SHIVERMETIMBERS & PEACE HEAD FIELD OF NINE DERBY HOPEFULS IN SATURDAY’S GIII LEWIS STAKES

By Mike Willman —-

PEACE
Zoe Metz Photography

SHIVERMETIMBERS & PEACE HEAD FIELD OF NINE DERBY HOPEFULS IN SATURDAY’S GRADE III, $150,000 ROBERT B. LEWIS STAKES AT 1 1/16 MILES

ARCADIA, Calif. (Jan. 31, 2018)—Headed by Jerry Hollendorfer’s Shivermetimbers, Saturday’s Grade III, $150,000 Robert B. Lewis Stakes has attracted a field of nine Derby hopefuls at a mile and one sixteenth, with the winner to receive 10 Kentucky Derby qualifying points. Named for one of the most popular owners in California Thoroughbred racing history, the Lewis serves as a traditional prep to the Grade I, $1 million Santa Anita Derby at a mile and one eighth on April 7.

In a field devoid of a stakes winner, Shivermetimbers is the logical favorite, as he’s been idle since breaking his maiden going a flat mile on Nov. 23 at Del Mar, a race in which he earned a Lewis-best last-out Beyer Speed figure of 90.

Second, beaten a head by Shivermetimbers Nov. 23, the Richard Mandella-conditioned Peace came back to break his maiden at a mile and one sixteenth here on Dec. 30 and he’ll try to turn the tables on the top selection as they both make their fourth career starts on Saturday.

SHIVERMETIMBERS

Owner: Mark DeDomenico and West Point Thoroughbreds Trainer: Jerry Hollendorfer
A $170,000 Keeneland September yearling in 2016, he should benefit from the freshening he’s been given following his maiden score Nov. 23. A Kentucky-bred colt by Shanghai Bobby, he was a close third in his debut going 6 ½ furlongs here Oct. 9 and went on to run third behind top Derby prospect McKinzie in a seven furlong maiden heat Oct. 28. With “Big Money” Mike Smith apparently opting to stay with Peace, Shivermetimbers will be ridden for the first time by Rafael Bejarano.

PEACE

Owner: Spendthrift Farm, LLC and Town and Country Racing, LLC Trainer: Richard Mandella
Oddly named, inasmuch as he’s by the red-hot Kentucky stallion Violence, Peace fetched $280,000 at a Florida 2-year-old in training sale in May and is obviously highly regarded by his connections. Second to Bob Baffert’s stakes winning Mourinho first time out on Sept. 30, he came back to run second by a head to “Shiver” on Nov. 23 and followed that up by breaking his maiden in game fashion by a head at the Lewis distance Dec. 30. Proven at two turns and on the improve, he gets a big vote of confidence from Smith, who appeared to have had his choice of mounts between the top two Lewis contenders.

THE GRADE III ROBERT B. LEWIS STAKES WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER
Race 5 of 9 Approximate post time 2:30 p.m. PT

1. Ayacara—Kent Desormeaux—120
2. Pepe Tono—Evin Roman—120
3. Dark Vader—Stewart Elliott—120
4. Lombo—Flavien Prat—120
5. Shivermetimbers—Rafael Bejarano—120
6. Inscom—Tyler Baze—120
7. Peace—Mike Smith—120
8. Regulate—Joe Talamo—120
9. Blame the Rider—Mario Gutierrez–120

NOTE: The winner will receive 10 Kentucky Derby qualifying points, with four, two and one point(s) distributed to the second, third and fourth place finishers.
First post time for a nine-race card on Saturday is at 12:30 p.m. Admission gates open at 10:30 a.m. For additional information, please visit santaanita.com.

About Us
Santa Anita Park is a Stronach Group company, North America’s leading Thoroughbred racetrack owner/operator. The Stronach Group racetracks include Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park & Casino, Golden Gate Fields, Portland Meadows, Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course, home of the world-famous Preakness. The company owns and operates the Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida, and is one of North America’s top race horse breeders through its award-winning Adena Springs operation The Stronach Group is one of the world’s largest suppliers of pari-mutuel wagering systems, technologies and services. Its companies include AmTote, a global leader in wagering technology; Xpressbet, an Internet and telephone account wagering service; and Monarch Content Management, which acts as a simulcast purchase and sales agent of horseracing content for numerous North American racetracks and wagering outlets. The Stronach Group is North America’s premier supplier of virtual online horseracing games, as well as a leading producer of social media content for the horseracing industry.