Fighting Mad Makes It Look Easy in Santa Maria Stakes
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Photo: Benoit Photo
Fighting Mad wins the Santa Maria Stakes at Santa Anita Park
Gary and Mary West's Fighting Mad made it look easy May 31 at Santa Anita Park. Defying 10-1 odds, the daughter of New Year's Day took the field gate-to-wire on the main track at the Southern California venue and took home the prize in the $200,000 Santa Maria Stakes (G2).
In a field of only five runners, Fighting Mad and jockey Abel Cedillo shot straight to the front from the break, shifted inside to the rail, and quickly established dominance with a solid one-length leading margin. Horologist and Flavien Prat worked their way to the front to stalk the pace just off the lead in second, a half-length in front of Kaydetre.
Horologist pushed herself to keep time with Fighting Mad along the backstretch but began to drift as the half-mile went in :46.49. Kaydetre followed suit and began to lose momentum entering the second turn. The move allowed for favored Ce Ce and Victor Espinoza to make a three-wide move off the turn to get within striking range of Fighting Mad, who had increased her margin to two lengths at the six-furlong point.
Fighting Mad drifted out momentarily in the stretch but never slowed her stride. Still surging with only the final strides left to run, she kicked further clear of her rivals and was 3 1/4 lengths in front at the wire. The final time for the 1 1/16-miles was 1:42.12 on a fast track.
"Jimmy (Barnes, assistant to Bob Baffert) told me to send her to the lead. When she broke, she broke like a rocket so I was just trying to slow down," said Cedillo. "I know I went a little fast but she just did it on her own. The first race I watched was a ride by Joe Talamo (Aug. 17 Torrey Pines). She was just doing the same thing, he didn't budge (on) her and she won by eight. In her other race (a second-place finish in a six furlong allowance on July 19) she was looking around, which she did today, but in the stretch she just did it easy."
Ce Ce, who had made up ground coming off the turn could not be encouraged to kick home and drifted down the field. Hard Not to Love, who bobbled at the break and ran last through the majority of the race, was urged home by Mike Smith in deep stretch and overtook Ce Ce by 2 1/4 lengths to take second. Kaydetre was fourth.
After taking a bad step in the second turn, Prat eased Horologist up through the stretch and walked across the finish. The Gemologist filly walked off the course after the conclusion of the race.
Fighting Mad's only other stakes win came in 2019 when she took the Torrey Pines Stakes (G3) at Del Mar. She holds a 4-1-0 record from seven starts and improved her earnings to $294,008.
"She needed her last race and she had trained well coming into this," said Baffert. "We've always been high on her and today, I told the jock to put her on the lead, that's where she wants to be. She can be a little headstrong, but I could see turning for home, I knew she was gonna be tough to beat. Today, she ran like she did at Del Mar, that's a really good time on this track."
Bred in Kentucky by Gary and Mary West, Fighting Mad is out of the Forestry mare Smokey's Love and is a half sister to three other winners. She finished fourth in her only other start of 2020, the May 17 Desert Stormer Stakes (G3) at Santa Anita.