The 2 best female sprinters in west clash in Great Lady M

A pair of Grade 1 winners clash Saturday in the Grade 2, $200,000 Great Lady M Stakes on Saturday at Los Alamitos. Defending winner Sweet Azteca and Kopion, an impressive winner of three consecutive graded stakes, will tangle for the first time.

The 6 1/2-furlong Great Lady M, which attracted four other entrants, is the eighth of nine races on the next-to-last day of the Los Angeles County Fair meet. First post time is 4 p.m. EDT and approximate post time for the main event is 7:35 p.m. EDT.

Click here for Los Alamitos entries and results.

Owned by breeder Pamela Ziebarth and now trained by Richard Baltas, Sweet Azteca has been away since disappointing as the prohibitive favorite in the Chillingworth (G3) on Oct. 5 in her final start for trainer Michael McCarthy.

The 5-year-old gray daughter of Sharp Azteca and the Grand Slam mare So Sweetitiz was scheduled to return in the Desert Stormer June 1 at Santa Anita, but her comeback was delayed by a small leg cut. She has worked twice since, including a best-of-the-morning five furlongs in 58.8 seconds June 11. She has won five of seven and banked $487,200.

In her lone appearance at Los Alamitos, Sweet Azteca won the 2024 Great Lady M by five lengths, completing the 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:14.33, eclipsing the previous mark of 1:14.49 set by Finest City in winning the same race in 2016.

If successful Saturday, Sweet Azteca will become the second back-to-back winner of the Great Lady M since the race was first run here in 2014. Marley’s Freedom repeated for Cicero Farms and Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert in 2018-2019.

Trained by Hall of Famer Richard Mandella for Spendthrift Farm, Kopion has won five of seven and went over $1 million in earnings with a three-length victory in the Derby City Distaff (G1) on the Kentucky Derby undercard May 3.

That victory over a sloppy surface versus nine talented fillies and mares was the third in succession for the 4-year-old Omaha Beach filly.

Out of the Victory Gallop mare Galloping Ann, Kopion ended 2024 with a 37-1 upset in the La Brea (G1) last Dec. 26, then dominated three opponents in the Santa Monica (G2) a little over five weeks later before her profitable trip to Churchill Downs.

One Magic Philly returns to California after settling for third as the favorite in the Skipat on the Preakness Stakes undercard May 17 at Pimlico.

Trained by Phil D’Amato for owner-breeder John Gallegos, the 4-year-old daughter of Good Magic and the Empire Maker mare My Philly Girl has lost three in a row since winning the Chillingworth nine months ago.

That win by nearly three lengths is the lone graded score for One Magic Philly, who has a 7: 3-1-1 record with earnings of $194,400.

D’Amato will also saddle Super Shine, who benefited from Sweet Azteca’s absence in the Desert Stormer as the Argentina-bred mare won by two lengths over a pair of rivals in the listed event.

A 6-year-old daughter of Super Saver and the Southern Halo mare Sunshine Allie owned by R Unicorn Stable, Super Shine has won five of 15 and banked $260,531. She was third in this race last year, finishing a dozen lengths behind Sweet Azteca.

A 5-year-old Clubhouse Ride mare owned by breeder Jaime Renella and trained by Rafael DeLeon, Chismosa will be making her third start in a row in the Great Lady M. She was runner-up to Eda in 2023 before finishing seventh last year.

A California bred out of the Cat Dreams mare You Can Dream, Chismosa has won six of 24 and earned $600,250.

McCarthy’s Great Lady M representative this year is Barbara T, a lightly-raced 4-year-old Army Mule filly out of the Kantharos mare Alternative Energy.

Owned by The Warnick Stable and Joseph Hinkhouse, Barbara T is 3: 2-1-0 with earnings of $111,123. She returned after a year on the sidelines to win an optional claimer as the 11-10 choice April 25 at Santa Anita.