Santa Anita: Three Witches, Bellabell, Goliad win graded stakes

In her first start for trainer Michael McCarthy, highly regarded Three Witches avoided an early speed duel and rallied to an impressive 2 1/2-length score in Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Santa Monica Stakes at Santa Anita.

With Flavien Prat collecting his third stakes win of the day, Three Witches got seven furlongs in 1:23.21 in her first race since she finished third at Santa Anita on Nov. 4 in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint.

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“It’s been a great day. I am very grateful,” Prat said. “You never know. Obviously she ran a great race in the Breeders’ Cup, so based on that race, I thought she could run a big race today.”

Breaking sharply from post 3, Three Witches was immediately engaged by Hot Peppers to her outside. Prat was able to ease back off the leader leaving the seven furlong chute, get to her outside and was on terms with the leader three furlongs out. From there Three Witches cruised to the lead while well within herself around the turn and had a 2 1/2-length edge at the five sixteenths pole en route to an easy score.

“Quite a nice surprise,” McCarthy said. “This filly has trained well all along, a little bit workmanlike in the morning. We put some blinkers on her a couple of works back, and she really stepped up her game. Today I think the big difference was Flavien was able to kind of get her to ease off of Hot Peppers and get outside of her. She found a nice kind of rhythm to get into up the backside, relax, and Flavien called upon her around the turn, and she responded.”

Originally based at Gulfstream Park with trainer Saffie Joseph Jr., Three Witches is a 5-year-old mare by Into Mischief out of the Tale of the Cat mare Layreebelle. She fetched $1.7 million as a Keeneland September yearling.

Three Witches was off as the 8-5 favorite among of a field of five older fillies and mares and paid $5.20, $3.60 and $2.60.

Owned by Yuesheng Zhang, Three Witches has two stakes wins and a mark of 9: 4-2-2. She was a Grade 3 stakes winner at the same distance two starts back at Gulfstream Park on Oct. 7. With Saturday’s top prize of $120,000, she increased her earnings to $417,970.

The lone California-bred in the field, trainer Rafael DeLeon’s Chismosa rallied from last to be second under Tiago Pereira. Off at 7-1, she paid $5.20 and $3.00 while finishing 1 1/4 lengths in front of Kirstenbosch.

The second choice at 8-5, Kirstenbosch with Héctor Berrios up paid $2.20 to show.

Fractions for the race were 22.99, 45.55 and 1:10.09.

With his three wins Saturday, Prat pulled into a tie with Juan Hernández atop the jockey standings with 23 wins through 20 racing days. His eight stakes winners put him four up on Antonio Fresu.

Bellabel returns to pulsate in Megahertz

Although she had been away 15 months, trainer Phil D’Amato’s Ireland-bred Bellabel proved plenty fit off the bench in the $100,000 Megahertz Stakes (G3) as she made every pole a winning one en route to a one-length score.

Ridden by Prat, Bellabel got one mile in 1:36.16 over a turf course listed as good in 1:36.16. The early fractions were 23.86, 48.59, 1:13.19 and 1:24.68.

Breaking from post 4 in a field of seven older fillies and mares, Bellabel made a comfortable lead while under restraint and enjoyed a one-length advantage over stablemate Oakhurst into and around the far turn.

Although she tried to lug out with Prat while into the bridle leaving the quarter pole, she was well clear of eventual runner-up Mouffy and never was threatened through the lane in a very impressive performance.

Idle since finishing third in Keeneland’s Queen Elizabeth II Cup (G1) on Oct. 15, 2022, Bellabel was off at 9-5 in her fifth stateside start. She paid $5.80, $3.40 and $3.00.

Bellabel has three stakes wins, two of them graded, from her five starts for D’Amato. Owned by Agave Racing Stable, Benowitz Family Trust, CYBT, Michael Nentwig and Ray Pagano, 5-year-old Bellabel is 10: 4-2-2. With Saturday’s winner’s share of $60,000, she increased her earnings to $364,810.

Ridden by Kazushi Kimura, Mouffy was attentive to the pace throughout and proved game late, finishing second by a nose over Justique. The third choice in the race at 2-1, she paid $3.80 and $3.40.

The lone 4-year-old in the field, Justique battled through the lane and prevailed by a neck over long shot Nadette for third money. Ridden by Mike Smith, Justique was off at 10-1 and paid $5.40 to show.

Goliad runs off with Thunder Road

With a 10-length cushion a quarter-mile from home, Richard Mandella-trained frontrunner Goliad was long gone in the $100,000 Thunder Road (G3) as he cruised to a three-length score under Kimura.

A 7-year-old gelding by War Front, Goliad posted his first career stakes win, getting one mile in 1:33.57 on a turf course rated good.

Breaking sharply from his number 5 post, Goliad made the easiest of leads and was simply gone early, middle and late as eventual runner-up Dandy Man Shines sat second the entire trip and never came close to threatening the winner.

A gate-to-wire, one-mile, allowance turf winner at Santa Anita on Jan. 7, Goliad was off at 5-1 and paid $12.80, $5.60 and $5.00.

Bred in Kentucky by Ramona Bass and owned by Ramona and Perry Bass II, Goliad is out of the Dynaformer mare Choreograph and has a record of 16: 4-4-1. With the winner’s share of $60,000, he increased his earnings to $262,371.

Mandella notched his fifth stakes win of the meet, one behind D’Amato’s six. Kimura, the perennial riding kingpin at Woodbine, got his first stakes win of the meet.

Ridden by Umberto Rispoli, Ireland-bred Dandy Man Shines outran Ah Jeez for second money and paid $4.20 and $3.00 after going off at 5-2.

Long shot Ah Jeez, fourth most of the trip, was off at 19-1 with Berrios and paid $7.40 to show.

Tio Magico, the 8-5 favorite with Prat, made no impression from off the pace and finished fourth, 1 1/4 lengths behind Ah Jeez.

Goliad’s front-running fractions were 23.36, 46.07, 1:09.22 and 1:21.29.