santa anita park | Horse Racing Free Tips

Maxfield ‘Ready To Take That Next Step’ In Santa Anita Handicap

Maxfield, an undefeated son of 2007 Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense, carries top weight of 124 pounds in Saturday's Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap presented by San Manuel Casino, Santa Anita's marquee event for older horses which will be run for the 84th time at The Great Race Place.

Winner of all five of his career races by daylight margins, coming from out of the clouds in his first three, Maxfield arrived at Santa Anita Wednesday from the Fair Grounds in New Orleans, where he had his final work Saturday for the mile and a quarter classic, going a half mile in 49.20.

“We've just been galloping and jogging him in the mornings since he arrived,” said his 47-year-old trainer, Irishman Brendan Walsh, who will be on hand for the race. The four-year-old colt is bedded down with trainer Simon Callaghan.

Maxfield won his debut race at Churchill Downs Sept. 14, 2019, coming from 10th at odds of 10-1 to score by three-parts of a length at a flat mile, then came back in his next start to capture the Grade 1 Breeders' Futurity at Keeneland at 6-1 by 5 ½ lengths, again in Silky Sullivan fashion.

He was successful yet again using those dramatic tactics in his three-year-old debut at Churchill Downs last May 23, closing from eighth, ridden in all three races by Jose Ortiz Jr.

In his last two races, Maxfield, owned and bred by global racing and breeding giant Godolphin, has been much closer to the pace. He won a restricted stakes at the Fair Grounds by 2 ½ lengths on Dec. 19, 2020, and the Grade 3 Mineshaft in his four-year-old debut by 3 ¾ lengths on Feb. 13, each time under Florent Geroux, who will be aboard again in the Big 'Cap. Maxfield's last four races have all been at 1 1/16 miles.

It may be worth noting that Maxfield faced smaller fields in his last two starts than he did in his first three, which could have accounted to his having been in closer attendance to the lead.

“He's just a stronger horse now,” Walsh said. “I think as a two-year-old he was a bit immature, maybe not that strong, and that's why he wasn't getting away from the gate super-fast, but that didn't seem to have a negative affect upon him. That said, his last three starts he's been a lot closer to the pace.”

Walsh, in his third year training for Godolphin, which owns and bred current undefeated Kentucky Derby favorite and Eclipse champion Essential Quality, concurred when asked if the mile and a quarter of the Big 'Cap seems ideal for Maxfield.

“Absolutely,” he said. “He's bred to get the mile and a quarter and his running style suits it, too. This will be a good test for him, having to travel out here and running on a different track, but we feel he's ready to take that next step.”

The Big 'Cap presented by San Manuel Casino, race 10 of 11 with a 12 noon first post time: Independence Hall, Flavien Prat, 4-1; Maxfield, Florent Geroux, 8-5; Kiss Today Goodbye, Mike Smith, 8-1; Coastal Defense, John Velazquez, 15-1; Express Train, Juan Hernandez, 3-1; Idol, Joel Rosario, 6-1; Tizamagician, Drayden Van Dyke, 12-1; and King Guillermo, Abel Cedillo, 12-1.

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Baffert-Trained Kalypso Headlines Sunday’s Oaks Prep At Santa Anita Park

Bob Baffert's well accomplished Kalypso heads a field of five sophomore fillies going a mile and one sixteenth in Sunday's Grade 3, $100,000 Santa Ysabel Stakes at Santa Anita. Baffert will also be represented by Baoma Corporation's Beautiful Gift as well as Pegram, Watson and Weitman's Heels Up in a race that Baffert has won a record five times.

With 50 Kentucky Oaks qualifying points to be awarded to the winner, the Santa Ynez takes on added significance as America's biggest race for 3-year-old fillies looms on April 30 at Churchill Downs. Saturday's second, third and fourth place finishers will receive 20, 15 and five points respectively.

Third, beaten 1 ¾ lengths by Kalypso in the Grade 3 Las Virgenes Stakes here on Feb. 6, trainer Michael McCarthy's Moraz will likely go as the second choice in the Santa Ysabel, which will be her fourth career start. A recent mile and one sixteenth maiden winner at Golden Gate Fields, McCarthy's A Real Hero will be a longshot with Flavien Prat aboard.

Owned by David Bernsen, LLC and Rockingham Ranch, Kalyspo, a Kentucky-bred daughter of Brody's Cause, out of the Malibu Moon mare Malibu Cove, broke her maiden going six furlongs four starts back in the ungraded Anoakia Stakes on Oct. 18 and then showed the way prior to running second, beaten 1 ½ lengths going 1 1/16 miles in the Grade 1 Starlet Stakes at Los Alamitos Dec. 5.

