Tag: santa barbara stakes

Neige Blanche Set For Marathon Trip In Monday’s Astra Stakes

Trainer Leonard Powell, him self a French native, will send out like favorite Neige Blanche (white snow) a 5-year-old French-bred mare, in Monday's Grade 3, $125,000 Astra Stakes at Santa Anita. For older fillies and mares with a hillside start at a marathon 1 1/2 miles on turf, the Astra has attracted a field of five.

A winner of the G3 Santa Barbara Stakes going the same distance five starts back on May, 2021, Neige Blanche has maintained a consistent form, winning an ungraded stakes at 1 3/8 miles on turf three starts back on Aug. 14 at Del Mar, and winning her most recent assignment, the G3 Red Carpet Handicap at a mile and three eighths on turf Nov. 25.

A winner of three of her six starts in her native France, Neige Blanche has won three of her nine stateside starts with Powell, including winning three out of six last year and a career-best $204,168. Owned by Madaket Stables, LLC, Laura DeSeroux, Marsh Naify and Mathilde Powell, Neige Blanche took the Red Carpet in gate to wire fashion but has also proven effective stalking the pace in marathon scenarios. With an overall mark of 15-6-0-3, she's the leading money earner in the field with $315,280 and will be ridden for the seventh consecutive time by Juan Hernandez.

California-bred Reiwa, a winner of two consecutive allowance races on Oct. 30 and Nov. 20 at Golden Gate Fields, comes off a fourth place finish in the ungraded Miss America Stakes going a mile and one sixteenth on Dec. 12. Trained by Jonathan Wong, Reiwa, a 5-year-old mare by the El Prado stallion James Street, is 18-4-5-0 overall and will be looking for her first stakes win with Umberto Rispoli up.

THE GRADE 3 ASTRA WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER

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

  1. Neige Blanche—Juan Hernandez—124
  2. Disappearing Act—Flavien Prat—120
  3. Frose—Mario Gutierrez—120
  4. Reiwa—Umberto Rispoli—120
  5. Scherzo—Kyle Frey–120

First post time on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Monday is at 12:30 p.m. In addition to holiday racing, there will be one dollar beers, sodas and two dollar hot dogs offered through the afternoon. Admission gates will open at 10:30 a.m.

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Neige Blanche Noses Out Rideforthecause In Santa Barbara

All in while three deep a quarter mile from home, French-bred Neige Blanche managed to nip Rideforthecause by a scant nose after a marathon mile and one half on turf in Saturday's Grade 3, $100,000 Santa Barbara Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.  Ridden by Juan Hernandez and trained by native Frenchman Leonard Powell, Neige Blanche, which translates to white snow in English, registered her first North American stakes win while stopping the clock in 2:28.01.

Starting mid-way up Santa Anita's legendary hillside turf course, heavily favored Tapwater, with Flavien Prat up, appeared to be in firm control on the lead as longshot Star of Africa tracked her in second, about one length off the lead as they crossed under the wire for the first time.

Turning up the backside, Tapwater maintained her one length edge, but Hernandez had a handful of horse, about three off the lead heading to the far turn and in a thriller, gained joint command along with Rideforthecause a sixteenth of a mile out as Tapwater faded late to run third.

“It was really close, it could probably go both ways, 50-50, inside or outside and thanks to my filly, we got it,” said Hernandez who chalked up his third win on the day and his seventh stakes win.  “It was better, because last time (a fourth place finish in the Grade III Santa Ana Stakes March 27) I think we were a little too close to the pace and today, I was a little bit more (relaxed).  Two horses in front of me and she relaxed pretty well.  Around the quarter pole, when I asked her to go, she responded really well.”

A Group 3 winner in her final French start on June 6, 2020, but winless in four stateside starts, Neige Blanche was off at 5-1 in a field of seven fillies and mares three and up and paid $13.40, $7.00 and $3.60.

“No, honestly, I thought the inside got it,” said Powell when asked if he thought he had won the tight photo finish, in which Neige Blanche was positioned outside the runner-up.  “If we were going to be in front, it was going to have to be a lucky bob and it was a lucky bob.  Today, she proved that she belongs and that she was worth the investment.  I want to thank the partners, Madaket Stables, Marsha Naify and (Laura) De Seroux for trusting us with her.”

A 4-year-old filly by Anodin out of the Muhtathir mare Bianca Neve, Neige Blanche now has four wins from 11 starts and with the winner's share of $60,000, increased her earnings to $177,112.

