Indiana Oaks: Chandelier winner Chatalas makes 2024 debut

Rancho Temescal Thoroughbred Partners’ Grade 2 winner Chatalas makes her first start of the year and her first for Louisville-based trainer Grant Forster in Saturday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Indiana Oaks for 3-year-old fillies at Horseshoe Indianapolis.

“Mark Glatt is the trainer,” Forster said. “He and the owners were in a position where, in California for the summer, the nicer races are primarily on turf. They wanted to have a Midwest, East Coast campaign with her with all the dirt races back here for 3-year-old fillies. They sent her to me a few weeks ago. She came in wonderful shape. Just a lovely filly to be around.”

The 1/16-mile Indiana Oaks, which is the 11th race with a post time of 6:04 p.m. EDT, takes second billing only to the Indiana Derby (G3), race 12, on the state’s most important day of racing.

Chatalas managed to win one of the few graded stakes for 2-year-olds in California not won by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, doing so in Santa Anita’s Chandelier (G2). She lost all shot in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies after being jostled hard at the start, taking her out of her up-close running style and never getting closer to the lead than ninth.

Her traffic troubles continued in Los Alamitos’s Starlet (G2), only at the end of the race. She was in prime striking position before being impeded by the eventual runner-up, with Chatalas promoted to third from fourth upon the offending filly’s disqualification.

Chatalas finished her season with a second by a neck in a $100,000 turf stakes at Santa Anita.

“Obviously it’s impressive form,” Forster said. “They gave her a break by design just to have her freshened up and ready for the latter half of the 3-year-old year. She’d run six times as a 2-year-old, had a wonderful campaign. They just wanted to make sure they had a nice filly for the rest of the year this year rather than keep going.

“She really trains forwardly. She’s a beautiful mover, covers a lot of ground. We’re really excited about getting her started this weekend and hopefully setting her up for a big second half of the season.”

Antonio Fresu, the Italian jockey who is a rising star in California, comes in to ride Santa Anita Derby (G1) winner Stronghold in the Indiana Derby and Chatalas, with whom he won the Chandelier.

“He’d had a lot of success with her,” Forster said. “Obviously he’s a very talented rider, had a great winter at Santa Anita and had a stakes winner at Churchill on Sunday (Raging Torrent in the Maxfield) for Doug O’Neill. With her not having run since she was a 2-year-old, hopefully he’s going to feel a bigger, stronger filly than he was on the last time.”

Forster’s entry in the Indiana Derby, Sir Greylind, had a minor issue and will be scratched, he said.