A Look at the San Fernando G2 Stakes
justin13892002
Senior Member
Handicappers Edge-
SAN FERNANDO S. (G2), 8TH-SA, $150,000, 4YO, 1 1/16M, 4:07 P.M. PST, 1-17
PP HORSE TRAINER JOCKEY WT
1 MUNY PUYPE MIKE FLORES D R 120
2 WISHFUL TOMCAT FRANKEL ROBERT J ROSARIO JOEL 118
3 CHEROKEE ARTIST MOTION H GRAHAM VALDIVIA J JR 118
4 BLUE EXIT HOLLENDORFER JERRY RIOS JESUS M 116
5 BOOTED MANDELLA RICHARD E ESPINOZA V 116
6 NOWNOWNOW BIANCONE PATRICK L TALAMO JOSEPH 116
7 MADEO SHIRREFFS JOHN SMITH M E 120
8 EL GATO MALO DOLLASE CRAIG NAKATANI C S 122
9 SILVER SWORD O'NEILL DOUG BAZE M C 116
10 SLEW'S TIZNOW O'NEILL DOUG BEJARANO R 118
11 TRES BORRACHOS GREELY C BEAU BAZE T C 120
12 DAKOTA PHONE HOLLENDORFER JERRY GOMEZ G K 118
The $150,000 San Fernando S. (G2) wraps up a trio of graded stakes at Santa Anita, and we'll look for some value among the 12 four-year-olds. CHEROKEE ARTIST (Cherokee Run) didn't beat much when capturing an entry-level allowance/optional claiming event on the Breeders' Cup Friday undercard, but the colt displayed a strong finishing kick that impressed us. Given his back class, we think he'll fit just fine against these rivals.
Trained by Graham Motion, Cherokee Artist went straight from a maiden special weight victory at Churchill Downs last May to a runner-up finish in the Ohio Derby (G2). He missed by only a half-length when second in the Barbaro S. (G3) next time out and followed with a third behind SLEW'S TIZNOW (Tiznow) when trying the Polytrack at Del Mar in the El Cajon S. Cherokee Artist's next start is a complete throw out -- he didn't like the turf -- but he quickly rebounded in the aforementioned allowance/optional claiming victory, recording a 101 BRIS Speed and a whopping 115 Late Pace ratings. The bay will enter the San Fernando on the upswing, and we like his chances.
MUNY (Najran) looms as a wire-to-wire threat. The Mike Puype trainee is a candidate to shake loose early, but there is some speed to his immediate outside in WISHFUL TOMCAT (Tactical Cat). Regardless of that rival, Muny looks dangerous. He recorded a game front-running decision in the grassy, 1 1/8-mile Oak Tree Derby (G2) two starts back and led most of the way last time in the 10-furlong Hollywood Derby (G1) before weakening to fifth, beaten only 1 3/4 lengths. The cutback to 1 1/16 miles should favor him, and we've witnessed countless turf horses transfer their form to the synthetic tracks in Southern California.
MADEO (Mizzen Mast) is a logical challenger for the win based on his back class, but we're leery of supporting him at low odds on the Pro-Ride. He is a two-time winner over Cushion Track, but the John Shirreffs-trained colt really came to hand when moving to the turf this summer. He remains a very viable top three contender, but we'll use him on the bottom of the gimmicks.
EL GATO MALO (El Corredor) offered a solid run for third in the Sir Beaufort S. (G3) last time and appears to be rounding back into form for Craig Dollase. He was one of the more promising three-year-olds on the West Coast last year, but the gelding exited his score in the Lone Star Derby (G3) last May with an injury and wasn't seen again until late November. This will be his third start off the layoff, so consider for the exotics.
BOOTED (A.P. Indy) will step up in company in good form, winning a six-furlong turf maiden prior to an allowance score last out on the Pro-Ride, and we respect his chances here. We still have some class concerns, but we'll include him on a couple of tickets.
Slew's Tiznow is another logical top three candidate, but he is stuck in an outside post (10) and figures to be one of the betting choices under Rafael Bejarano. We'll let him beat us. TRES BORRACHOS (Ecton Park) is too inconsistent for us to back with any confidence. He ran big when capturing the Swaps S. (G2) four starts back, but the gelding hasn't come close to duplicating that effort in his last three outings.
Wishful Tomcat was sold and transferred to Bobby Frankel following his wire-to-wire victory in the Discovery H. (G3) last out, but that came over the dirt at Aqueduct and the New York-bred has never run over a synthetic track. We'll give him a race over the foreign surface. DAKOTA PHONE (Zavata) will pick up the services of Garrett Gomez, but he's stuck on the far outside and will need to show significant improvement to knock off these rivals. We can't recommend SILVER SWORD (Smart Strike) in his two-turn debut. NOWNOWNOW (Whywhywhy) doesn't look sharp enough to challenge and is probably better on turf.