In a gut wrenching defeat, Rideforthecause, ridden by Mario Gutierrez, finished 1 ¾ lengths in front of Tapwater and paid $6.20 and $3.40 while off at 6-1.

Trained by Richard Mandella, Tapwater was off at even money and paid $2.40 to show.

Fractions on the race were 23.72, 48.08, 1:13.56, 1:39.27 and 2:03.80.

Racing resumes with a nine-race card on Sunday with first post time at 1 p.m.

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Tapwater, McCarthy Duo Top Marathon Santa Barbara Lineup

LNJ Foxwoods' Tapwater heads a field of eight fillies and mares going a marathon mile and one half on turf in Saturday's Grade 3, $100,000 Santa Barbara Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.  Trained by Hall of Famer Richard Mandella, Tapwater will be making her second career graded stakes appearance.

Trainer Michael McCarthy's recent allowance winner Go Big Blue Nation will also be making her second stakes appearance and will command considerable attention with turf ace Umberto Rispoli aboard for the first time and McCarthy's Rideforthecause, a Grade 2 winner in Canada this past September, could also figure prominently as the leading money earner in the field.

A 5-year-old mare by Tapit, out of the Indian Charlie mare Fiji Moon, Tapwater was most recently fourth, beaten 3 ¼ lengths by highly respected Charmaine's Mia going one mile on turf in the Grade 2 Royal Heroine Stakes at Santa Anita on April 3.  A sharp classified allowance winner going a mile on grass two starts back on Feb. 12 with Flavien Prat, she'll be reunited with the meet's leading man on Saturday and will be stretching out off of six consecutive races at one mile.

Tapwater, who will be making her third start of the year, brings an overall mark of 9-3-2-0 and earnings of $154,940.

Owned by Cannon Thoroughbreds, LLC, Go Big Blue Nation flew late under apprentice Alexis Centeno to win a second condition allowance on April 4 at a mile and one quarter on turf by a half length and will hope to employ similar tactics when ridden by Rispoli for the first time on Saturday.  Claimed out of a maiden $75,000 win eight starts back on Jan. 12, 2020, Go Big Blue Nation, a 4-year-old filly by Animal Kingdom, earned a career best 87 Beyer Speed figure and rates a huge chance stretching out a quarter of a mile.

Trained in Canada by Gail Cox, Rideforthecause was an even sixth, beaten 2 ½ lengths by multiple graded stakes winner Mucho Unusual in her first start for McCarthy, the Grade 3 Robert J. Frankel Stakes at a mile one eighth on turf Dec. 27.  Subsequently seventh, beaten seven lengths in an even effort by Charmaine's Mia in the Grade 2 Royal Heroine, Rideforthecause will be ridden for the second time in a row by Mario Gutierrez.

A winner of the Grade 2 Canadian at a mile and one eighth over the Woodbine turf four starts back on Sept. 12, Rideforthecause was subsequently fourth as the 5-2 favorite in Woodbine's Grade 1 E.P. Taylor Stakes Oct. 18 and will hope to regain her Canadian form in the Santa Barbara.

Phil D'Amato's Carpe Vinum, a close third to Go Big Blue Nation April 4, pressed the pace and was fifth, beaten 3 ¼ lengths two starts back going a mile and one half on turf in the Grade 3 Astra Stakes Jan. 17 and thus rates a solid chance in what will be her third start of the meet.  Owned by MyRacehorse and Joey Platts, Carpe Vinum, a 4-year-old daughter of Carpe Diem, will be ridden for the third consecutive time by Jose Valdivia, Jr.

GRADE III SANTA BARBARA STAKES WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS
IN POST POSITION ORDER

Race 7 of 9  Approximate post time 4 p.m. PT

  1. Catch the Eye—Kent Desormeaux—122
  2. Rideforthecause—Mario Gutierrez—124
  3. Tapwater—Flavien Prat—122
  4. Carpe Vinum—Jose Valdivia, Jr.—122
  5. Star of Africa—Abel Cedillo—122
  6. Neige Blanche—Juan Hernandez—124
  7. Go Big Blue Nation—Umberto Rispoli—122
  8. Dynapower—Cesar Ortega—122

First post time for a nine-race card on Saturday is at 1 p.m.  For additional information, please visit santaanita.com or call (626) 574-RACE.

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