Santa Anita: La Brea + 4 more opening-day undercard stakes

It’s now into the deep water for rising star Accuracy, who makes her stakes debut against an all-star cast of 3-year-old fillies set to go in the Grade 1, $300,000 La Brea Stakes at seven furlongs on opening day next Thursday at Santa Anita.

The La Brea is 1 of 5 graded stakes in support of the Malibu (G1), the traditional feature on the first day of the winter-spring meet.

Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan headlines Malibu.

Trained by Michael McCarthy for New York-based owner Mike Repole, Accuracy has won her previous two starts by a combined 22 1/4 lengths. In her maiden win going 1 1/16 miles in October at Santa Anita, Accuracy aired by 15 lengths when winning with a final time of 1:42.44. That effort earned a lofty 107 Beyer Speed Figure, according to Daily Racing Form, the second-highest posted by a female horse this year. Only Thorpedo Anna, the would-be horse of the year, earned a higher Beyer.

Accuracy will be cutting back to a sprint for the first time since her debut in August at Del Mar. Most recently she romped by 7 1/4 lengths in a one-mile allowance race at Del Mar on Nov. 29. By Arrogate she is 4: 2-0-2 with $83,400 in earnings. Regular rider Umberto Rispoli has the call on Accuracy from post 2 in the field of 11.

Set to take on Accuracy in the La Brea are seven stakes winners, six at the graded level, including Grade 1 winner Tamara.

Trained by Richard Mandella, Tamara will make her second start following more than a year layoff. On Nov. 15 she returned in a one-mile classified allowance at Del Mar and was beaten by a nose by Sandy Bottom, who also is entered in the La Brea.

Last year Tamara won the Del Mar Debutante (G1) going seven furlongs and then finished seventh as the odds-on favorite in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies in November at Santa Anita. By Bolt d’Oro, Tamara is 4: 2-1-0 with $261,400 in earnings for owner-breeder Spendthrift Farm. She will have Hall of Famer Mike Smith in the irons.

A pair of entrants, One Magic Philly and Sugar Fish, come into the La Brea after running in separate races at the Breeders’ Cup.

One Magic Philly finished sixth in the seven-furlong Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint. Before that the Good Magic filly won her stakes debut in the Chillingworth (G3) going 6 1/2 furlongs in October at Santa Anita.

Trained by Phil D’Amato, One Magic Philly is 5: 3-1-0 with $181,400 in earnings for owner-breeder John Gallegos. She will have Flavien Prat aboard for the first time.

Sugar Fish cuts back in distance after finishing fifth in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Del Mar. Trained by Jeff Mullins, she is 4-for-6 at Santa Anita including wins this year in the Summertime Oaks (G2) in June and the Zenyatta (G2) in September.

By Accelerate, Sugar Fish is 9: 4-1-0 with $370,040 in earnings for owners Talla Racing and Sweetwater Stable. Regular rider Tyler Baze has the call.

Trainer Bob Baffert has four entered including graded-stakes winners Hope Road and Kinza. Cavalieri and Splendora round out Baffert’s quartet.

Hope Road is a 4-for-4 this year including wins in the Torrey Pines (G3) in August and the Bayakoa (G3) last month, each going a mile at Del Mar. Owned by Cicero Farms, Hope Road is 7: 4-2-0 with $318,020 in earnings. The Quality Road filly will be ridden by Juan Hernández.

Kinza has not started since finishing second as the odds-on favorite in the Santa Anita Oaks (G2) in April. Before that the Carpe Diem filly won both the Las Virgenes (G3) and the Santa Ysabel (G3) at Santa Anita.

Kinza is 4: 3-0-1 with $219,000 in earnings for trainer Michael Lund Petersen. She will be ridden by Hall of Famer John Velázquez.

The La Brea is the 10th of 11 races Saturday with an approximate post time of 6:30 p.m. EST. The first post is at 2 p.m.

She Feels Pretty ships to American Oaks

She Feels Pretty, an eye-catching winner of the Queen Elizabeth II Cup (G1) at Keeneland in October, comes west to Santa Anita seeking more Grade 1 glory in the $300,000 American Oaks at 1 1/4 miles on turf.

The 23rd edition of the American Oaks, attracted 13 sophomore fillies.

Trained by Cherie DeVaux, She Feels Pretty romped by six lengths in the QEII going 1 1/8 miles on turf. Before that the Karakonite filly was second by a neck in the Lake Placid (G2) at Saratoga in August and third, beaten by three-quarters of a length, in the Belmont Oaks Invitational (G1) in July, also at Saratoga.

