Santa Anita Stable Notes Sunday, March 2, 2025

STABLE NOTES BY VICTOR RYAN

JOURNALISM, FORMIDABLE MAN LEAD MONSTER DAY FOR MCCARTHY

It was a day to remember for Michael McCarthy Saturday at Santa Anita. He won four races on an 11-race card including the Grade I Frank E. Kilroe Mile with Formidable Man, GII San Felipe with 3-year-old Journalism and GII Buena Vista with Liguria.

“It was a memorable day,” McCarthy said Sunday morning. “I’m just very pleased for my guys at the barn. It takes a lot to have a day like yesterday. It was a real team effort.”

In addition to McCarthy’s three graded stakes tallies, he also ended the day with a win in the 11th and final race, an allowance on turf, with Phosphorescence. McCarthy said he celebrated the massive day by joining family and friends for a dinner out.

“It was nice to unwind, have a good meal and reflect on a really good day,” McCarthy said.

Starring among McCarthy’s quartet of winners was Journalism. Making his 3-year-old debut in the 1 1/16-mile San Felipe, a key Kentucky Derby prep, the Curlin colt came from off the pace under Umberto Rispoli and won going away by 1 ¾ lengths.

The winning time was 1:42.24. It earned Journalism a 108 Beyer Speed Figure, which ties for the highest recorded by a 3-year-old this year.

“Obviously that’s a pretty lofty number,” McCarthy said. “We expected certainly a solid effort coming off a short layoff. I think you saw yesterday when he straightened through the lane, he started to find his gears.”

Journalism is owned by Bridlewood Farm, Don Alberto Stable, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Elayne Stables 5 LLC and Robert V. LaPenta. He previously won the GII Los Alamitos Futurity when making his stakes debut in December.

Journalism now has 47 ½ qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby, which is historically enough to get him in the starting gate for this year’s Run for the Roses.

McCarthy said the GI Santa Anita Derby on April 5 is the “most likely scenario” for Journalism’s return.

Formidable Man, aided by a top ride from Rispoli, earned his second Grade I win in the Kilroe Mile. In November, the now 4-year-old colt by City of Light won the GI Hollywood Derby at Del Mar.

“He’s a proven Grade I caliber horse. I think his performance yesterday was the best we’ve seen from him and that was a world-class ride from Umberto,” McCarthy said.

Formidable Man rallied up the rail in the Kilroe to win by a half-length in a time of 1:34.57. Owned by William K. Warren Jr. and Suzanne Warren, Formidable Man earned a career-best 98 Beyer Speed Figure.

As for what’s next, McCarthy said “we’ll kind of take it easy with him for the next 10 days to two weeks” before deciding. He mentioned potentially the GIII American Stakes at a mile on turf on April 20 at Santa Anita as a potential lead-in to the GI Shoemaker Mile on May 26.

Liguria won the one-mile Buena Vista on turf by a head under Flavien Prat. It was her second start following a 15 ½-month layoff and second start for McCarthy after being transferred from trainer Chad Brown. In her comeback Feb. 1 in the GIII Megahertz, Liguria was third beaten three lengths.

“You always worry coming off an extended layoff like she did that they may bounce second time back off quick rest. But she has been so professional with everything she does. She does everything with purpose,” McCarthy said.

Liguria is a 5-year-old mare by War Front. Owned by Alpha Delta Stables, she improved to 10: 4-1-1 with $374,200 in earnings. McCarthy mentioned the GI Gamely going 1 1/8 miles on turf on May 26 at Santa Anita as a potential target.

GRADE I, SANTA ANITA HANDICAP WINNER LOCKED

Jon Putman/Eclipse Sportswire

Locked (7) ridden by Jose Ortiz wins the Santa Anita Handicap presented. By Yaamava’ Resort
& Casino (Grade 1) at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California on March 1, 2025. Jon Putman/Eclipse Sportswire/CSM

‘PRETTY SPECIAL’: PLETCHER WINS 1st BIG ‘CAP WITH LOCKED

Locked’s powerhouse performance in Saturday’s Grade I Santa Anita Handicap was Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher’s first-ever victory in the historic Big ‘Cap. While Pletcher has long maintained his star-studded stable in the east, he also has plenty of history on the Southern California circuit.

“It was a terrific win,” Pletcher said by phone from Florida Sunday morning. “I spent time in California in my early years. My dad (Jake Pletcher) trained there, and I worked as an assistant for Henry Moreno and Charlie Whittingham. Those are legends of the game. So to win a race like the Big ‘Cap was pretty special.”

Locked, the 3-5 favorite, won the 1 ¼-mile Big ‘Cap by 8 ½ lengths under Jose Ortiz. It was the largest winning margin in the history of the race, which dates to 1935. Additionally, Locked’s winning time of 2:01.71 earned a whopping 109 Beyer Speed Figure.

“It was wonderful performance,” Pletcher said.

The Big ‘Cap was Locked’s second Grade I win and upped his record to 8: 5-1-2 with $1,661,650 in earnings. He is slated to return to Pletcher’s base in South Florida on Tuesday.