Blue Exit (Pulpit) was an early scratch.
SAN FERNANDO S. (G2), 8TH-SA, $150,000, 4YO, 1 1/16M, 4:07 P.M. PST, 1-17
PP HORSE TRAINER JOCKEY WT
1 MUNY PUYPE MIKE FLORES D R 120
2 WISHFUL TOMCAT FRANKEL ROBERT J ROSARIO JOEL 118
3 CHEROKEE ARTIST MOTION H GRAHAM VALDIVIA J JR 118
4 BLUE EXIT HOLLENDORFER JERRY RIOS JESUS M 116
5 BOOTED MANDELLA RICHARD E ESPINOZA V 116
6 NOWNOWNOW BIANCONE PATRICK L TALAMO JOSEPH 116
7 MADEO SHIRREFFS JOHN SMITH M E 120
8 EL GATO MALO DOLLASE CRAIG NAKATANI C S 122
9 SILVER SWORD O'NEILL DOUG BAZE M C 116
10 SLEW'S TIZNOW O'NEILL DOUG BEJARANO R 118
11 TRES BORRACHOS GREELY C BEAU BAZE T C 120
12 DAKOTA PHONE HOLLENDORFER JERRY GOMEZ G K 118
The $150,000 San Fernando S. (G2) wraps up a trio of graded stakes at Santa Anita, and we'll look for some value among the 12 four-year-olds. CHEROKEE ARTIST (Cherokee Run) didn't beat much when capturing an entry-level allowance/optional claiming event on the Breeders' Cup Friday undercard, but the colt displayed a strong finishing kick that impressed us. Given his back class, we think he'll fit just fine against these rivals.
Trained by Graham Motion, Cherokee Artist went straight from a maiden special weight victory at Churchill Downs last May to a runner-up finish in the Ohio Derby (G2). He missed by only a half-length when second in the Barbaro S. (G3) next time out and followed with a third behind SLEW'S TIZNOW (Tiznow) when trying the Polytrack at Del Mar in the El Cajon S. Cherokee Artist's next start is a complete throw out -- he didn't like the turf -- but he quickly rebounded in the aforementioned allowance/optional claiming victory, recording a 101 BRIS Speed and a whopping 115 Late Pace ratings. The bay will enter the San Fernando on the upswing, and we like his chances.
MUNY (Najran) looms as a wire-to-wire threat. The Mike Puype trainee is a candidate to shake loose early, but there is some speed to his immediate outside in WISHFUL TOMCAT (Tactical Cat). Regardless of that rival, Muny looks dangerous. He recorded a game front-running decision in the grassy, 1 1/8-mile Oak Tree Derby (G2) two starts back and led most of the way last time in the 10-furlong Hollywood Derby (G1) before weakening to fifth, beaten only 1 3/4 lengths. The cutback to 1 1/16 miles should favor him, and we've witnessed countless turf horses transfer their form to the synthetic tracks in Southern California.
MADEO (Mizzen Mast) is a logical challenger for the win based on his back class, but we're leery of supporting him at low odds on the Pro-Ride. He is a two-time winner over Cushion Track, but the John Shirreffs-trained colt really came to hand when moving to the turf this summer. He remains a very viable top three contender, but we'll use him on the bottom of the gimmicks.
EL GATO MALO (El Corredor) offered a solid run for third in the Sir Beaufort S. (G3) last time and appears to be rounding back into form for Craig Dollase. He was one of the more promising three-year-olds on the West Coast last year, but the gelding exited his score in the Lone Star Derby (G3) last May with an injury and wasn't seen again until late November. This will be his third start off the layoff, so consider for the exotics.
BOOTED (A.P. Indy) will step up in company in good form, winning a six-furlong turf maiden prior to an allowance score last out on the Pro-Ride, and we respect his chances here. We still have some class concerns, but we'll include him on a couple of tickets.
Slew's Tiznow is another logical top three candidate, but he is stuck in an outside post (10) and figures to be one of the betting choices under Rafael Bejarano. We'll let him beat us. TRES BORRACHOS (Ecton Park) is too inconsistent for us to back with any confidence. He ran big when capturing the Swaps S. (G2) four starts back, but the gelding hasn't come close to duplicating that effort in his last three outings.
Wishful Tomcat was sold and transferred to Bobby Frankel following his wire-to-wire victory in the Discovery H. (G3) last out, but that came over the dirt at Aqueduct and the New York-bred has never run over a synthetic track. We'll give him a race over the foreign surface. DAKOTA PHONE (Zavata) will pick up the services of Garrett Gomez, but he's stuck on the far outside and will need to show significant improvement to knock off these rivals. We can't recommend SILVER SWORD (Smart Strike) in his two-turn debut. NOWNOWNOW (Whywhywhy) doesn't look sharp enough to challenge and is probably better on turf.
Blue Exit (Pulpit) was an early scratch.
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