INGLEWOOD, Calif. (June 27, 2008) -Irish-bred Daytona will try to solidify his
position among the nation's top turf horses with a victory in the $250,000 American Invitational Handicap on Saturday at Hollywood Park.
The Grade II American Handicap is one of three stakes on the Gold Cup undercard. It will be joined by the $150,000 A Gleam Handicap and the $100,000 Landaluce Stakes on the 11-race program which is highlighted by the 69th running of the $750,000 Gold Cup.
Daytona will be aiming for his third consecutive win and his seventh in his last eight starts in the 1 1/8-mile American Handicap. Most recently, he captured the Grade I Shoemaker Mile here on Memorial Day. He also won the Grade I Hollywood Derby here last fall and enters the American with $967,690 in earnings. A winner of eight of 15 races lifetime, his last six victories have come in graded stakes.
Daytona, trained by Dan Hendricks, will carry high weight of 123 pounds and break from the seven-post under Alex Solis in the field of eight, which lines up as follows from the rail out:
Whatsthescipt, with Isaias Enriquez up, carries 114 pounds; Storm Military, Rafael Bejarano, 115; Worldly, Victor Espinoza, 118; Heroi Do Bafra, Aaron Gryder, 115; Hyperbaric, Garrett Gomez, 116; Becrux, David Flores, 118; Daytona, Solis, 123, and Albertus Maximus, Corey Nakatani, 113.
Hyperbaric, beaten a neck by Daytona in the Arcadia Handicap and 1¾ lengths in the Shoemaker Mile, has trained well since then and figures to be heard from late with the added furlong in the American.
Italian-bred Becrux, winner of the Woodbine Mile in 2006, will be making his first start since finishing eighth in the Mile Championship in Japan in November. He is the richest horse in the field with earnings of $1,002,487.
Great Britain-bred Worldly, winner of the Will Rogers Stakes and Cinema Handicap here a year ago on turf, will also be making his first start since finishing seventh behind Daytona in the Hollywood Derby in November.
Argentine-bred Storm Military, a winner of eight of 16 starts, was beaten a nose in the Dallas Turf Cup at Lone Star Park on Memorial Day. He finished fourth behind Daytona in the San Gabriel at Santa Anita in December.
Whatsthescript, an Irish-bred who won the Generous Stakes here in 2006, will be making his first start since finishing off he board in the Sir Beaufort in December at Santa Anita; Brazilian-bred Heroi Do Bafra was second in the Inglewood here May 3, and Albertus Maximus switches to turf following a fourth-place finish in The Californian.
In the Grade II, seven-furlong A Gleam Handicap, Intangaroo, winner of the Grade I Humana Distaff in her last start and three of four races in 2008, will meet seven other stakes winners including unbeaten filly Magnificience in a talented field of 11, which lines up as follows:
Petite Cherie, with Martin Garcia up, carries 114 pounds; Ashley's Kitty, Joe Talamo, 116; Political Web, Martin Pedroza, 115; Dawn After Dawn, Gomez, 116; Romance Is Diane, Bejarano, 116; Tiz Elemental, Espinoza, 122; Missvinski, Solis, 116; Spenditallbaby, Joel Rosario, 116; Intangaroo, Alonso Quinonez, 122; Magnificience, Flores, 118, and Dearest Trickski, Mike Smith, 118.
Intangaroo started the year with an allowance win, then captured the Grade I Santa Monica in a 26-1 upset. She was third, beaten a half-length in the Las Flores Handicap, before striking late to win the Humana Distaff by a head over Baroness Thatcher and Hystericalady.
Magnificience, a 4-year-old chestnut daughter of Stormy Atlantic, was a 6½-length winner in her career debut in March of 2007, then cruised to a five-length win in the Santa Paula Stakes. She prevailed by a nose in a allowance race in her first start since the layoff here April 1.
Tiz Elemental won three straight stakes including the Las Flores before finishing second in the B.Thoughtful here in April. She is five-for-eight overall.
Romance Is Diane, winner of the Hollywood Starlet here in 2006, also won the Bayakoa in December. She has a race-high $626,718 in earnings.
Dearest Trickski, claimed for $32,000 last August at Del Mar, won five straight races including the Grade I La Brea before finishing fourth in the Desert Stormer behind Ashley's Kitty - also winner of the Railbird here in 2007.
Dawn After Dawn captured the La Canada in February, while B. Thougfhtful winner Spenditallbaby will attempt to rebound from a ninth-place finish in the Grade I Just A Game Handicap on turf at Belmont Park.
Irish-bred Petite Cherie scored a pair of allowance wins at the Santa Anita winter-spring meet; Political Web captured a seven-furlong allowance/optional claimer here May 15, and Missvinski makes his second start on a synthetic surface in her 14th trip to the post. Group 1 placed in France on turf, she won a 6½-furlong race on the all weather track at Deauville in 2007.
In the Landaluce, Cinderella Stakes winner Trifecta King meets Cosmic Queen, winner in her lone start to date when the two met May 15. The field of eight 2-year-old fillies will line up as follows in the six-furlong event:
Atka, Jon Court up, carries 116 pounds; Listisimo, Quinonez, 116; Glitter City, Garcia, 116; Got Tobe Rio, Solis, 116; Emmy Darling, Flores, 114; Malusita, Jose Campos, 116; Trifecta King, Bejarano, 119, and Cosmic Queen, Smith, 116.
The Landaluce will run as the fourth race, the American as the fifth, the A Gleam as the ninth and the Gold Cup as the tenth race on Saturday's program. First post time is 12 noon.
