Bank Shot Aims to Score in Summertime Oaks

Three-year-old filly Bank Shot has taken on the best of her generation this season at Santa Anita having finished third in both the GII Santa Anita Oaks and Las Virgenes Stakes and second in the GIII Santa Ysabel. On Saturday, the filly by Game Winner is back for more in the GIII Summertime Oaks going 1 1/16 miles. Bank Shot, trained by Ryan Hanson, is 8-1 on the morning line. Her key rivals include Bob Baffert-trained favorite Mizumi (4-5) and Grade III turf winner Marjoram (3-1). "The big thing for her is she's been able to stay sound and be available, knock on wood," Hanson said from his stable office Friday morning. "That's the hardest part, to be able to show up and race. She tries hard every single time. I'm proud of her." Hanson and owner WSS Racing had hoped to make last month's Kentucky Oaks but Bank Shot was just short on qualifying points following the Santa Anita Oaks. As things turned out, due to multiple withdrawals from the field, Bank Shot would have had a spot in the Kentucky Oaks. "We wanted to make it there our way rather than need to worry about defections," Hanson said. WSS Racing is a nationwide operation whose principals are William Simon and Tammy Simon. Since it was launched in 2019, WSS Racing has campaigned such notable horses as Grade I winner Brightwork and Barber Road, who in 2022 finished second in the GI Arkansas Derby and contested both the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes. "They have a lot of horses throughout the country. We're fortunate enough to have them sending horses to us out here on the West Coast," Hanson said. Bank Shot enters the Summertime Oaks following a bullet work last Saturday, clocking five furlongs in a swift 58.4 seconds. It was the fastest of 40 works at the distance that day. "I don't know if I want to say she's moved forward since the Santa Anita Oaks, but she's maintained," Hanson said. "She's just a consistent horse that I'd say has gotten better each race, but not any big leaps forward really. She's an easy training horse that takes care of herself pretty good." In the Summertime Oaks, Bank Shot will be reunited with jockey Adrian Escobedo, who rode her in her first six starts. In the Santa Anita Oaks, Bank Shot had Edwin Maldonado aboard. The program favorite, Mizumi, exits a promising debut win going 6 ½ furlongs on May 2 for Baffert. The daughter of Justify, a homebred for Baoma Corp., will break from the rail under Juan Hernandez. Second-choice Marjoram is a dual-surface threat trained by Michael McCarthy for owner-breeder Juddmonte. She won her debut sprinting on a sloppy main track at Churchill Downs in November. Both of her starts as a 3-year-old have been on turf at Santa Anita. Most recently on May 9, the daughter of Quality Road scored in the GIII Senorita sprinting on the hillside course.