Santa Anita roundup: Tenma wins Oaks, is headed to Kentucky
Tenma continued her dominance in California’s 3-year-old fillies division when earning her fourth graded-stakes win, this time in Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Santa Anita Oaks going 1 1/16 miles Saturday at Santa Anita.
The race was a Kentucky Oaks (G1) prep that was reduced to 75% of its original points, because it had only five starters. Even so, Tenma earned enough points to mathematically assure herself a place in the Churchill Downs gate May 2.
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Ridden by Juan Hernández, Tenma (1-5) prevailed by 2 1/4 lengths over stablemate Silent Law (9-1) to lead a Bob Baffert-trained exacta. Vodka With a Twist (5-1), who was making her first start since finishing second in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies in November, was another six lengths back in third. She was followed by Madame Secretary (7-1) with No Bad Beats (15-1) completing the order of finish.
After breaking alertly, Hernández settled Tenma just behind dueling leaders No Bad Beats and Silent Law. No Bad Beats started to fade entering the second turn, and Silent Law soon was faced with a new challenge from Vodka With a Twist. Tenma still was going comfortably on their outside.
Silent Law maintained her lead over Vodka With a Twist into the stretch, but Tenma surged along the outside to a half-length lead at the furlong marker and widened her advantage to the wire.
“I was having a beautiful trip, and I asked her to run at the three-eighths pole, because she was getting a little lazy on me,” Hernández said. “But that's the way she is. She takes a couple strides to get going. Around the (second) turn, when I was ready to start making my move and pass Silent Law, she was really brave.”
Owned by Baoma Corp., Tenma won with a time of 1:46.15 following fractions of 22.85, 46.38 1:11.03 and 1:38.96.
“We are trying to get her to the Kentucky Oaks, and she had been progressing, getting better and better,” Baffert said. “I liked the way she settled today. There was a lot of speed in the race, and she is becoming more professional as we go. She has come a long way, and she is great to be around. She is a lovely filly. It’s pretty exciting to run one-two in a stakes like this.”
Tenma improved to 6: 5-0-1 with $549,000 in earnings. She had won the Las Virgenes (G3) at Santa Anita in February, the Starlet (G2) at Los Alamitos in December and the Del Mar Debutante (G1) in September. Her only loss came in October in the Oak Leaf (G2), where she made her first start around two turns.
“She just didn’t run in the Oak Leaf. It was a dud,” Baffert said. “She struggled that day, just not mentally ready. I backed off her after that, freshened her, and she’s been ready to go.”
Tenma paid $2.60, $2.10 and $2.10. Silent Law, ridden by Martín García, returned $5.20 and $2.80. Vodka With a Twist, with Antonio Fresu aboard for trainer Phil D’Amato, paid $2.10.
The race was worth 75 Kentucky Oaks points to Tenma, 37 1/2 to Silent Law, 18 3/4 for Vodka With a Twist, 11 1/4 to Madame Secretary and 7 1/2 for No Bad Beats. Only Tenma, with 108 points, is assured of the trip to Churchill Downs.
Queen Maxima never looks back in Monrovia
Queen Maxima made short work of her rivals, leading from gate to wire under Hernández to earn her fourth straight win in the $100,000 Monrovia (G3) for older fillies and mares sprinting about 6 1/2 furlongs on the hillside turf course at Santa Anita.
Trained by Jeff Mullins, Queen Maxima broke in front, clicked off fractions of 22.58, 44.89 and 1:07.15 for six furlongs and drew away to score by 4 1/4 lengths with a winning time of 1:12.93 on the firm turf.
Eastern invader Queen of the Mud (9-2), ridden by Umberto Rispoli for trainer Graham Motion, finished second by a neck over Venganza (11-1). It was another head back to Ang N Ash (22-1) in fourth in the field of six.
“As soon as the gate opened, she was trying to take the lead,” Hernández said. “So I just let her be free, and she took it until the wire. I didn’t do much today with her. She was doing everything on her own. She just keeps getting better.”
For Hernández, this was his third stakes win on the card. Other than the Oaks, he also scored in the Echo Eddie aboard Style Cat for trainer Peter Miller.
A 4-year-old filly by Bucchero, Queen Maxima improved to 8: 5-2-0 with $270,900 in earnings for owners Dutch Girl Holding and Irving Ventures.
“I can’t say that she has surprised me,” Mullins said. “She has kind of lived up to our expectations, and I’m not sure that we have seen the most of her yet.”
On Feb. 22 at Santa Anita, Queen Maxima earned her first stakes win in the restricted Wishing Well going six furlongs on the flat turf course. That followed a pair of allowance wins sprinting on turf at Santa Anita.
“We do want to experiment with two turns again eventually and maybe even dirt,” Mullins said. “That is a ways down the road, but she is a pure athlete. As long as her feed tub is empty every morning and she is sleeping good, we have a good chance.”
Queen Maxima paid $2.40, $2.10 and $2.10. Queen of the Mud returned $3.00 and $2.10. Venganza, ridden by Kazushi Kimura for trainer Richard Mandella, paid $2.20.