• MIRAHMADI HAS NATIVE FEEL FOR CAL CUP DAY

• A NEW YEAR AND NEW VENUE FOR BORDER TOWN

• MANDATORY PICK SIX POOL COULD HIT $4 MILLION

• FEEL-GOOD STORY CONTINUES FOR BRINKERHOFF

• CHRB MEETING IS SCHEDULED THURSDAY, JAN. 20

 

TRACK ANNOUNCER MIRAHMADI LOOKING FORWARD TO CAL CUP

A Los Angeles native and lifelong Southern California racing devotee, Track Announcer Frank Mirahmadi is approaching today’s 10-race California Cup Day program with a great deal of enthusiasm.

“To me, Cal Cup Day is a tremendous celebration of the Cal-bred program,” said Mirahmadi.  “It’s always one of the highlights of the meet and for me, I try to give as much attention to the breeders as possible because this is their moment.  So in all of the stakes races, when I introduce the post parades, I will introduce the breeder on every horse.  They’re a close-knit group, they’re also very competitive, so today is all about winning and showing off their Cal-breds to one another.

“And it’s a big day for the stallions, as they try to make their mark.  As far as the races today that I’m looking forward to the most, I’m always going to lean to the newly turned three-year-olds.  I think the rematch between Straight Up G and Finneus (in the third race, the $200,000 Cal Cup Derby) will be interesting.  They’re going a little bit farther, a mile and a sixteenth, and that race should be very interesting the last sixteenth of a mile.

“I thought the last race today, the Leigh Ann Howard Cal Cup Oaks, was very interesting.  We’ve got a couple of lightly raced horses and today could be their time to shine.”

Mike Willman

 

MANDELLA ‘GOES WITH HIS GUT’ IN CLOCKERS’ CORNER

Border Town, an 8-year-old gelded son of War Front, seeks his initial added-money victory next Saturday, Jan. 22, in the $70,000 Clockers’ Corner Stakes at six furlongs on turf, a distance and surface which will mark a first in his 19-race career.

“He’s been working very good and I just have a feeling he might like that,” said Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella in explaining why he’s trying six furlongs on turf with Border Town for the first time.

Border Town breezed five furlongs this morning in 1:01 flat.

Unraced since last Nov. 20, Border Town has two bullet drills among his most recent works and took up last out in the restricted Oakland Stakes at Golden Gate Fields where he finished fifth, but was beaten only two lengths.

Owned by Perry and Ramona Bass, Border Town finished third in the Grade III Thunder Road at a mile on Santa Anita’s turf Feb. 6, 2021 and overall has a 3-3-3 record from 18 starts.

Juan Hernandez, who rode Border Town to a fourth-place finish in the restricted Wickerr at Del Mar last July, will be back aboard in the Clockers’ Corner.

Meanwhile, multiple Grade II turf stakes winner United is receiving time off after suffering a minor suspensory injury following his second straight victory in the John Henry Turf Championship last Oct. 2, when he won a dramatic photo finish involving three noses on the wire, with Acclimate second and Friar’s Road third.

“We’ll point him to the second half of the year,” Mandella said of United, winner of 10 of 22 starts with earnings of $1,813,549 for owner LNJ Foxwoods.

Now seven, the gelded son of Giant’s Causeway is recovering at Peacefield Farm’s 64-acre facility in Temecula.

 

$4 MILLION PAYOUT POSSIBLE AT END OF RAINBOW

With a carryover from Friday of $418,628 serving as a pari-mutuel incentive, Santa Anita offers a mandatory payout in today’s 20-cent Rainbow Pick Six Jackpot, with a possibility of the pool reaching $4 million.

First post time Saturday is 12 noon. Probable post time for race five, first leg of the Rainbow Pick 6, is 2:05 p.m.

The Rainbow Pick 6 is comprised of races five through 10.

RESTRAINEDVENGENCE RETURNS AFTER FRESHENING

One of racing’s feel-good stories has another chapter waiting to be written for the old warhorse Restrainedvengence.

The seven-year-old cash cow trained by Val Brinkerhoff returned to Santa Anita yesterday after being turned out at Sunshine Ranch in Bradbury following his eventful third-place finish at 40-1 in the Bad Ass Fans Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Del Mar on Nov. 6.

“He needed a rest,” said Brinkerhoff of the $65,000 gelded son of Hold Me Back who earned $90,000 for his third behind front-running Life Is Good and runner-up Ginobili. “He ran his guts out for us last year, as he aways does.”

Restrainedvengence ran his guts out in the Dirt Mile despite a slow start and a four-wide trip under Edwin Maldonado.

