz, Michael Nentwig & Ray
Pagano; B-N. Hartery (IRE); T-Philip D'Amato; J-Flavien Prat.
$60,000. Lifetime Record: 5-2-0-0, $68,792. Werk Nick Rating:
   D+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Five Pics Please, 122, f, 3, Cinco Charlie–No Pictures Please,
by Congrats. O-Desert Sun Stables; B-Larry L. Caudill DVM (KY);
T-John W. Sadler. $20,000.
3–Nimbostratus (Fr), 122, f, 3, Wootton Bassett (GB)–Bahama
Spirit (Ire), by Invincible Spirit (Ire). (£65,000 Ylg '19 GOFFPR).
O-Altamira Racing Stable, CYBT, Marc Lantzman & Michael
Nentwig; B-Laundry Cottage Stud (FR); T-Peter Miller. $12,000.
Margins: HF, 3/4, 2HF. Odds: 8.90, 9.70, 6.40.
Also Ran: Majestic Steps (Ire), Squared Shady, I'm So Anna, Plum Sexy, Freedom Flyer, Royal Address (Ire), Magical Thought, Go Greta (GB), Pizzazz. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

“I watched her last race and you could see she could run,” Prat offered. “Phil talked to me this morning and said they really like her. She's a little tough, likes to do things her way, but she was very professional.”

“She trained very well,” said D'Amato, who won last week's Baffle S. for the boys with Earls Rock (Ire) (Fascinating Rock {Ire}) and the Clocker's Corner S. Jan. 24 with Gregorian Chant (GB) (Gregorian {Ire}) for another partnership that includes Michael Nentwig. “We were trying to point for an allowance race for the last couple weeks and it didn't come. It was just one of those things. She trained well enough to where I thought she merited a chance in here. So, either run or wait a while until the allowance goes. Luckily, we were able to get Flavien here and a beautiful trip. I think the sky is the limit for this filly.”

D'Amato added that, with Prat telling him that she should stretch out, his team would look at upcoming two-turn stakes for Going Global.

Nentwig was on hand to celebrate the win, and said: “Any time you step out and you pay a decent amount of money for a horse from Europe that you've only seen run on tape, you kind of put yourself out there and I have to kind of convince the partners that it's the right thing to do. Phil was very confident in the filly over there. I want to thank Niall [Dalton]. Without him, we wouldn't have the filly. I'm thrilled for everyone…it's a great win for the team.”

Pedigree Notes:
Tally-Ho Stud's Mehmas dominated among last year's crop of European freshman (Click for more), and is now responsible for six stakes winners (three group or graded), including G1 Newmarket Middle Park S. hero Supremacy (Ire) and Quattroelle (Ire), winner of this venue's one-mile Blue Norther S. here on New Year's Eve. Another Mehmas filly was beaten a neck in October's Surfer Girl S. here.

Going Global is the second graded winner and fourth stakes winner out of a mare by Hall of Famer Invasor (Arg), who now stands in Uruguay after limited Stateside success.

The winner's dam Wrood, also conditioned by Halford, was a two-time winner over 10 panels of Lingfield Polytrack. The half to GSW Racer Forever (Rahy) has a 2-year-old colt by Profitable (Ire) and a yearling filly by U S Navy Flag.

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Irish Imports Majestic Steps, Going Global Headline Sunday’s Sweet Life Stakes

An impressive winner of her U.S. debut going six furlongs on turf on Jan. 2, trainer Phil D'Amato's Irish-bred Majestic Steps figures tough right back among a competitive field of 12 sophomore fillies going the same distance out of Santa Anita's turf chute in Sunday's Grade 3, $100,000 Sweet Life Stakes.

D'Amato will also be represented by another Irish-bred in the Sweet Life, Going Global, who has been idle since defeating 13 rivals in open company going seven furlongs on synthetic Nov. 11 in Ireland. Although she's an unknown, she gets the services of Flavien Prat, which will likely ensure she gets ample pari-mutuel attention.

A four length maiden winner over the course on Jan. 2, trainer Simon Callaghan's impeccably bred Freedom Flyer rates a huge chance in what will be her sixth start. Another very interesting commodity is John Sadler's speedy Five Pics Please, who shipped in from Mountaineer Park and sped to a three quarter length gate to wire allowance tally here on Jan. 10.

Owned by Michael House, Majestic Steps did everything right in breaking her maiden here in her fifth career start Jan. 2. Mid-pack early as a field of nine fillies came out of the turf chute, she was in tight quarters between horses at the 3 ½ pole, knifed her way through while into the bridle, cut to the rail and appeared to idle a bit while awaiting room three sixteenths out.

With Umberto Rispoli at the controls, she unleashed an impressive turn of foot and like so many of D'Amato's turf runners, made a successful transition from a steady series of training track drills to a big performance sprinting on turf. Off at 8-1 in her U.S. debut, she figures to be a much shorter price in the Sweet Life, which will be her first group or graded assignment.

