Songbird soars to devastatingly easy Santa Anita Oaks win

All champion Songbird needed to do was make the Grade 1 Santa Anita Oaks official in the books. By unanimous consensus, the nation's horsemen agreed that the race was hers to lose and everyone else was running for second, and the unbeaten filly did not disappoint despite the inclement weather and muddy track conditions.

Taking the race right to her rivals from the start, Songbird and familiar pilot Mike Smith zipped out of Post 1 and lost no time in securing the lead. From post 4, Forever Darling attempted to wrest the lead away from the champion in the early stages but quickly saw the futility in the move. With Martin Pedroza in the irons, Forever Darling then took back to run second behind Songbird. Bellamentary took up third, Mokat was in fourth, and they were followed by Kay Kay and She's A Warrior.

With no one willing to pressure her early, Songbird glided through splits of :23.34, :47.17, and 1:11.21. Behind her, the running order did not change until the field hit the far turn and spun for home.

Sitting cool as a cucumber aboard Songbird, Mike Smith never even asked his filly for a thing. All on her own, she continued to hold her advantage, toying with the field while never exerting herself. With devastating ease, she cruised under the wire clear by 3 3/4-lengths, a margin that could have been at least twice that had Smith asked her to pick it up, in a final time of 1:44.14 for the 1 1/16 mile event.

After the race, a nearly clean as when he left the gate Mike Smith acknowledged that Songbird did everything on her own. "She’s just incredible," he raved. "I feel so blessed and I keep pinching myself, having to remind myself that I’m the one that gets to keep the weight on her. That’s really all I do. She’s so professional, so good at everything."

Mokat improved position to nab second, and She's A Warrior closed from last to grab third. Forever Darling faded to fourth, and Bellamentary and Kay Kay completed the order of finish.

Flavien Prat, who was aboard runner-up Mokat, stated post-race, "She ran great. I mean, that was the game plan, to try to win second which is what we did. I think she ran really good, it's just that the winner was just way too good for her. But I am really impressed with  her and the way she ran today."

As the 1-9 favorite, Songbird paid $2.20/$2.10/$2.10. Off 14-1 odds, Mokat returned $4.60/$3.00 and 19-1 shot She's A Warrior returned $4.20 for the show. The $1 exacta paid $3.90, the $1 trifecta returned $19.80, and the $1 superfecta was worth $79.30.

Jerry Hollendorfer, who trains Songbird, admitted that the off track did give them a moment of pause. "I had a little bit of anticipation with the off track, wondering if she could handle it or not," he said. "A couple of the horses earlier had stickers on and won, but we didn't put any on. I don't think any of the other guys in this race did, either. We didn't want her slipping, but she didn't slip, so that's good."

Smith confirmed that Songbird handled the slop just fine. "She was spinning her wheels a little bit going into the first turn but once we got to the backside, she found her rhythm and she got comfortable and it was all her again," he explained. "It's pretty slick. It's safe, it's got a bottom, but it's a little slick on top. She ran with normal shoes and was spinning just a little bit leaving the gate but once she was moving forward she was fine."

By Medaglia d'Oro and out of the West Acre mare Ivanavinalot, Songbird was a $400,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga 2014 Yearling purchase for owner Fox Hill Farm. Now 7-for-7 in her career, that $400,000 looks like quite the bargain as Songbird has now earned $1,982,000. With the Santa Anita Oaks to her name, Songbird will now head to Churchill Downs, if all goes according to plan, as the undisputed Kentucky Oaks favorite.

When asked if his filly continues to surprise him, Hollendorfer replied, "No. She's always been well thought of and she's done everything we've asked of her and we thought she would do that today. We have the point race coming up (the $1 million Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs on May 6), so if we have good fortune and she stays sound, we'll try to go to Kentucky and win that one."

Rick Porter, who races as Fox Hill Farm, addressed the Kentucky Derby speculation once again after Songbird destroyed the Santa Anita Oaks field. "No. I planned from the very beginning...I thought that at her age, particularly with Jerry's viewpoints (that he doesn't like to run against the boys), we'd keep her on the filly path," he reiterated. "There's a lot of good races, and there will be a time, if she's good enough, to take on the boys. I think she's too young to take on the boys with that 20-horse stampede (in the Kentucky Derby). I think the (Breeders' Cup Classic) would be too tough for her as a three-year old."