“He ran 55 feet further than any horse in the race,” Val said. “That’s probably about six lengths right there. He wasn’t going to beat the winner, but he could have been second (beaten only three-quarters of a length by Ginobili, who earned $170,000, almost double that of the $90,000 for third).”

Restrainedvengence won his first graded stakes when he captured the Grade III American at Santa Anita last June 20, and won the Downs Albuquerque Handicap at Sunland Park in New Mexico last Sept. 18 for the second straight year, this time by a nose, again wasting no margin for victory.

He won by a head in 2020.

Restrainedvengence has 10 wins from 35 starts with career earnings of just over a million, at $1,007,682.

 

CHRB MEETING ON THURSDAY, JAN. 20

This Thursday, Jan. 20, at 9:30 a.m., the California Horse Racing Board will conduct a teleconference meeting.

Consistent with Governor Gavin Newsom’s Executive Order N-29-20, this meeting will be teleconference only. No physical location will be provided.

The public may participate in either of two ways. The webcast audio link on the CHRB website will continue to provide a way for the public to listen to this meeting. Note: The teleconferencing log-in information has changed from previous meetings.

Beginning with this meeting, those wishing to speak during the meeting may dial 800-343-1703 and enter 98443# to join the teleconference. To speak on any item, press star (*) 1 to enter the speakers’ queue. Those providing unsolicited public comment on individual agenda items will be limited to two minutes. Comments must relate specifically to the agenda items.

For agenda item #6, Public Comment, no further comments will be permitted after 30 minutes. The agenda and package of materials for the meeting are available on the CHRB website.

 

FINISH LINES: Congratulations to LA Times Prep sports writer Eric Sondheimer and XBTV and 1/ST’s Jeff Seigel as their maiden 3-year-old filly Hail Columbia won her first start, taking Friday’s third race in gate to wire fashion by 1 ¼ lengths under Juan Hernandez.  Trained by John Sadler, the Kentucky-bred daughter of Exaggerator paid $11.60 to win…Hot Rod Charlie, preparing for Dubai’s $12 million World Cup on March 26, worked five furlongs Saturday for Doug O’Neill in 1:02.20, while American Theorum, a candidate for the Grade II San Pasqual Stakes on Feb. 5, went four furlongs in 49.60 for George Papaprodromou. They were two of 155 recorded drills Saturday, 37 on the training track. Cezanne, a $3.65 million son of two-time Horse of the Year Curlin who won the Grade III Kona Gold at Santa Anita last April 18 but has not raced since due to “a minor setback” according to trainer Bob Baffert, went four furlongs this morning in a bullet 46.80, fastest of 42 drills at the distance, almost three seconds quicker than the average time of 49.31 . . . Flavien Prat holds a 23-17 lead over John Velazquez in Santa Anita’s jockeys’ race, winning at a 38 percent clip to Johnny V.’s 33 percent. Baffert tops the trainers with 12 wins from 26 starts for a phenomenal 46 percent winning average . . . There will be holiday racing this Monday, Jan. 17, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, featuring the Grade III Astra Stakes for older fillies and mares at a mile and a half on the hillside turf course. It is also bargain day, with Santa Anita offering $1 beers and sodas and $2 hot dogs. First post time for the nine-race program is 12:30 p.m.

LATEST CONTENT FROM XBTV:

 

FEATURES:

 

Eddie Olczyk’s Hat Trick for Saturday

 

Preview of Race 3, The Cal Cup Derby 

 

Preview of Race 6, The Unusal Heat Turf Classic 

 

Preview of Race 8, The Sunshine Millions Filly & Mare Turf Sprint

 

Preview of the Cal Cup Derby 

 

Preview of Race 6, 1-16-21

 

Preview of Race 7, 1-16-21

 

WORKOUTS:

Bob and Jackie (Baltas) 1-14-22

 

Triple Tap (Outside) and Vetoed (Baffert) 1-14-22

 

Bombard (Mandella) 1-13-22

 

Going to Vegas (Baltas) 1-13-22

 

Upbeat (Outside) and Q B One (Mandella) 1-13-22

 

Becca Taylor (Miyadi) 1-10-22

 

Best Actor (Outside) and Beautiful Gift  (Baffert) 1-9-22

 

Cezanne (Outside) and Spielberg (Baffert) 1-8-22

 

Whisper Not (Baltas) 1-8-22

 

Run Snappy (Sadler) 1-8-22

 

Brickyard Ride (Lewis) 1-8-22

 

Law Professor (Outside) and Crosby Beach (McCarthy) 1-8-22