With a consistent diet of dirt drills on Santa Anita's inner training track to her credit, Going Global looms a huge question mark in this deep and competitive field. Owned by Saul Gevertz, Michael Nentwig, Ray Pagano and John Rochfort, Going Global was off at 16-1 in her maiden win over synthetic on Nov. 11 and it'll be interesting to see how the betting goes in her U.S. debut.

A $450,000 2-year-old in training sale purchase last April, Freedom Flyer, who is by Constitution out of the Carson City mare Rebuke, was off as the 5-2 favorite in a field of 10 going six furlongs on turf Jan. 2 and registered a resounding gate to wire score under Ricky Gonzalez, who rides her back. Owned by James D. Branham and Marsha Naify, Freedom Flyer has been off the board just once in five starts and should be well supported in the Sweet Life.

Richard Mandella's Pizzazz, who has routed on turf in her last four starts, including a close fourth in the Grade 3 Jimmy Durante Stakes at Del Mar two starts back on Nov. 28, would appear to have a big shot with Mike Smith riding back. A Bass Stables homebred daughter of War Front, she comes off a disappointing fourth in the one mile turf Blue Norther Stakes here on Dec. 31 and is one of several who figures to be rolling from off the pace.

Owned by Desert Sun Stables, Five Pics Please, who had not raced on turf in her previous three starts, was dismissed at 29-1 in her Southern California debut, but she sped to the lead with Rispoli and never looked back although she was tiring late. A Kentucky-bred daughter of the Indian Charlie stallion Cinco Charlie, she's out of the Congrats mare No Pictures Please. With Rispoli opting to stay with Majestic Steps, Sadler will look to Tyler Baze to execute a potential front-running heist.

Doug O'Neill's Plum Sexy, who closed much ground to be third, beaten 1 ¼ lengths by Five Pics Please on Jan. 10, would appreciate a fast pace and looms dangerous at a price with Heriberto Figueroa back aboard. Owned by C T R Stables, LLC, Wonderland Racing Stables, Bob and Sheila Bambauer and Steve Rothblum, Plum Sexy was a first-out maiden winner going 5 ½ furlongs on turf here and subsequently showed early speed before finishing eighth in the Jimmy Durante Stakes on Nov. 28 at Del Mar. With a hot pace likely, look or Plum Sexy to be back off the early pace on Sunday.

THE GRADE 3 SWEET LIFE STAKES WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER

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

Nimbostratus—Joel Rosario—122
Freedom Flyer—Ricardo Gonzalez—122
Going Global—Flavien Prat—122
Go Greta—Juan Hernandez—122
Squared Shady—Edwin Maldonado—122
Royal Address—Mario Gutierrez—124
Five Pics Please—Tyler Baze—122
Pizzazz—Mike Smith–122
Majestic Steps—Umberto Rispoli—122
Magical Thought—Ruben Fuentes—122
Plum Sexy—Heriberto Figueroa—122
I'm So Anna—Jessica Pyfer–124

First post time for a nine-race card on Sunday is at 12:30 p.m. For additional information, please visit santaanita.com.

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Earls Rock Shortens Up, Wins Baffle Stakes At Santa Anita

A lights-out maiden winner going a flat mile on turf in his U.S. debut Jan. 9, Irish-bred Earls Rock cut back in distance and further enhanced his status as an up-and-coming star with an impressive three-quarter length tally in Friday's $75,000 Baffle Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif. Trained by Phil D'Amato and ridden by Flavien Prat, Earls Rock rallied from off the pace to cover 6 ½ furlongs on turf in 1:16.15.

Breaking from his number two post position in a field of nine sophomores, Earls Rock was an unhurried sixth, about six lengths off speedy Mac Daddy Too heading into the far turn. Midway around the turn, Prat began to make up ground and split horses turning for home, just to the outside of the pacesetter.

Although eventual runner-up Beer Can Man loomed ominously three-deep, Earls Rock was up to the challenge in the final furlong and won going away in a manner that suggests he's a colt of considerable quality.

“The distance was a bit of a question mark, it was a little short for him,” said Prat, who was also aboard for the one mile maiden win. “But he relaxed well behind horses and when I asked him to go, he really cut.”

Second in his career debut Sept. 4 in Ireland, Earls Rock was off as the 4-5 favorite and paid $3.80, $3.00 and $2.60.

“This is about as short as he wants,” said D'Amato. “The jock rode a tremendous race. He was very patient and the way he split horses, it made all the difference.”

Owned by Anthony Fanticola, Earls Rock, who is by Fascinating Rock, out of Ajaadat, by Shamardal, is now two for three and with the winner's share of $49,320, more than doubled his earnings to $91,099.

Ridden by Juan Hernandez and trained by Mark Glatt, Beer Can Man, who was attentive to the pace throughout, finished 3 ¼ lengths in front of Mac Daddy Too. Off at 6-1, Beer Can Man paid $5.00 and $3.60.

Ridden by Abel Cedillo, Mac Daddy Too was off at 26-1 and paid $5.40 to show.

Fractions on the race were 23.06, 45.77 and 1:10.12.

The Baffle win gave Prat a triple on the day, while D'Amato collected his second win.

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