The 18th Running of the G1 Rodeo Drive Stakes
Saturday, October 8, 2022
SA Race #3 $300.000
F&M 3+ 121/124 Lbs 11/4 Turf
G1 BC F&M TURF AUTO-QUALIFIER
Course Record-1:57.33 (Fushion-2007)
Stakes Record-1:58.29 (Mo Ki Missy-2016)
An action-packed Saturday, full of BC “Win and You’re In” preps, comes to SA for the G1 Rodeo Drive Stakes. Carded for fillies and mares, three-and-up, the mile-and-a-quarter turf event offers a spot in the gate for the G1 BC F&M Turf to the winner. Eleven of the twelve entered are in desperate need of that Golden Ticket as only Number Nine has accumulated enough points to currently be in the main body of the 14-horse field. Directors Chair and Shes One Of A Kind may be able to squeeze in with a runner-up or show effort, but even that wouldn’t guarantee their spots. There’s a lot on the line for theses lasses, so let’s meet them:
#1 Numeric Madness (Aer Stables/D.E. Centeno 124): A $20.000 purchase back in June, filly has put together two impressive runs for the new barn. Prior to the change of hands, she was a dirt sprinter, but she took a one-mile allowance at LS before running a close 3rd in a SAR G2 last out. Lass has plenty of early foot to take advantage of this draw and the conditioner knows what it takes to win these kinds of races.
#2 Party In The Brig (Mo Mentum Farm/R.A. Vazquez 124): Filly’s two prior forays into graded company haven’t gone great this season, but she’s been very good at various overnight levels. Perhaps she breaks from the gate a little better this time as she has shown some good early foot that has been missing in her graded tries. She was very close at this level last season, so perhaps she can put it all together here.
#3 Inquisition (Arindel/J.C. Ferrer 124): 4yo hasn’t spent too much time in the barn as she will be making her 11th start of the season. She did take a G2 earlier this year over a bogged-down course, but her dry form is good as well. Tossing the debacle in the G2 two-back as that pace scenario gave a bunch of them fits and she came back with a strong effort last time.
#4 Glitter Bright (Broken Spoke Stables/T.L. Pompell 121): Filly has been a model of consistency as a sophomore with six ITM finishes from seven starts. The win two-back is pretty impressive as she went from six back to two in front coming down the lane. Should find the rail fairly early which will help her save ground until she gets produced for run.
#5 Sweetness (High Voltage/P. Lopez 124): G2-winning speedball tried something new last time, but expect her to be more forwardly placed in this spot. Most of the mare’s best work has been going much shorter, so the division change for this should give her backers a bit of confidence. Think we see a different game plan this time.
#6 Hawaii County (Mb Stables/J.S. Rocco Jr 124): Filly had a nice three-race winning streak before the last two graded tries saw her come home 5th and 3rd, respectively. Lass seems pretty versatile so don’t think this post will trouble her much. She was a BC participant last season and she needs a win if she wishes to take part this season.
#7 Number Nine (Smokey Stover/V.R. Carrasco 124): Back-to-back wins at the G2 and G3 level helped her get to 8th on the current leaderboard, so she should be safe regardless of her finish here. That said, it’s not like the barn lacks for options, so she will need to show that she deserves to be in the discussion. Like that she’s won from well, well back and from just a couple lengths off the pace in the last two.
#8 Directors Chair (Nakamura Stables/E. Maldonado 121): G3 winner has been pretty consistent against her ager group, but she needs points in her second crack at elders. She’s a true stayer, so there should be no worries about her getting the trip. Don’t think she’ll give them too much of a head start, if any, and she has shown she can carry her speed a long way.
#9 Marner (Mb Stables/Ru. Gonzalez 124): G3 winner took two cracks at sprinting in her last two races, but she comes back to a division that she’s more comfortable in. She appears to be a cut below the barn’s other runner, but many punters have kicked themselves letting the “other Mb” get away at a big number.
#10 Shes One Of A Kind (Mo Mentum Farm/E.T. Baird 124): Purchased for $275.000 just a few weeks ago, lass has 10 BC points and probably needs at least a runner-up finish here. Lass has usually been forwardly-placed, but the new barn could decide to tinker a bit. Still don’t think she’ll be too far back and she always seems to run her race.
#11 Starship Twister (TwinTowersRacing/T. Gaffalione 124): Lass is 0-3 on the turf, but the G2 effort last out wasn’t all that bad. Think we’ll see her closer to the pace this time as she’s shown early foot in the majority of her main track races. Tough spot to get your first win on the lawn, but she had points in the Distaff Division, so expect that the trainer likes what he’s seen from her on the grass.
#12 Ginger Shamanism (Greyfriars Stable/D. Arujo 124): Lass has only raced once this season and that came back in May. That effort came off of a similar layoff to the one she’s been on coming into this and she came home last of eight. Still, she’s a former graded winner, so maybe she can fire a bit better off of the rest this time.
Final Analysis: 1-6-7 is how we’ll play the G1 Rodeo Drive at SA. Good luck to all of the connections!
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES
