Course specialists Stormy Liberal, Ambitious Brew top Siren Lure

Course specialists Stormy Liberal and Ambitious Brew head a competitive field of five 3-year-olds and up in Sunday’s $75,000 Siren Lure Stakes, to be run at 6 ½ furlongs down Santa Anita’s hillside turf course.

Trained by Peter Miller, Stormy Liberal comes off a pair of hillside turf stakes wins, while the Marty Jones-conditioned Ambitious Brew comes off a gutty nose victory over the course versus California-bred or sired runners in the Sensational Star Stakes on Feb. 25.

STORMY LIBERAL: Owned by Gary Hartunian’s Rockingham Ranch, this 5-year-old Kentucky-bred gelding by Stormy Atlantic has proven an outstanding claim, as he was haltered for $40,000 five starts back on Oct. 16 and has responded with two wins and a pair of seconds in four subsequent races.

Ridden aggressively by Norberto Arroyo, Jr., he registered a 1 ½ length win two starts back, taking the Clockers’ Corner Stakes in gate to wire fashion on Jan. 29.Most recently, he pressed the pace and scored a game nose triumph down the hill in the Joe Hernandez Stakes on March 4.With five wins and three seconds from 10 tries over the unique hillside layout, Stormy Liberal is 18-5-6-1 overall, with earnings of $294,970.

AMBITIOUS BREW: Owned and bred in California by Pamela Ziebarth, this 7-year-old Tizbud gelding adores the hillside layout, having won six races from 11 starts, including two seconds throughout his stellar career.A winner of the downhill Grade III Eddie D. Stakes three starts back, he was again ridden to perfection by Mike Smith in taking the Sensational Star by a nose will be plenty tough right back in open company on Sunday.Managed to perfection by Jones from age two onward, Ambitious Brew is 22-8-7-0 lifetime, with earnings of $559,225.

RICHARD’S BOY: Second, beaten a scant nose by Ambitious Brew in the Sensational Star, this 5-year-old Idiot Proof gelding was subsequently fifth, beaten 2 ½ lengths, in a $1 million six furlong turf sprint in Dubai on March 25.The “other” Peter Miller-trained and Rockingham Ranch-owned runner in the Siren Lure, Richard’s Boy has a solid 8-2-4-1 resume down the hill and will hope to return to his winter form here at Santa Anita.With an overall mark of 21-8-6-2, Richard’s Boy has earnings of $586,080.

THE $75,000 SIREN LURE WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER

Race 8 of 9 Approximate post time 4:30 p.m. PT

1. Stormy Liberal—Norberto Arroyo, Jr.—126

2. Eddie Haskell—Mario Gutierrez—124

3. Coastline—Tyler Baze—124

4. Richard’s Boy—Victor Espinoza—126

5. Ambitious Brew—Mike Smith—126