Off at 4-5 in the Grade 2 Santa Ynez Stakes going seven furlongs on Jan. 3, Kalypso pressed the pace and prevailed by 1 ¾ lengths. Subsequently second as the even money favorite going one mile in the Grade 3 Las Virgenes Stakes on Feb. 6, she was no match for Richard Mandella's Moonlight d'Oro, who rallied powerfully through the lane to prevail by 1 ½ lengths.

Although second twice at two turns, Kalypso, who will be making her seventh start, retains the services of Joel Rosario and is strictly the horse to beat on Sunday.

Owned by her breeder, Don Alberto Corporation, Moraz, who was a dazzling 11 length maiden winner going a flat mile two starts back on Jan. 8, kept to her task in the Las Virgenes when beaten 1 ¾ lengths by the top selection and her connections are hoping she has enough upside to turn the tables.

By Empire Maker out of the A.P. Indy mare Malvinia, Moraz will be making her fourth start and be handled by regular rider Umberto Rispoli.

Bet down to 3-5 as she stretched out to a flat mile in her second start on Oct. 23, Baoma Corporation's homebred Beautiful Gift stalked the early pace and rallied gamely for a half length win. By Medaglia d'Oro out of the A.P. Indy mare Sea Gift, Beautiful Gift also appears to have ample upside and will be ridden for the first time by John Velazquez.

Baffert's Heels Up, who has been idle since running third in the 6 ½ furlongs Dezi Arnaz Stakes Nov. 14 at Del Mar, will be stretching out for the first time in what will be her fourth start. Owned by Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman, Heels Up, a daughter of Twirling Candy out of the Tale of the Cat mare Tale Untold, will likely be forwardly placed under Drayden Van Dyke, who will be aboard for the first time.

THE GRADE 3 SANTA YSABEL WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER

Race 4 of 9 Approximate post time 2 p.m. PT

A Real Hero—Flavien Prat—120
Beautiful Gift—John Velazquez—120
Heels Up—Drayden Van Dyke—120
Kalypso—Joel Rosario—120
Moraz—Umberto Rispoli—120

First post time for a nine-race card on Sunday is at 12:30 p.m. All of Santa Anita's races are offered free of charge at santaanita.com/live and fans can wager at 1st.com/bet. For additional information, please visit santaanita.com or call (626) 574-RACE.

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Friday’s Stronach 5 Features Pair Of Turf Races, Four Tracks

A maiden special weight event at Santa Anita Park featuring the Baffert Stable's 3-year-old colt Fenway and two turf races from Gulfstream Park highlight this week's popular Stronach 5.

Friday's Stronach 5 will also feature races from Laurel Park and Golden Gate Fields along with an industry-low 12-percent takeout.

The opening leg of the Stronach 5 will begin at 3:55 ET with Laurel's eighth race, a 5 ½ furlong allowance event for 4-year-olds and up. Kingston Pike (4-1) enters off a three-length victory against claiming company while Josef Is Real (9-2) enters off a second-place finish against allowance company. Bourbon Street (6-1) goes first time off the claim for trainer Anthony Farrior.

Gulfstream's seventh race, a mile turf event for 3-year-old filly with a $35,000 claiming tag, serves as the second leg of the Stronach 5 and Celestial Cheetah is the 9-5 favorite. The daughter of Social Inclusion won her 3-year-old debut by 6 ¼ lengths after finishing sixth Dec. 5 in the Demoiselle (G2).

The third race at Santa Anita – the third leg of the Stronach 5 – is a mile maiden special weight event for 3-year-old colts. Trainer Bob Baffert will send out Fenway, a $650,000 son of Into Mischief who finished second Feb. 15. John Velazquez has been named to ride. Trainer Mike Puype has the 2-1 morning-line favorite in Harbored Memories, a homebred son of Harbor the Gold who comes off a pair of second-place finishes at Santa Anita. Flavien Prat has the call. Hronis Racing LLC's Star Sailor, a $275,000 son of Union Rags, enters the event for trainer John Sadler off a third-place finish, two lengths behind Fenway. Baffert will also send out Hudson Ridge, a son of American Pharoah who finished sixth in his debut Feb. 5.

The action moves to Golden Gate for its third race and the fourth leg of the sequence. The $8,000 maiden claiming event at 5 ½ furlongs has a 5-2 favorite in Mattawa N That. The gelded son of Eddington has finished second in his previous two starts for trainer Blaine Wright. Breaking from the rail is Flash of Gray, fifth in his debut Feb 13.

The Stronach 5 concludes with Gulfstream's ninth race, an allowance optional claimer at a mile on the turf. Witez will race for the first time since a fifth-place finish in the Mrs. Revere (G3) at Churchill Downs Nov. 14 and a fourth-place finish in the Valley View (G3) at Keeneland Oct. 16. Over the summer the 4-year-old daughter of More Than Ready finished third in the Lake George (G3) at Saratoga. Kissing Frogs is the race favorite. Trained by Bill Mott, the lightly-raced daughter of Cairo Prince is undefeated in her only two turf races.