Locked a 4-year-old Gun Runner colt, could make a return trip to Santa Anita later this year. Pletcher said he could come west again in the fall for a tilt in the GI California Crown prior to the Breeders’ Cup Classic, which this year is at Del Mar.

“It’s possible. Obviously, the goal is to get to the Breeders’ Cup Classic and we’ll keep all our options open,” Pletcher said.

Pletcher has won the Eclipse Award eight times as the nation’s outstanding trainer. Pletcher has won 5,822 races and his $500,511,004 in career earnings is the most-ever by a North American-based trainer. He was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 2022.

WORKS: GI WINNER TENMA, ALPHA BELLA, EAGLES FLIGHT LEAD TAB

Top 3-year-old filly Tenma, Alpha Bella—who was scratched from Saturday’s GII Buena Vista on turf in favor of next weekend’s GI B. Wayne Hughes Beholder Mile on dirt—and royally bred Eagles Flight were among several notable workers Sunday at Santa Anita.

Tenma worked five furlongs in 1:02.60 for trainer Bob Baffert. Most recently, the Nyquist filly won the GIII Fasig-Tipton Las Virgenes Stakes on Feb. 2. She is being pointed to the GII Santa Anita Oaks on April 5.

Alpha Bella drilled four furlongs in 47.0 seconds for trainer John Sadler. The 5-year-old Justify mare is among 13 fillies and mares nominated to this Saturday’s Beholder Mile.

Eagles Flight, half-brother to undefeated 2022 Horse of the Year Flightline, worked four furlongs in 47.40 seconds. It was his fourth work since being scratched from an allowance Feb. 2 at Santa Anita due to what trainer John Sadler reported at the time was “a small foot issue.”

Also working for Baffert was Speed Boat Beach, whose been sidelined since winning December 2023 when winning the GI Malibu. The 5-year-old Bayern horse drilled four furlongs in 48.0 seconds.

Trainer Doug O’Neill’s workers included Raging Torrent, winner of the GI Malibu Dec. 26, and Grade I winner Mixto. Raging Torrent worked five furlongs in 1:00.60. Mixto, most recently finished fourth in the GI Pegasus World Cup Jan. 25 at Gulfstream Park, drilled five furlongs in 1:00.80.

Among trainer Phil D’Amato’s workers were Vodka With a Twist, who most notably finished second in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies in November at Del Mar. She worked five furlongs in 1:01.60. By Thousand Words, Vodka With a Twist most recently finished third in the GII Starlet Dec. 17.

Endlessly, who split the field in last year’s Kentucky Derby continued on the comeback trail for trainer Michael McCarthy. The Oscar Performance colt worked four furlongs in 49.0 seconds. It was his fifth work since Feb. 2. Endlessly has been sidelined since a fifth-place effort in the GI Belmont Derby on turf on July 1 at Aqueduct.

PICK 6 CARRYOVER OF $86K FOR SUNDAY’S 11-RACE CARD

With no winning tickets in Saturday’s $2 Pick Six at Santa Anita, a carryover of $86,735 awaits horseplayers Sunday on an 11-race card. The total pool is estimated to approach $500,000.

First post Sunday is 12 p.m. and the Pick Six starts with the sixth race at approximately 2:30 p.m. The competitive sequence averages 8.7 starters per race before scratches.

Helping to trigger the carryover were a quartet of winners on Saturday’s card that returned double-digit payouts. Leading that group was Book Smart for trainer Bob Hess Jr., who at 22-1 kicked off the sequence with a gate-to-wire win by 1 ¼ lengths under Mike Smith.

Locked, the GI Santa Anita Handicap winner, was the lone winning favorite in Saturday’s Pick Six sequence. The consolation payout for tickets with 5-of-6 winners was $2,682.45

The winning horses in Saturday’s Pick Six beginning with the sixth race were #3 Book Smart ($47), #6 Ang N Ash ($25), #2 Journalism ($8.20), #4 Formidable Man ($12.20), #7 Locked ($3.40) and #6 Phosphorescence ($15.80).

FINISH LINES: Jockey Flavien Prat won three races Saturday to vault back to the top of the jockey’s standing with 38 wins at the stand. Prat won the third race, the GII Buena Vista, with Liguria ($11.40) for trainer Michael McCarthy; the fifth race with favorite Quick Brown Fox ($4) for trainer Richard Mandella and the 11th and final race with Phosphorescence ($15.80) for McCarthy…Next weekend’s stakes action includes the GI B. Wayne Hughes Beholder Mile and GIII San Simeon Stakes on Saturday and the Pasadena Stakes on Sunday. Saturday’s card will be drawn on Monday…Santa Anita has added a live race card for St. Patrick’s Day on Monday, March 17… Senior Samantha Sachs of Glendora HS won her first state girls wrestling championship at 130 pounds with a first period pin. Her grandfather is jockey agent Tom Knust. She’ll be wrestling for the University of Iowa next year. Junior Hunter Jauregui, son of Santa Anita steward and former jockey Luis Jauregui, placed 8th in the state finals in his division.

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