Beholder Breezes for Classic at Santa Anita
Updated: October 15, 2015 at 7:51 pm
In her final California workout prior to departing for Keeneland and the GI Breeders’ Cup Classic Oct. 31, Spendthrift Farm’s Beholder (Henny Hughes) went five-eighths of a mile in 1:02 flat (18/47) Thursday morning under the watchful eye of trainer Richard Mandella. The 5-year-old mare broke off from the pony midway around the clubhouse turn and was guided down onto the rail at the 5 1/2-furlong marker. She was clocked in splits of :12.40, :24.80 and :37.20, then galloped out six furlongs in 1:16 over a track that was yielding slower times after routine maintenance Wednesday afternoon. Beholder, who thrashed a group of males in the GI TVG Pacific Classic at Del Mar Aug. 22, figures no worse than the second wagering choice behind Triple Crown winner American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile).
“She leaves Monday,” said the Hall of Fame conditioner, who along with other onlookers had a difficult time tracking the mare Thursday due to poor lighting conditions. “I got her in 1:01 and three (for five furlongs), but I couldn’t see…I could see her break off clearly but every time she hit a pole, there was something in the way. It doesn’t matter though.”
Mandella added, “That’s all I was looking for. She’s had her races, so we don’t need to create anything at this point, [we] just want to keep her happy. She’s been very happy.”
The dual Eclipse Award winner was put through her paces by her regular jockey Gary Stevens, who has ridden Beholder in 10 of her 11 most recent appearances, nine of those resulting in victory, including a third straight GI Zenyatta S. tally Sept. 26.
“She just cruised around there,” Stevens reported. “ We wanted to pick it up at the five sixteenths. Richard had told me to wait until the quarter pole so I let her extend at the quarter pole and then at the three sixteenths, she wanted to hit the afterburners but Richard didn’t want anything fancy with her. That’s as serious as she’ll get before the Breeders’ Cup, that’s all she needed. She’ll have one more tuneup at Keeneland and that’ll be it…If I’m there and he needs me then I’ll be there, but there’s a chance he won’t if he thinks she’ll do too much with me on her back.”
Click here for TVG video of the work.