Owned by Lael Stables, She Feels Pretty is 7: 4-1-2 with $948,317 in earnings. She will be ridden by Velázquez, who has been aboard for her previous six starts.

Kathynmarissa returns to Santa Anita after a series of starts in Kentucky and New York. Trained by Rick Dutrow, she most recently earned her first stakes win in the Dueling Grounds Oaks going 1 5/16 miles at Kentucky Downs in September.

By Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, Kathynmarissa is 8: 3-1-2 with $1,147,185 in earnings for owner Michael Dubb. She will be ridden by Frankie Dettori, who was also aboard in the Dueling Ground Oaks.

Grade 3 winners Watchtower and Medoro, who finished one-two in the Autumn Miss (G3) going a mile Oct. 27 at Santa Anita, are the leading local hopes.

Watchtower, trained by Richard Baltas, rallied to edge Medoro by just a nose when making her stakes debut in the Autumn Miss. By Dubawi stallion Demarchelier, Kentucky-bred Watchtower is 7: 3-2-1 with $134,860 in earnings for owners Abbondanza Racing, Omar Aldabbagh and Michael Iavorone. She will be ridden by Diego Herrera, who has been aboard in her previous three starts.

Medoro was sparking last winter and early spring, reeling off four straight victories to start her career including the Providencia (G3), China Doll and Blue Norther, all at Santa Anita. Trained by Peter Eurton, the Honor Code filly is 7: 4-2-1 with $320,600 in earnings for owner C R K Stable.

Before being edged in the Autumn Miss, Medoro finished second in the Del Mar Oaks (G1) and third in the San Clemente (G2), both at Del Mar. She will have regular rider Antonio Fresu in the irons.

The American Oaks will the final next Thursday with the post time at about 7 p.m. EST.

Trained by Tim Yakteen, Johannes was beaten by just three-quarters of a length by More Than Looks in the Breeders’ Cup Mile. It was his only loss in five starts this year. Johannes, who is 6-for-6 at Santa Anita, won this year in the American (G3), Shoemaker Mile (G1) and City of Hope Mile (G2), all at Santa Anita, and the Eddie Read (G2) at Del Mar.

Owned by the Cuyathy stable, Johannes enters with an overall record of 12: 7-1-1 and $1,033,859 in earnings. The 4-year-old Nyquist colt will have regular rider Rispoli in the irons.

Johannes’s rivals include two previous winners of the San Gabriel, Easter in 2023 for trainer Phil D’Amato and Dicey Mo Chara in 2022 for trainer Leonard Powell.

Easter has gone winless in five starts since his victory in last year’s San Gabriel. Most recently he was fourth, beaten by one length in the Seabiscuit (G2) at Del Mar on Nov. 30. Mi Hermano Ramón, who won the Seabiscuit, and Astronomer, who was third, also return in the San Gabriel.

Owned by Madaket Stables, Easter has a record of 24: 7-4-3 with $649,910 in earnings. The 6-year-old gelding by Exosphere will be ridden by Antonio Fresu, who has been aboard for his previous seven starts.

Dicey Mo Chara exits an eighth-place finish in the Hollywood Turf Cup (G2) going 1 1/2 miles at Del Mar on Nov. 29. This summer at Del Mar the 6-year-old gelding was second to Johannes in the Eddie Read (G2) and also second in the Del Mar Handicap (G2).

Owned by Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal, Dicey Mo Chara is 27: 4-7-4 with $654,277 in earnings. He will be ridden by Velázquez.

Mi Hermano Ramón earned his first stakes win when scoring at 11-1 in the Seabiscuit. That was in his third start after a 13 1/2-month layoff.

Trained by Mark Glatt, Mi Hermano Ramón returned from the sideline in August and finished off the board in a classified allowance going 1 1/16 miles on turf at Del Mar. Sandwiched between that comeback effort and his Seabiscuit win was a close second in the restricted Lure Stakes going a mile on turf Oct. 19 at Santa Anita.

Like Dicey Mo Chara, Mi Hermano Ramón also is owned by Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal. The 4-year-old gelding by Creative Cause is 9: 4-1-1 with $321,480 in earnings. He will be ridden by Héctor Berrios, who was aboard for the first time in the Seabiscuit win.

The San Gabriel is scheduled as the seventh race at about 5 p.m. EST.

2024 Laffit Pincay Jr. G2