Prospect Watch: 7 promising 3-year-olds in Santa Anita sprint
Normally for Prospect Watch, we travel across the country, going from coast to coast in search of promising first-time starters worth following. This week, we’re shaking up the formula to focus on one race.
The fourth race on Saturday at Santa Anita is a maiden special weight sprint for 3-year-olds, and the field is stacked with promising prospects. All seven of the entrants are worth highlighting, so let’s take a horse-by-horse look at the field and see what this sensational sprint has in store:
Santa Anita Race 4: Maiden special weight (6 1/2 furlongs, 4:30 p.m. EDT)
Conditioned by Simon Callaghan (a 21 percent winner with first-time starters), Secret Weapon is a beautifully bred son of leading Candy Ride out of a Street Cry mare. Sold for $650,000 as a yearling, Secret Weapon has been training strongly in preparation for his debut, cranking out fast workouts pretty much like clockwork. The chestnut colt capped off his preparations with a bullet five furlongs in :59 on March 27 and looks ready to roll under hot jockey Umberto Rispoli.
#2 Liam’s Love
Trainer John Shirreffs isn’t a frequent winner with first-time starters, but Liam’s Love has assembled a work tab suggesting he can factor on debut. A son of Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Liam’s Map out of an A.P. Indy mare, Liam’s Love clocked five furlongs from the starting gate in :59 3/5 on March 8 … then traveled seven furlongs in 1:27 4/5 on March 19 … and finally came back to blaze another five furlongs in :59 3/5 on March 27. The gray colt should give a fine account of himself on Saturday, with even better to come down the road.
Two-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Doug O’Neill saddles Today’s Flavor, a son of hot young sire Laoban out of a Speightstown mare. Owned by Reddam Racing and set to be ridden by Mario Gutierrez (reuniting the team behind O’Neill’s Derby winners I’ll Have Another and Nyquist), Today’s Flavor is another runner who has been churning out fast workouts. A swift five furlongs in :59 3/5 on March 27 indicates Today’s Flavor has speed, though the fact he’s turned in three consecutive gate works is a cause for pause – perhaps the bay colt isn’t the most alert starter.
#4 Laurel River
The first of two runners conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, Laurel River already has started once, finishing fifth in his debut at Santa Anita last October. Although soundly beaten on that occasion, Laurel River has been training up a storm in preparation for his return, most notably blazing a bullet five furlongs from the starting gate in :58 3/5 on March 8. A Triple Crown nominee bred and owned by Juddmonte Farms, Laurel River is set to be ridden by Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, who has gone 2-for-5 (40 percent) riding for Baffert in the last 60 days. There’s plenty to like about this son of Into Mischief.
#5 Bobby Bo
If Laurel River has been training up a storm, then Bobby Bo – a Triple Crown nominee conditioned by Baffert – has been training up a hurricane. During March, the son of Speightster clocked five furlongs in :59 2/5, six furlongs from the starting gate in a bullet 1:11 1/5, five furlong from the starting gate in a bullet :59 3/5, and five furlongs in 1:00.00. Sold for $1.1 million as a 2-year-old, Bobby Bo picks up jockey Flavien Prat for his much-anticipated debut, a noteworthy development since Prat and Baffert have gone 6-for-8 (75 percent) together in the last 60 days. Could Bobby Bo be a Grade 1 winner in the making? We’ll get a better idea on Saturday.
#6 Bender
Sold for $575,000 as a yearling, Bender is a son of two-time Horse of the Year Curlin out of the Arch mare Bend, who already has produced the graded stakes-winning sprinters Clearly Now and Bendable. Fortunately, Bender has shown signs of talent to complement his elite pedigree and lofty purchase price. Under the care of Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella (a 27 percent winner at Santa Anita this meet), the dark bay colt has put together a solid work tab highlighted by six furlongs in 1:12 1/5 on March 26. Apprentice jockey Jessica Pyfer has been named to ride, which means Bender will carry only 116 pounds, seven fewer than his rivals.
#7 Patron d’Oro
Although Patron d’Oro was soundly beaten in his March 6 debut at Santa Anita, the son of Street Boss didn’t run a bad race by any means. After dueling for the lead through fast fractions of :21.75 and :44.94, Patron d’Oro weakened to finish 10 3/4 lengths behind Defunded, an entrant in the Santa Anita Derby (G1). Considering that trainer Brian Koriner wins at a 23 percent rate with second-time starters, Patron d’Oro (a Triple Crown nominee) is eligible to take a step forward on Saturday and outrun expectations at a big price.