Run Away, Serengeti knock heads in Best Pal

Kaleem Shah’s flashy Run Away, unbeaten in two starts, including the Santa Anita Juvenile, is the likely favorite versus seven rivals in Saturday’s Grade II $200,000 Best Pal Stakes for two-year-olds.

Run Away, who will have Flavien Prat in the saddle, broke his maiden in handy fashion in late May and then came back to win the Santa Anita Juvenile in the solid time of 1:04 for five and one-half furlongs July 3. The son of Run Away and Hide is trained by Simon Callaghan.

Lining up against Run Away will be Dia de Pago, Corey Nakatani; Master Ruler, Evin Roman; Armour Plate, Rafael Bejarano; Serengeti, Mike Smith; Fleetwood, Kent Desormeaux; Arawak, Julio Garcia, and An Ocala Ten, Victor Espinoza.

Serengeti, from the barn of trainer Bob Baffert, is sure to draw strong support on the basis of his eleven-length maiden victory which he accomplished in the swift time of :57 4/5 for five furlongs. Also interesting is the Wesley Ward-trained Arawak, a maiden winner in the mud at Belmont Park and then twelfth in the Coventry Stakes at England’s Ascot Park.

Other winners in the strong line-up are Dia de Pago, Master Ruler, a two-time victor at Camarero Park in Puerto Rico; Armour Plate, and An Ocala Ten.

The six and one-half furlong Best Pal Stakes is the major steppingstone to the Grade I $300,000 Del Mar Futurity at seven furlongs on closing day, Sept 4.