Horses to Watch: Bicoastally, 2-year-old fillies catch the eye
New to the watch list
Macanga
Macanga never factored in her Sept. 10 debut sprinting six furlongs on dirt at Monmouth, finishing sixth out of seven while beaten 25 1/4 lengths. But the 2-year-old Elizabeth Dobles trainee moved forward in a big way when switching to grass for a one-mile maiden special weight at Gulfstream on Sunday.
Indeed, Macanga proved much the best. Under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, Macanga dashed to the lead through solid fractions of 23.92, 47.79 and 1:10.95, then finished fast. She covered her final two furlongs in 11.55 and 11.85 seconds and scored by 2 1/2 lengths in 1:34.35. For comparison, 2-year-old males required 1:34.91, off splits of 23.92, 48.18, and 1:11.27, to complete a similar one-mile maiden special weight earlier in the afternoon.
American Pharoah has proven to be a high-quality source of turf talent, so the future is bright for Macanga. She’ll have no shortage of stakes races to target over the Gulfstream grass this winter.
Nothing Like You
Nothing Like You isn’t the fastest 2-year-old filly we’ve ever seen, at least not from a speed-figure perspective. But the Bob Baffert trainee has gotten hot as of late and parlayed a gritty victory in the seven-furlong Desi Arnaz into a romping score in Saturday’s 1 1/16-mile Starlet (G2) at Los Alamitos.
Nothing Like You was much the best in the Starlet, setting fractions of 23.24, 47.40 and 1:12.20 before kicking clear in the homestretch to beat five rivals, including Chandelier (G2) winner Chatalas, by 5 1/4 lengths in 1:44.78. At least until Del Mar Debutante (G1) winner Tamara gets back into action (she’s currently sidelined with a minor injury), Nothing Like You ranks as the best young dirt filly on the West Coast. Graded stakes at Santa Anita this winter figure to be ripe for her to conquer.
Recent watch list winners
Touchuponastar
Louisiana-bred standout picked up his 10th win from 13 starts when taking the Louisiana Champions Day Classic for the second straight year. Victory in the 1 1/8-mile contest was never really in doubt as Touchuponastar set fractions of 23.79, 47.66 and 1:11.29 before turning back a challenge from Tumbarumba under a light ride to prevail by 1 1/4 lengths in 1:50.12 seconds.
Tumbarumba pulled 16 1/2 lengths clear of the rest, and Touchuponastar received a sharp 97 Beyer speed figure from Daily Racing Form, so it’s safe to say the winner remains in strong form.
Which horses do you have your eyes on?
In this biweekly series, racing analyst J. Keeler Johnson shares promising horses from his handicapping watch list, reviewing runners who have recently caught his eye and previewing horses scheduled to run back in the near future.