It was an emotional victory Jan. 5 for trainer Michael McCarthy and owner Reddam Racing as Look Forward, the last winner trained by the late Ben Cecil, earned her first stakes victory in the $101,500 Santa Ynez Stakes at Santa Anita Park.
The daughter of Spendthrift Farm stallion Bolt d'Oro won her Nov. 8 debut for Cecil, a six-furlong maiden sprint at Del Mar. The British-born trainer died after a lengthy battle with cancer Nov. 29.
READ: Ben Cecil, Trainer of Golden Apple, Dies at 56
J. Paul Reddam transferred the filly to McCarthy, who had worked as an assistant for Cecil before joining the team of Todd Pletcher. In her first start with McCarthy, she finished second to Tenma in the 1 1/16-mile Starlet Stakes (G2) at Los Alamitos Race Course Dec. 7 and took another step forward Sunday while cutting back to seven furlongs.
"I'm grateful for Paul and the Reddams for moving this filly to us," an emotional McCarthy told FanDuel TV. "Obviously, Ben and his crew did all the heavy lifting and so it was more or less just about keeping her happy for the last month."
The bay filly broke smartly for Reddam's go-to rider, Mario Gutierrez, and settled into a perfect stalking position outside of pacesetting Silent Law and Practical Dream. Following fractions of :22.14 and :44.98, Gutierrez called for more approaching the quarter pole as longshot Artisma moved up on her hip.
Look Forward surged forward in response, making it only a matter of time before she collared Silent Law after switching leads outside the eighth pole. Artisma still loomed a threat as she grinded away in the center of the track, putting Look Forward's victory in doubt inside the final sixteenth.
However, Look Forward refused to relinquish her head lead through the wire, gamely repelling the challenge while stopping the clock in 1:25.42 and paying $5.40 to win. Silent Law finished third.
"It was a long final eighth of a mile but she stuck it out and ran super," McCarthy said. "I think the track is just a little bit demanding today, it was a super performance."
Bred in Kentucky by Woods Edge Farm and Ballyfair Bloodstock, Looking Forward was a $285,000 purchase at the 2023 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. She has now accumulated $132,400 through her first three starts.
In addition to the purse money, Look Forward also acquired 10 qualifying points on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks (G1), for which the Santa Ynez acted as the first prep to be held in 2025. She now sits fifth on the leaderboard for the May 2 race at Churchill Downs with 15 points.
"Late in the winter, early spring, you start thinking about the Kentucky Oaks," McCarthy said about the filly's future. "Who knows how far she'll run. Obviously the way she ran the other day at Los Al, you'd think she'd go ahead and stretch out. I think once she does do that, she'll be able to find herself in a comfortable spot."
The second through fifth place finishers received Oaks points on a 5-3-2-1 scale.