Friday's races and sequence

Leg One – Laurel Park 8th Race: (13 entries, 5 ½ furlongs) 3:55 ET, 12:55 PT
Leg Two – Gulfstream Park 7th Race: (7 entries, 1-mile turf) 4:12 ET, 1:12 PT
Leg Three –Santa Anita Park 3rd Race: (8 entries, 1 mile) 4:35 ET, 1:35 PT
Leg Four –Golden Gate Fields 3rd Race: (8 entries, 5 ½ furlongs) 4:53 ET, 1:53 PT
Leg Five –Gulfstream Park 9th Race: (10 entries, 1-mile turf) 5:16 ET, 2:16 PT

Fans can watch and wager on the action at 1/ST.COM/BET as well as stream all the action in English and Spanish at LaurelPark.com, SantaAnita.com, GulfstreamPark.com, and GoldenGateFields.com.

The Stronach 5 In the Money podcast, hosted by Jonathan Kinchen and Peter Thomas Fornatale, will be posted by 2 p.m. Thursday at InTheMoneyPodcast.com and will be available on iTunes and other major podcast distributors

The minimum wager on the multi-race, multi-track Stronach 5 is $1. If there are no tickets with five winners, the entire pool will be carried over to the next Friday.

If a change in racing surface is made after the wagering closes, each selection on any ticket will be considered a winning selection. If a betting interest is scratched, that selection will be substituted with the favorite in the win pool when wagering closes.

The Maryland Jockey Club serves as host of the Stronach 5.

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Smooth Like Strait Tops Competitive Group In Frank Kilroe Mile

In what may be the best betting race of the day, trainer Michael McCarthy's Smooth Like Strait heads a deep and competitive field of 10 older horses in Saturday's Grade 1, $400,000 Frank E. Kilroe Mile (turf) at Santa Anita.

A winner of the opening day Mathis Brothers Mile on Dec. 26, Cannon Thoroughbreds' homebred Smooth Like Strait is a head away from three consecutive graded stakes wins and merits top billing in a close call over recent lights-out Grade 3 winner Hit the Road.

With a strong local contingent in place, the Kilroe has also attracted five quality eastern shippers, headed by Chad Brown's Flavius, Todd Pletcher's Social Paranoia and Mark Casse's Ride a Comet.

Forwardly placed in nearly all of his races, Smooth Like Strait pressed the early pace set by Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner Storm the Court in the Mathis Brothers Mile and went on to a solid three quarter length win at odds of 4-5. With Umberto Rispoli at the controls, Smooth Like Strait won three graded stakes last year, dating back to the Grade 3 La Jolla Handicap five starts back on Aug. 9.

A gem of consistency, this 4-year-old colt by Midnight Lute out of the Flower Alley mare Smooth as Usual, has been favored in seven out of his last eight starts, including a narrow defeat two starts back in the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby on Nov. 28 at Del Mar. With three wins and a second from five tries at one mile on turf, Smooth Like Strait is 12-6-2-1 overall with earnings of $577,823.

Idle since winning the restricted one mile turf Oceanside Stakes July 10, trainer Dan Blacker's Hit the Road unfurled a tremendous stretch run to take the Grade 3 Thunder Road Stakes over the course by 3 ¾ lengths and left little doubt he has tremendous upside. With a career-best 99 Beyer Speed figure in hand, Hit the Road, a 4-year-old colt by More Than Ready, seeks his fourth consecutive win on Saturday.

Owned by D K Racing, LLC, Radley Equine, Inc., Taste of Victory Stables, Rick Gold and Dave Odmark, Hit the Road, who had been ridden in his last three starts by Rispoli, will get the first time services of Florent Geroux, as Rispoli, in a very tough call for him and his agent Scotty McClellan, sticks with Smooth Like Strait. With five wins from seven starts at one mile on turf, Hit the Road is five for eight overall with earnings of $254,751.

Second, beaten three quarters of a length at 5-2 in the Grade 2 Seabiscuit Handicap at Del Mar Nov. 28, Juddmonte Farms' homebred Flavius would be flattered by a fast Kilroe pace with Flavien Prat aboard for the first time. Two for three in Ireland, this 6-year-old full horse by War Front has one win from six stateside starts, which came in a one mile turf ungraded stakes three starts back at Kentucky Downs Sept. 7.

Fourth, beaten 2 ¾ lengths at 9-1 in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational at 1 3/16 miles Jan. 23, millionaire Social Paranoia, who will be ridden for the first time by Abel Cedillo, is unbeaten in three tries at one mile on turf and rates an upset chance as he makes his second Grade 1 appearance at age five.

A winner of his last four starts, three of them in graded stakes, Ride a Comet, a 6-year-old full horse by Candy Ride, will be reunited with Drayden Van Dyke, who last rode him four starts back, when he orchestrated a come-from-behind victory in the Grade 2 Del Mar Derby on Sept. 2, 2018.

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