Midnight Bisou impresses again in Santa Anita Oaks
Midnight Bisou impressed in another 2018
Kentucky Oaks prep at Santa Anita Park, this time drawing off to win the Grade
1, $400,000 Santa Anita Oaks and picking up another 100 points toward a trip to
Louisville, Kentucky.
Ridden by Mike Smith for the third straight time, the Bill Spawr
trainee settled in second to last before making an explosive move in the turn
for home. From there, Midnight Bisou gobbled up the field with ease.
“She’s really special. She’s got some turn of foot,” Smith said. “You saw her around the turn. The ground she made up was incredible. But I got to take my hat off to Bill and Martin Pedroza man. They’re the ones that got this filly ready for me and I just basically had to keep the weight on and point her in the right direction. She’s a special filly.”
Two races earlier, Smith won the Grade 1, $1 million Santa Anita Derby aboard
Justify for trainer Bob Baffert.
Thirteen Squared, runner-up to Midnight Bisou in the Grade 3 Santa Ysabel,
grabbed the lead over We All Have Dreams and Spectator, carving out opening
fractions of :23.47, :47.63 and 1:12.04. Midnight Bisou was relaxed close to
the rear the first half-mile before Smith let his filly go. She sped past half
the field and loomed on the outside turning for home.
Thirteen Squared was losing her lead at the rail as Spectator and Midnight Bisou brought their best game. Spectator was able to pass Thirteen Squared down the stretch but still finished 3 ½ lengths behind Midnight Bisou.
The daughter of Midnight Lute completed the 1 1/16 miles in a hand ride, hitting the wire in 1:44.79.
“I saw the pace. It was so slow. I was concerned she couldn’t make up the ground. She’s special,” Spawr said.
Exuberance, Fool’s Paradise, First Dudette, We All Have Dreams, Finesse Bere and Spring Lily completed the order of finish.
The Santa Anita Oaks was the third straight win for Midnight Bisou, owned by
Allen Racing LLC and Bloom Racing Stable LLC. The filly entered the Santa Anita
Oaks off wins in the Grade 2 Santa Ynez and Grade 3 Santa Ysabel stakes.
Purchased for $80,000 at 2, co-owner Jeff Bloom had hoped Midnight Bisou would have been ready for the races sooner, but her first race wasn’t until late October last year.
“I can’t believe it,” said Bloom. “We just won the Santa Anita Oaks and Bill and his team have done such an incredible job with this filly. Joking I told Bill when we got her, I said I’m sending you the [Sept. 2, Grade 1] Del Mar Debutante winner. But it’s all worked out waiting, so it’s pretty special.”
The Santa Anita Oaks was the third win in five lifetime starts for Midnight Bisou. She was beaten a nose by Dream Tree twice before rattling off wins toward the Kentucky Oaks.
“The first time she ran she showed us something,” Spawr added. “Before she ran she showed us that she’s a nice filly. You never know where they’re going to land. But I know she’s going to be very useful, nice filly. She just improved so much and I want to give the owners credit. Patience. They let her develop. That’s where she is right now. It goes on them.”