CA Cup Derby- $250.000 Purse
SA- For Three Year Olds Foaled in CA
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Dirt
January 30, 2016

Plenty of good racing is expected at SA on Saturday as the track turns its focus to some of the best California breds in the virtual world today.  Purses are generous, and fields are filling for these CA Cup races.  Among the races on the card is the CA Cup Derby, which allows trainers another option to KYD preps such as the Withers or Holy Bull, which will also run this weekend. This is not, technically, a prep, but the two prior winners of the race have indeed found themselves running in the TC series of races. 2015 winner Son of Laggy, who won with Riggins Racing as trainer, was not able to get into the KYD, but was seen in both the PRK and BEL.  In 2014, Greek God did get to participate in the KYD, and he would also run in the BEL that season.    Successful horses like Chonburi, Dominant Speed, and Chrystal Pip have also run in this race, and even Miss Phooey Beach took a stab at it last year (and was the runner up).   There’s a lot of talent in this field, but likely in each of these cases, the respective trainers want to see what they can do here before focus on official KYD prep races and in the meantime this purse is way too good to pass up.  Let us meet this field of six!

#1- Radical Chic (Mb Stables, ridden by M E Smith)- After winning his debut race, Radical Chic seemed destined for big things based on his workout times, but the gelding just did not pan out the way former trainer Barcelona Farms wanted, and he was shipped to Mb Stables in a $175.000 private sale still with just the one win to this credit.  While racing in his new silks, Radical Chic has begun to fulfill his potential and has won both of his starts for Mb to this point.   He has not returned to stakes, but in his last start, an optional claimer, he defeated Lord Byron, whom he sees again.  He was only awarded an 89 SRF for that race though it does seem as though it was worth more.  Expect him to be a factor here.

#2- Royaltea (Royalty Racing, ridden by J J Hernandez)- The trainer is off to a strong start thus far in 2016, winning 4 of 9 at press time.  One of those wins was Royaltea, who finally broke his maiden nine days ago.   It was the first time he had run long, and also the first time that he ran with lasix, and he will have that again.  Until this point though, he has never raced in anything other then CA-bred MSW’s, and with this race coming so soon after the last win, I do have some concern as to whether he will be in top form for this race.

#3- Lord Byron (Jerry Garcia Racing, ridden by J Lezcano)- This Pink Panther colt comes out of the same race as does Radical Chic, an optional claimer in which he finished third, missing by a length. That performance put an end to a modest two-race winning streak that began when he started going long.  That race was also the first time he wore blinkers, and did not have bute going for him that day, and at press time it seems as though that will still be the case again here. He has shown the ability to get out on the lead as well as come from behind.

#4- Shark Force (Emerald Racing Inc, ridden by R A Baze)- In September, Shark Force won the second race of his career, a statebred MSW at LA.  Since then, the trainer has been thinking big and has entered him in both the Breeders Futurity (G1 at KEE) and KY Jockey Club (G2 at CD).  Unfortunately, he was only able to finish 10th and 9th in those races.  He hasn’t been seen in a race since the end of November, and the trainer is hoping to have corrected whatever may have gone wrong and that Shark Force will run a big one.  He’s wanted to be a deep closer thus far, but perhaps this will be one of the adjustments that will be made.

#5- Pretty Ghost (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by J Talamo)- The Laffin Ghost colt will make his debut for his new trainer in this race, having been purchased from Hippyheart in a $150.000 private sale earlier this month.  With the prior connections, Pretty Ghost won two of four, including a nice looking win at a similar distance at FG in his last outing, a start that came towards the end of November.  So, it’s been a little while since we have seen Pretty Ghost, but he really does look like a horse with quite of potential.  In a field that seems a bit wide open, I will anoint him as my top pick.

#6- The Perfect Day (Australia Wide, ridden E Trujillo)- The trainer looks to accomplish that one thing that has eluded him amongst all of his other successes: a TC win.  While he will often tell you that he prioritizes other things, I’m sure that’s a zero he would like to have off of his stats.  A horse named The Perfect Day simply sounds like a KYD winner, doesn’t it?   He will have some work to do to get there, but he has won two of his four career races, though has been a disappointment in his last two, which have been against graded company.  For that, he was gelded, and the trainer will hope that can make a big difference.  If he wins, everyone should geld an underachiever in their barn in appreciation.

Prediction: 5-1-6-3

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded