May 21, 2013

Horse Racing Recap: Capital Plan wins Santa Barbara Handicap

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ARCADIA, Calif. (AP) – Capital Plan beat Cambina by 1 1/2 lengths to earn her first stakes victory in the $150,000 Santa Barbara Handicap for older fillies and mares at Santa Anita on Saturday.

Ridden by Blanc, Capital Plan ran 1 1/4 miles on the turf in 2:01.78 and paid $13.20, $7.20 and $5.80 for trainer and co-owner Jerry Hollendorfer.

Cambina returned $4.60 and $3.60, while Hard Seven was another nose back in third and paid $4.80 to show. Vamo a Galupiar finished sixth as the 2-1 favorite.

The victory, worth $90,000, increased Capital Plan’s to $215,800, with in 10 races.

In the $100,000 Handicap, California Flag beat Sayif by 2 1/4 lengths in his first race since finishing 12th in the Breeders’ Cup Turf in November.

Ridden by Joe Talamo, California Flag ran 6 1/2 furlongs on the hillside in 1:11.59 – third-fastest in stakes history. The 8-year-old tied Glick in 2004 as the oldest winners in the race’s history.

“At the break, I just let him get out to the lead,” said Talamo, aboard California Flag for the first time since October 2010. “He relaxed fine and did what he is known for.”

California Flag paid $13.80, $7.80 and $4.40.

Sayif returned $20.20 and $7, while Compari was another half-length back in third and paid $2.80 to show as the 19-10 favorite.

The victory, worth $60,000, increased California Flag’s career earnings to more than $1.2 million, with 11 wins in 26 starts.

Trainer Vladimir Cerin saddled four winners on the 10-race card.

All Squared Away wins Lexington Stakes at 70-1

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) – of Altamira Racing Stable started thinking big in the moments after his 70-1 , All Squared Away, won the Lexington Stakes.

“(I’ll) think about something like the ,” Miller said of his sudden 3-year-.

But the horse Miller picked up for $1,000 at a yearling sale isn’t nominated, meaning he’d have to shell out $100,000 of the $120,000 purse he just won to give the dark bay gelding the chance.

“Never mind,” Miller said with a laugh. “We’ll find some other race. I’m not giving up the $100,000 I just (won) to run the Preakness.”

They won with record-breaking odds in the 31-year-old Lexington Stakes.

All Squared Away fell from 50-1 to 70-1 on Saturday, but rallied to win the $200,000 Grade 3 race at Keeneland. He spoiled the Kentucky Derby chances of Castaway and other horses looking for earnings to make the 20-horse field.

“He’s always trained like a good horse, like a quality horse,” said Miller, who had trained the horse and holds ownership with Wire to Wire Racing Inc. “We are thrilled. Over the moon.”

It was a major move for a horse that looked bad in its two previous stakes races – finishing seventh in the El Camino Real Derby in Albany, Calif., in February and sixth in the Spiral Stakes at Turfway in nearby Florence, Ky., last month.

After the second race, Miller decided to leave his horse behind for trainer Wesley Ward.

It wound up being a wise move.

“The horse had a tough trip in the race at Turfway, and after the race he just asked me if I would take him to train and he gave him to me. And I’ll tell you what, the horse has just been doing fantastic ever since,” Ward said. “Every day that goes by the horse just keeps getting better here. As most horses do when they come to Keeneland, it’s such a tranquil, peaceful setting. Horses just thrive and this guy’s one of them.”

Ward said he believed the horse had a good shot to win, then kept looking at the odds falling out of their favor.

“You look at the odds and you think, well, jeez, we’d be a lot better if we ran for $40,000 claiming (race),” Ward said.

Instead, All Squared Away, sired by Bellamy Road, looked right at home on the Polytrack, running 1 1/16th miles in 1:42.55 under Julio Garcia. He stayed near the front and kept pace four wide before taking control in the final furlong and winning by 1 1/2 lengths.

“I just took a shot. I said, you know, I’ll take a chance. We only bought him for a $1,000 and he’s just turned out to be a neat, neat horse,” Miller said. “That’s a nice return on investment.”

Did the owner bet on his horse?

“Not enough,” Miller said.

All Squared Away paid $143.20, $45.80 and $17. Summer Front returned $5.20 and $4, while Hammers Terror paid $9.40 to show.

Castaway, trained by Bob Baffert and needing the $120,000 first-prize purse to have enough earnings to make the Derby field, finished ninth. Another horse with Derby aspirations and an outside shot to make the field, Morgan’s Guerrilla, finished last in the 11-horse field.

“He didn’t get into a good rhythm and was never comfortable,” said jockey Julien Leparoux of Morgan’s Guerrilla. “He just never got into the race.”

The Lumber Guy wins Big A’s Jerome Stakes

NEW YORK (AP) – The Lumber Guy beat Brigand by 2 3/4 lengths Saturday in the $200,000 Jerome Stakes for 3-year-olds at Aqueduct.

It was strictly a two-horse race. The top two finishers battled from the start with The Lumber Guy finally taking charge in the late stages for his third win in four starts. Mike Luzzi was aboard for trainer Mike Hushion as the gray colt ran a mile in 1:36.04.

The Lumber Guy paid $6.50, $4.10 and $2.50. Brigand returned $5 and $3, and Stirred Up paid $2.50 to show.

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