Glatt optimistic Sharp Samurai can keep it going in Singletary
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Sharp Samurai won his grass debut impressively on April 6, capturing an overnight race by 2 ½ lengths at a mile and an eighth, and Mark Glatt is optimistic the three-year-old gelded son of First Samurai can keep it going in Saturday’s $75,000 Singletary Stakes even though he is shortening up to one mile.
“He ran really well,” the trainer said, “although I don’t think grass or dirt makes a big difference to him. He wants to be forwardly placed and he got a good trip last out. He handled the grass really well, so we’ll see what happens Saturday.
“The mile is not ideal. I’d just as soon not take a step back in distance but that was really the only spot available for him. He’s got good, tactical early speed, so he should be able to put himself up where he needs to be.”
The Singletary, named for the 2004 Breeders’ Cup Mile winner: Ventry Bay, David Flores, 8-1; Double Touch, Israel Ocampo, 12-1; Vending Machine, Norberto Arroyo Jr., 8-1; Bird Is the Word, Rafael Bejarano, 7-2; Fashion Business, Stewart Elliott, 6-1; Kenzou’s Rhythm, Edwin Maldonado, 12-1; Sharp Samurai, Joe Talamo, 3-1; Bowies Hero, Tiago Pereira, 4-1; Comma Sister, Martin Pedroza, 20-1; and Monster Man, Santiago Gonzalez, 12-1.
ENJOY THE DERBY ATMOSPHERE AT SANTA ANITA
The Kentucky Derby is not dubbed The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports without a serious sense of credibility. It’s a happening, and if it seems exciting on TV, it’s not like being at Churchill Downs live and in color on the first Saturday in May.
More than 100,000 people will pack the Louisville track tomorrow, with thousands more at venues worldwide, including Santa Anita, where fans can watch and wager on the 143rd Run for the Roses, plus a plethora of other attractive and challenging betting opportunities.
Two men who have participated in the Kentucky Derby first hand are Simon Callaghan and Eoin Harty, Santa Anita-based trainers from Across the Pond who will watch the race tomorrow at The Great Race Place.
“It was a great experience,” said the 34-year-old Callaghan, a native of England who saddled Firing Line to finish second to eventual Triple Crown champion American Pharoah in 2015. “There’s nothing like walking over there with a live horse. The atmosphere makes you want to go back there again.
“This year’s race looks really wide open, and with a sloppy track, it’s even more so. If I had to pick a horse it would be Irish War Cry, but as I said, it’s a really, really open race.”
Harty, born in Ireland, has participated in the Kentucky Derby both as an assistant to Bob Baffert and on his own, when he ran 2008 Santa Anita Derby winner Colonel John.
“For me, it was all they say it is the first time, but after that, you want to be there with a contender,” Harty said. “After that, I wouldn’t say it’s just another race, but the excitement of the first year is never replicated.
“My first year there was with Cavonnier (trained by Baffert and beaten a nose by the D. Wayne Lukas-trained Grindstone in 1996). I went back with Silver Charm (winner in 1997) and Real Quiet (winner in 1998) and lots of others, including my own horses, but there’s nothing like the first time.”
Approximate post time for the Derby is 3:46 p.m. Pacific Time.
To accommodate fans on KentuckyDerby Day, Santa Anita will offer extended hours on the Gold Line Shuttle Service in Arcadia, operating between 12 noon and 2 p.m. to handle peak attendance hours.
Fans at Santa Anita tomorrow can enjoy the biggest Derby party west of Kentucky and watch and wager on the Run for the Roses. Derby Day highlights include a Kentucky Derby Trackside event; a KROQ Super Games and Craft Beer Festival; a Chandelier Room Derby Party; a Kentucky Derby Hat Contest; the Bud Light Lounge; and a guaranteed Late Pick 4 pool of $500,000 and Pick 6 pool of $100,000.
The DerbyDay Hat Contest presented by Southern California Life Magazine is free to enter and boasts three grand prizes including $1,000 cash and a year’s subscription to the publication for each winner. The three categories (Most Creative, Most Glamorous and Fascinators and Fedoras) will be judged by a panel of fashion industry experts just west of the winner’s circle at 2:30 p.m. Look for the rent tent to enter and please visit santaanita.com/events for more information.
Source: Santa Anita Park
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