Santa Anita race results

Practical Joke's Secured Freedom Gets Right Set-Up in Affirmed

Monday's rescheduled Affirmed Stakes was run at a breakneck clip, and that suited the class-dropping SECURED FREEDOM (c, 3, Practical Joke--Securely, by Uncle Mo), who made a long run from three furlongs out and overcame some late greenness to win for the first time in stakes company. Settled in fifth position as Mo Koko (Mo Town) and 'TDN Rising Star' presented by Hagyard Decisive Win (Nyquist) match-raced into the clubhouse turn, Secured Freedom was content to bide his time from midfield and improved past a rival to be fourth approaching...

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Justify's Mizumi Remains Perfect, Strolls in Summertime Oaks

As caller Frank Mirahmadi noted: she broke her maiden in May and is a Graded winner in June. Baoma Corp's Mizumi (Justify) ran to her looks, and strolled home to a convincing GIII Summertime Oaks victory in just her second career start. Unveiled in the aforementioned May 2 maiden at this venue, she sailed through the 6 1/2-panel main track dash to earn an 85 Beyer, and stretched out to 1 1/16-miles for the first time here. The betting public was wholly unbothered by her being the least experienced in...

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Om N Joy at Santa Anita
Cal-Bred Om N Joy Upsets Heavy Favorites in Santa Margarita

If redemption was the name of the game in Saturday's GII Santa Margarita Stakes at Santa Anita, the first horse to come to mind likely would have been $2.5-million Fasig-Tipton November purchase Seismic Beauty (Uncle Mo) as the one with something to prove, but it was California-bred Om N Joy (f, 4, Om-Margie's Minute, by Hard Spun) who emerged as the star of the show and who got her own form of absolution. Om N Joy, who races for her breeders Jerry and Connie Baker along with partners Michael Golovko...

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Thought Process Much the Best in Gamely
Thought Process Much the Best in Gamely

Mission accomplished. Three months ago, after Thought Process (f, 4, Collected--Creative Thinking, by Creative Cause) kickstarted her 4-year-old campaign with a win in the Feb. 28 GII Buena Vista Stakes at Santa Anita, Billy Koch of Little Red Feather Racing said, "Ultimately, our goal has always been the Gamely." On Monday, that vision became reality with jockey Hector Berrios pumping his arm in celebration as Thought Process crossed the wire much the best in the 1 1/8-mile GI Gamely Stakes on Santa Anita's Memorial Day program. It marked the chestnut's...

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One Horse Show in California as Early Encore Dazzles on Debut, Earns 'Rising Star' Nod

If you want a fast and precocious winning juvenile to add to the stable, a son or daughter of Early Voting seems to be the most expedient method to get one this year. In the stretch of less than a month, the stallion has had five starters, three winners, one runner-up, and a third-place finisher. And now he tallies his second 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard', this time in the form of sensational maiden winner Early Encore at Santa Anita Park. A week removed from He Is No Lie's...

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Nyquist's Decisive Win Powers Home a 'TDN Rising Star'

The form of the Mar. 7 maiden won by 'TDN Rising Star' presented by Hagyard Crude Velocity (Beau Liam) continues to read extremely strong, as Great Friends Stables and Mark Davis's Decisive Win (c, 3, Nyquist--Weekend Away, by Malibu Moon) made light work of five rivals when graduating by the better part of a half-dozen lengths en route to his own 'Rising Star' Friday at Santa Anita. Beaten seven lengths into fourth on that occasion--an effort still strong enough to grade out at a 75 Beyer Speed Figure--the $200,000 Keeneland...

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Santa Anita Classic Meet: O'Neill, Jaramillo, Kretz Racing Top Respective Title Categories

The 2025-26 Classic Meet at Santa Anita wrapped Sunday as jockey Emisael Jaramillo, trainer Doug O'Neill, and owner Kretz Racing stood atop their respective categories as leading rider, trainer, and owner, the track announced Monday evening. Leading rider at Gulfstream Park, Jaramillo won 50 races from 229 mounts at the Great Race Place, a 22 percent strike rate, in his first season riding full-time at Santa Anita Park. Of that total, six were stakes races including the GIII San Marcos and the GIII Santa Ana Stakes. Jaramillo's mounts earned a...

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So Happy at Santa Anita
So Happy Upsets Heavy Favorite Potente in Santa Anita Derby

When So Happy (c, 3, Runhappy--So Cunning, by Blame) won his first two starts--both sprints--impressively, then yielded when stretched out to 1 1/16 miles in the GII San Felipe Stakes Mar. 7, it could be assumed he had distance limitations. After all, his sire was the 2015 champion sprinter and So Happy had kicked off his own career with a 6 1/2-furlong maiden win Nov. 22 and a GII San Vicente Stakes win at seven furlongs Jan 10 . So Happy ignored both the PPs and his sire's aptitude Saturday,...

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Meaning at Santa Anita
Gun Runner's Meaning Sparkles in Santa Anita Oaks

Meaning (f, 3, Gun Runner--Figure of Speech, by Into Mischief), a Bridlewood Farm and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners colorbearer, proved her win over Eclipse champion 2-year-old filly Super Corredora (Gun Runner) in the Las Virgenes Stakes Feb. 8 was no fluke and asserted herself as California's division leader with a resounding victory in the GII Santa Anita Oaks Saturday. The Santa Anita Oaks awards 100-50-25-15-10 qualifying points toward the May 1 GI Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs. The complexion of Saturday's race changed shortly out of the gate when GIII Santa...

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Vekoma's Weekend Princess Bounds Clear To Become A 'TDN Rising Star'

Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman's Weekend Princess (Vekoma), a $235,000 Keeneland November weanling turned $625,000 Keeneland September yearling, argued a good pace inside of firming favorite Confidentiality (Complexity) and found more in the final furlong and a half to graduate by a space en route to being named a 'TDN Rising Star' presented by Hagyard. The even-money choice, drawn widest of a field reduced to six by a couple of scratches, pinged the stalls and led them through the opening exchanges, but Florent Geroux was urging Weekend Princess...

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'Childs' Play: Bright Future for Dramatic Debut Winner Crude Velocity

A Kentucky Derby prep race could be next for Crude Velocity (Beau Liam), who overcame an impossible trip to win on debut with 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' honors for Bob Baffert at Santa Anita Mar. 7. "We're gonna leave California with him," owner Bill Childs said after reloading at last week's OBS March sale. "There are more opportunities for him outside of California. Bob will still have him. We want to take dead aim on what we're doing being something worthwhile. We're gonna try to target something that...

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Week In Review: It's Time for the Aftercare Debate to Include Passage of the SAFE Act

It is, of course, a good thing, that the subjects of aftercare and slaughter are being so widely debated, with influential owners like Mike Repole and Aron Wellman all but demanding that the industry come together and solve the problem. Just last week, Pat Cummings, who has been working side-by-side with Repole on the issue, penned a letter to the TDN in which he revealed what he called "20 concise findings, with a funding model projection" that he and Repole have put together. Good for Cummings. Good for Repole. Owner...

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