Santa Anita: Baffert’s streaking Eda races in Chillingworth

Bob Baffert’s brilliant 4-year-old filly Eda heads Friday’s Grade 3, $100,000 Chillingworth Stakes at 6 1/2 furlongs as Santa Anita’s 19-day autumn meet gets underway.

A winner of her last seven starts, four of them graded stakes, Eda will again be ridden by Juan Hernández. The Kentucky-bred daughter of Munnings out of the Lemon Drop Kid mare Show Me faces six rival fillies and mares ages 3 and up.

Click here for Santa Anita entries and results.

Named in honor of the late Sherwood Chillingworth, a Thoroughbred owner and longtime executive with the Oak Tree Racing Association, the Chillingworth served as a prep to victory for the Bo Hirsch homebred Ce Ce in the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint and could be a launch pad to the Breeders’ Cup this year at Santa Anita.

Owned by Baoma Corporation, Eda pressed the early pace en route to a 1 1/2-length score going 6 1/2 furlongs in the Rancho Bernardo Stakes (G3) on Aug. 27 at Del Mar, earning a career-best 96 Beyer Speed Figure, according to Daily Racing Form.

A Grade 1 winner at 2 who is unbeaten in four tries at the distance and unbeaten in four starts at Santa Anita, Eda is 10: 8-1-0 overall. With a 3-for-3 record this year, she has earnings of $667,600 and will likely use the Chillingworth as steppingstone to the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint at seven furlongs over the same course Nov. 4.

Little Red Feather Racing’s consistent Elm Drive cuts back in distance from a third-place finish going 1 1/16 miles in Del Mar’s Clement L. Hirsch (G1) on Aug. 5 and rates a solid chance with Ricky Gonzalez riding back for Phil D’Amato.

A minor-stakes winner going seven furlongs at Santa Anita in May 2022, Elm Drive was a close third going 6 1/2 furlongs two starts back in the Great Lady M (G2) at Los Alamitos, and her two wins from four starts this year came in sprint stakes at Santa Anita, including the ungraded Mizdirection at about 6 1/2 furlongs down the hillside turf May 20 and in the Monrovia (G3) at 6 1/2 furlongs on dirt April 8.

A 4-year-old filly by Mohaymen out of the Indian Charlie mare Lets Dance Charlie, Elm Drive is a two-time graded winner with earnings of $480,140 from an overall mark of 12: 5-0-3.

Rock Brothers Racing homebred Clearly Unhinged returns from Saratoga, where she ran second, beaten by a head going seven furlongs, in the Test (G1) for sophomore fillies Aug. 5. She will be facing older fillies and mares for the first time Friday.

Trained by Michael McCarthy, Clearly Unhinged was a 3 1/4-length, first-out, maiden winner going 6 1/2 furlongs at Santa Anita on Feb. 5.  Subsequently a well-beaten fourth in the Santa Anita Oaks (G2) on April 8, she prevailed by a head in a first-condition allowance over the same track June 16 with Umberto Rispoli, who will be aboard in the Chillingworth.

A 3-year-old filly by Into Mischief out of the Smart Strike mare Smart Win, Clearly Unhinged earned an 86 Beyer at Saratoga and is 4: 2-1-0 with earnings of $202,000.

The Chillingworth is the eighth of nine races Saturday with an approximate post time of 7:30 p.m. EDT. The first post is at 1 p.m.