Opening up Dec. 26 Presents From Santa Anita Park

Opening day at Santa Anita Park is annually a belated Christmas gift for horseplayers, and a blockbuster program Saturday, Dec. 26 is packed with six stakes including the last three grade 1 events of 2020: the La Brea, American Oaks and Runhappy Malibu.

The Mathis Brothers Mile (G2T) and San Antonio (G2) begin the stakes festivities on a card that gets going at 11 a.m. Pacific time and wraps up with the Lady Shamrock Stakes several hours later.

Mathis Brothers Mile (SA, race 4, 12:36 PT): With all due respect to Smooth Like Strait (5), who has been favored six times in his past seven starts, and Field Pass (6), a five-time stakes winner all over North America this year, Whisper Not (1) is going to be a handful in this one-mile grass race for 3-year-olds.

Whisper Not won twice at 1 1/4 miles in the span of nine days overseas, carrying 131 pounds on turf at Pontefract and 134 pounds on the all-weather surface at Lingfield. In his United States debut at Del Mar four months later, the grandson of Dubawi finished a rallying second behind the older 10-time winner Shadow Sphinx and he was not asked for his life by Joel Rosario, who has the return call. If he merely holds form, that puts him on par with the two favorites, and improvement is a distinct possibility.

A - 1

B - 5, 6

San Antonio (SA, race 7, 2:09 PT): Mucho Gusto (8) has only run twice this year, posting a decisive score in the Pegasus World Cup (G1) and finishing fourth in the inaugural Saudi Cup (G1) five weeks later. He has been pointed to another try in the Saudi Cup ever since, and makes his first start in 10 months over a track where he won three graded stakes from as many starts at age 3.

Mucho Gusto will be at something below 100% for Bob Baffert, but that may not matter. Those inclined to seek additional coverage in multi-race wagers will probably land on Sharp Samurai (4), who has been banging out in-the-money finishes in top-level stakes through the second half of the year; and Idol (7), an exciting son of Curlin  who makes his stakes debut after wowing observers with big-figure wins in maiden and first-level allowance company at Churchill Downs.

A - 8

B - 4, 7

La Brea (SA, race 8, 2:43 PT): Finite (5) got some time off after disappointing as a heavy favorite in the Twinspires.com Fair Grounds Oaks (G2), and returned to form in the fall with a sharp second in the Lexus Raven Run (G2) and a win against older mares in the Chilukki (G3). The daughter of Munnings  has found her niche as a closing sprinter-miler type and is well suited to this seven-furlong test as she moves back in with her own age group.

Secret Keeper (4) stumbled at the break and finished last in the Raven Run but may rebound back in Southern California, where she ran well in her first three starts, notably a runner-up finish behind Harvest Moon, who came back to take the Zenyatta (G2) for her fourth straight win.

Stellar Sound (11) faced older last out when third as the favorite in the Bayakoa (G3), after she broke last, rushed to the lead with an early four-wide move, and yielded into the stretch. She fits off a big win over this track two back, and that was her first start for Michael McCarthy.

The Bob Baffert-trained foursome is headed by Merneith (2), who took a hard-fought decision over Motivated Seller (8) in the Qatar Fort Springs on Breeders' Cup Saturday. Motivated Seller was making just her third start that day and has loads of upside for Chad Brown.

Himiko (3) is 2 for 2 since Baffert took the blinkers off, and she stacks up well by the numbers in this very competitive event.

A - 4, 5, 11

B - 2, 3, 8

American Oaks (SA, race 9, 3:17): Red Lark was eligible for preliminary allowance conditions when she upset the Del Mar Oaks (G1T), and the perceived weakness of the local contingent was not lost on the connections of four fillies who are shipping in for this 10-furlong test.

The out-of-towners are headed by Sharing (9), whose previous run over the Santa Anita course was a win in the 2019 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1T). She returned to the SoCal circuit at Del Mar a few weeks ago and arguably ran her finest race in defeat, winding up beaten less than a length against older in the Matriarch (G1T). Although a flat mile has been her jam so far, it's notable that her dam Shared Account (also trained by Graham Motion) handled 11 furlongs to win the 2010 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1T).

The distance is not an issue for Luck Money (5), in fact it's a plus. The daughter of Lookin At Lucky  has raised her game considerably in three starts since stretched out from 1 1/16 miles, beginning with a solid third in the Exacta Systems Dueling Grounds Oaks (which developed into a key race) and most recently beating older in the Zagora Stakes.

Chad Brown could have them coming and going with the duo of Capital Structure (3), who figures to be rallying late, and Duopoly (8), who will likely set the pace.

A - 5, 9

B - 3, 8

Runhappy Malibu (SA, race 10, 3:51 PT): A showdown looms between Nashville (3) and Charlatan (4), sons of Speightstown  who have toyed with their opponents while crossing the wire first in each of their three outings.

Nashville set a Keeeland track record winning the six-furlong Perryville Stakes in 1:07.89 seconds, faster than Whitmore's BC Sprint (G1) later that afternoon, and hardly seemed to draw a deep breath.

Charlatan was disqualified from the Arkansas Derby (G10 after testing positive for lidocaine and has been sidelined since then due to minor ankle surgery. It's possible he will need to come from off the pace for the first time given Nashville's blazing speed, but he ran two huge numbers on this track to start off early in the year while beating the likes of subsequent Pat Day Mile (G2) winner Rushie by better than 10 lengths.

Independence Hall (6) could get a terrific setup tracking outside the two favorites. He is 4 for 4 in one-turn races after beating older high-end optional claimers first time back from a layoff. The fact that he exploded to win the Nashua (G3) by a dozen lengths in the second race of his initial form cycle provides a clue that a new peak effort could be in the cards.

A - 3, 4

B - 6