Owner Mike Repole, always a strong competitor on the East Coast, has made his presence out west felt following back-to-back dazzling performances from the 3-year-old filly Accuracy. The burgeoning star is slated to make her black-type debut Dec. 26 when she takes on a cutthroat group of sophomore fillies assembled for the $300,000 La Brea Stakes (G1) at Santa Anita Park.
Repole has been vocal in his support for California racing in recent times, which buoyed the owner's decision to send a flight of horses to West Coast-based conditioner Michael McCarthy, the former assistant to Repole's right-hand trainer, Todd Pletcher.
A daughter of the late Arrogate, Accuracy has been nothing short of brilliant in her last two outings, capturing both starts by a combined 22 1/4 lengths. After demolishing a field of maidens by 15 lengths Oct.19 at Santa Anita, she made the jump to allowance company with ease, powering to another wire-to-wire victory. The Del Mar performance garnered a 102 Equibase Speed Figure, the highest recent number of any filly in the La Brea with the exception of One Magic Philly, who exits a sixth-place finish in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1).
Umberto Rispoli retains the mount on Accuracy. Cutting back to seven furlongs in the La Brea, it will be interesting to see if Accuracy will show the same quick early speed she showed in her recent wins when traveling 1 1/16 miles and one mile, respectively. Directly to her inside, breaking from the one slot, the Bob Baffert-trained Splendora won't make it easy up front for Accuracy, as she enters the La Brea off a front-running allowance score sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs.
Talla Racing's Splendora, also making her stakes debut in the La Brea, is just one of four fillies entered for Baffert. A nine-time winner of the La Brea, Baffert's best hope in the grade 1 is the Cicero Farms' homebred Hope Road. Undefeated in her last four starts since joining Baffert's barn, the Quality Road filly has scored twice at the graded level, including a last-out tally over older rivals in the Bayakoa Stakes (G3) on Breeders' Cup weekend.
"She’s getting better and better," Baffert said of Hope Road after her Bayakoa victory. "We’re developing her in a slow, nice way. It’s good to have these kind of horses. We were very fortunate to train her mother (grade 1 winner Marley’s Freedom) and she can run farther than her mother. She’s speed; she’s really fast.”
Completing the Baffert quartet is two-time graded stakes winner Kinza, who makes her first start since April, and the unbeaten Nyquist filly Cavalieri, a $900,000 purchase for Speedway Stables.
The ultra-competitive field, which includes multiple graded stakes victress Sugar Fish, an impressive winner of the Summertime Oaks (G2) before conquering older mares in the Sept. 29 Zenyatta Stakes (G2), and the lightning-quick Chillingworth Stakes (G3) victress One Magic Philly, was made even deeper when Spendthrift Farm's Tamara's name appeared among the entries.
A well-touted daughter of Hall of Fame mare Beholder long before her debut, Tamara flashed all the promise in the world in her first two starts last year as a juvenile for trainer Richard Mandella. After taking the Del Mar Debutante Stakes (G1) by 6 3/4 lengths, Tamara faded to finish a disappointing eighth as the favorite in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1). Postrace x-rays revealed the Bolt d'Oro filly had fractured a splint bone in her left hind leg.
Given time off to refresh and heal, Tamara started back in training during the summer Del Mar meet and was denied by a nose in her long-anticipated return Nov. 15 in a six-furlong allowance test.
Santa Anita Park, Thursday, December 26, 2024, Race 10Entries: La Brea S. presented by Don Julio (G1)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 Splendora (MD) Joel Rosario 120 Bob Baffert - 2 Accuracy (KY) Umberto Rispoli 120 Michael W. McCarthy - 3 Kinza (NY) John R. Velazquez 122 Bob Baffert - 4 Sugar Fish (KY) Tyler Baze 122 Jeff Mullins - 5 Ultimate Authority (KY) Lanfranco Dettori 120 Tim Yakteen - 6 Kopion (KY) Kazushi Kimura 122 Richard E. Mandella - 7 One Magic Philly (KY) Flavien Prat 122 Philip D'Amato - 8 Sandy Bottom (KY) Luis Saez 120 Michael W. McCarthy - 9 Hope Road (KY) Juan J. Hernandez 122 Bob Baffert - 10 Tamara (KY) Mike E. Smith 120 Richard E. Mandella - 11 Cavalieri (KY) Antonio Fresu 120 Bob Baffert -
