Santa Anita Recap – March 6th

Gonna cut to the chase and get right to the pick six action in this abbreviated rewind of the Big Cap card…

Got off to a good start in the pick six with maiden no more Make Music For Me ($15.40). Blinkers and turf did the trick, and note that he has plenty of graded earnings for the Derby if connections go in that direction. Mike Smith booted home the Alexis Barba trainee in the $60k Pasadena Stakes.

Alphie’s Bet ($19) gave the Alexis Barba barn a stakes double with a sharp off the pace tally in the Grade 3 Sham Stakes. Guess barn has two Derby players now! Alex Solis rode the winner. My top pick Setsuko did not have the smoothest journey in a clear place finish. I like the Mandella runner-up as a long range prospect.

I have never been on the Blind Luck bandwagon, and she just did get up to beat me last time. Picked her 2nd again today, and she finished well but failed to get the job done. I fancied Sadler trainee Cozi Rosie, but her stablemate Crisp ($13.60) sat the right stalking trip to grab the candy in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Oaks. As for my top, she’s best as a closer, but she tracked the tepid pace and weakened to 5th today. Blind Luck wants more ground.  Joel Rosario was the winning pilot.

Called the Grade 1 Kilroe as Proviso ($11.40) got her nose down on the line to beat an unlucky Fluke. The latter did all of the pace dirty work and deserved a better fate. Mike Smith guided home the Mott/Juddmonte runner.

No dice in the Big Cap as my two contenders failed to fire. Misremembered ($10.80) fell into the perfect tracking trip behind speedster Mast Track,  and he had enough in the tank to hold off Neko Bay. Martin Garcia booted home the Baffert trainee. St Trinians flattened out, and Loup Breton did not seem to handle the footing.

11th and final went to my 2nd choice Crash Landing ($10). Talamo guided home the Marty Jones trainee. Ended up with 3 wins, a 2nd, and a 3rd on both tickets in the difficult sequence. No one had all six, so the Sunday pool gets a $200k jump start.