INGLEWOOD, Calif. (May 4, 2008) - Tough Tiz's Sis caught pacesetter Dawn After Dawn nearing the sixteenth pole and then held off a late bid by Santa Teresita to win Sunday's $100,000 Hawthorne Handicap at Hollywood Park by three-quarters of a length under jockey Aaron Gryder.
The victory was the second straight for the 4-year-old daughter of Tiznow, who covered 1 1/16 miles on Cushion Track in a quick 1:41.84 under high weight of 121 pounds.
Tough Tiz's Sis, winner of the Harry Henson Handicap while making her previous start at Sunland Park in New Mexico, won the Hollywood Oaks here last summer and finished second in the Bayakoa Handicap at Hollywood Park's 2007 Autumn Meet.
"She ran like we hoped for her to run and that's to win," trainer Bob Baffert said. "She likes this track. She likes Hollywood and she likes synthetics. Her breeding says synthetics. "
Tough Tiz's Sis, owned by Karl Watson and Paul Weitman, also won the Grade I Lady's Secret Handicap last fall on Cushion Track at Santa Anita Park. Sunday's victory - her seventh in 17 starts - was worth $65,100, boosting her earnings to $627,792.
"We had a pretty good trip," Gryder said. "I thought they'd be going faster early, but when I realized they weren't, I let her run up on the inside of them. When she got to the outside, I saw Victor's horse (Dawn After Dawn), the saddle had slipped quite a bit, and I just let her get comfortable. She's such a big, long-striding filly, she can outrun a lot of them using a lot less energy."
Tough Tiz's Sis paid $6, $3.20 and $2.20, while Santa Teresita - ridden by Michael Baze - returned $3.20 and $2.20. Dawn After Dawn, third under Victor Espinoza, paid $2.80.
Espinoza was pleased with the result, considering the trouble he had aboard Dawn After Dawn.
"The saddle slipped real bad," he said. "I had no control. It slipped all the way on top of her neck. It's pretty scary. When you don't have any control, you just feel like you're on top of jelly. The whole way, my body was on top of her neck. It's amazing she ran as good as she did."
Meanwhile, with a two-day Pick Six carryover of $397,386 entering Sunday's program, an additional $1,576,209 was wagered with one perfect ticket worth $1,262,507.
