American Oaks

Who says it never rains in Southern California? Well, for any music trivia buffs in the audience, it was the little-known Albert Hammond who sang those lyrics, but those living in and around metropolitan Los Angeles will confirm that the precipitation came with a vengeance this Christmas week, flooding parts of Interstate 5 and causing power outages and even the (very) odd threat of tornadoes. Nearly two inches of rainfall was recorded at Los Angeles International Airport, breaking a 54-year-old mark, while nearly four inches fell upon Woodland Hills and...

A victory in the GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup can lead even the most disciplined connections to call an audible, deviating from a more conservative approach in favor of a start in a race as alluring as the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf just weeks later. But trainer Cherie DeVaux and the Lael Stables of Roy and Gretchen stuck to their guns and sent the enormously talented She Feels Pretty (Karakontie {Jpn}) to California for the American Oaks, another chance at age-restricted Grade I glory while putting...

The 2024-2025 stakes schedule at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, will feature 79 added-money events over a total of 78 race dates, topped by the GI Santa Anita Handicap and the GI Santa Anita Derby. The Big 'Cap, worth $400,000 in 2024, will offer prize money of $300,000 this year, while the purse of the Santa Anita Derby has been cut to $500,000 from $750,000. On the flipside, the purses on offer for overnight races are above what was offered last spring and autumn, with four allowance and maiden...

Crunched into 3-5 favoritism to complete the Southern California turf Oaks double, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Anisette (GB) (Awtaad {Ire}) sat the perfect trip just behind the pace and quickened up decisively in the final eighth of a mile to stamp her authority on Tuesday's GI American Oaks at Santa Anita. The dark bay, who swept the GII San Clemente S. and GI Del Mar Oaks over the summer, was content to lay third against the rails as Irad Ortiz, Jr. tried to make all the running aboard 'TDN Rising Star'...

AMERICAN OAKS-GI, $303,000, Santa Anita, 12-26, 3yo, f, 1 1/4mT, 2:00.75, fm. RHEA MOON (IRE), 124, f, 3, by Starspangledbanner (Aus) 1st Dam: Callisto Star (Ire), by Fastnet Rock (Aus) 2nd Dam: Livia Galilei (Ire), by Galileo (Ire) 3rd Dam: Mohican Princess (GB), by Shirley Heights (GB) O-Rockingham Ranch & Talla Racing LLC; B-Kevin J Molloy (IRE); T-Philip D'Amato; J-Juan J Hernandez. For brilliant Group 1 winner RHEA MOON (Ire) (f, 3, by Starspangledbanner {Aus} out of Callisto Star {Ire}, by Fastnet Rock {Aus}) the sky is the limit in...

Small-time breeder Kevin Molloy was provided with the best possible Christmas present late on Monday night when Rhea Moon (Ire), the first produce out of homebred Callisto Star (Ire), became Starspangledbanner's fourth top-flight winner of 2022 when battling to Grade I American Oaks glory at Santa Anita. Rhea Moon began her career for Ken Condon in Ireland, for whom she showed bundles of potential when placing in six-furlong maidens at Dundalk and the Curragh before being purchased privately by BBA Ireland's Michael Donohoe and international bloodstock agent Niall Dalton to...

Rhea Moon (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) was produced by the hot-riding Juan Hernandez approaching the final furlong and fought her way past pace-pressing stablemate School Dance (Animal Kingdom) in the final couple of jumps to win Monday's GI American Oaks at Santa Anita. A 6-1 gamble exiting a 1 1/4-length success in the GIII Autumn Miss S. going a mile over this course Oct. 29, Rhea Moon was one of the last away, but improved along the inside while tugging a bit for her head and raced fourth-last with a circuit...

Santa Anita Park will launch its annual winter/spring live racing season on Monday with a 11-race card featuring six stakes races, highlighted by the $300,000 GI Runhappy Malibu S., $300,000 GI American Oaks, and $300,000 GI La Brea S., the last three Grade Is of the year in the U.S. Dubbed this season for the first time as the Classic Meet, racing at Santa Anita will be conducted on a Thursday-through-Sunday schedule through Apr. 9, the exceptions being Monday, Jan. 2 for the New Year's Day holiday, Monday, Jan. 16...

Santa Anita Park's 2022-23 Winter/Spring Stakes Schedule will offer a total of 93 stakes, 10 of them Grade I events, including  Apr. 8 showcasing the GI $750,000 Runhappy Santa Anita Derby, and 58 graded races beginning with the track's traditional opener on Monday, Dec. 26 through closing day, June 18. The track's popular 'Ship & Win' program will again provide significant monetary incentives for out-of-state runners. Opening day will feature a total of six graded stakes, highlighted by three Grade I, $300,000 events: the Runhappy Malibu, the La Brea, and...

Queen Goddess was trying dirt for the first time, but looked right at home with an easy wire-to-wire victory in the GII American Oaks--which was automatically downgraded after it came off the turf Sunday at Santa Anita. Kicked straight into the lead by Juan Hernandez, Queen Goddess assumed command after the opening furlong and cut out the running while racing a bit off the inside turning down the backstretch. Moving comfortably through a half in :47.62, the dark bay filly lobbed them along comfortably as she began to work clear...

With a 7-6-1-0 record since being imported from Ireland, and having already bested a number of these foes previously, Going Global (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) is strictly the one to beat in Sunday's concluding event at Santa Anita, the GI American Oaks. The Phil D'Amato trainee's lone runner-up effort in the States came when she was beaten a half-length in the GII San Clemente S. over a Del Mar mile in July, but she bounced back with a victory in that venue's nine-panel GI Del Mar Oaks Aug. 21. Closing Remarks...

Having sent out Klaravich Stable's Competitionofideas (Speightstown) to win his first GI American Oaks two years ago, trainer Chad Brown was back at it again Saturday afternoon, as Klaravich's Duopoly (Animal Kingdom) was given a beautifully rated ride from the front by Frenchman Flavien Prat and had plenty left late to post a mild upset at odds of 6-1. Going to Vegas (Goldencents) stayed on gamely for second ahead of favored 'TDN Rising Star' Sharing (Speightstown), who just earned a photo for third. Duopoly appeared the speed of the field...