Opening Weekend at Santa Anita Park has been a fun one and there is still one day of high-quality racing left for horseplayers to attack. Sunday’s 10-race card kicks off at 4 PM ET /1 PM PT, features a pair of graded stakes races, and includes a carryover of over $47k in the new Sunset Pick 6. In case you missed it, this bet is retail only, has a $1 minimum, and includes the last three races at Gulfstream Park and Santa Anita. Here are a trio of horses I will be leaning on over the back half of the card. Let’s close the week strong!
Race 6:
This state-bred MSW for 2YOs at 6-furlongs over the grass kicks off the late Pick 5 and appears relatively wide open. #8 Eye of the Smiley took a lot of money on debut at Del Mar back on September 1 for trainer Brian Koriner. The $20k 2024 purchase was beaten out of his inside draw, but was able to find a comfortable prominent spot along the rail just off the early pacesetters. The son of Smiling Tiger was no match for impressive wire-to-wire winner Wiki Kane, but was easily second best. The move to an outside draw and racing experience under his belt should lead to significant improvement from a colt who ran well on debut and should find himself in another good early spot on the stretch out.
Play: #8 Eye of the Smiley (5-1 ML)
Race 8:
This state-bred optional claimer at two-turns over the lawn not only offers up my next play, but is the first of three races included in this afternoon’s Sunset Pick 6 wager where I like #6 Lady Mendelssohn. The Out of the Blue Stables filly debuted in three consecutive races over the grass, including her maiden breaker over this course and distance back on January 23. Trainer Carla Gaines gave her one try versus winners on the grass before moving her filly to the main track to try to take advantage of a pair of Cal-bred stakes. She ran third in both, won an allowance over the dirt at Del Mar on dirt, and now returns to the lawn. The Mendelssohn filly ran faster over the main track than in her turf races, but that hopefully has a lot more to do with natural progression than a preference for that surface. She is bred for the grass and meets a field she should handle with Umberto Rispoli back in the saddle.
Play: #6 Lady Mendelssohn (9-2 ML)
Race 10:
Opening weekend at the Great Race Place concludes with an extremely competitive one-mile first-level allowance over the Santa Anita sod where I like #6 Miss Artois. The Pamela Ziebarth homebred made two starts in Kentucky for Michael McCarthy before moving to the Richard Baltas barn earlier this year. Baltas moved the Mucho Macho Man filly to the grass where she immediately moved forward with a third-place effort over this course and distance. She did not have things her way at all when caught three-wide much of the way at Del Mar on July 18, but rebounded with a win as the public choice in mid-August. Baltas legs up jockey Juan Hernandez on a filly that appears to be getting better and should get a favorable voyage in her first start versus winners.
Play: #6 Miss Artois (8-1 ML)
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