San Francisco Mile Attracts Keeper Ofthe Stars, Ohio
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Photo: Benoit Photo
Keeper Ofthe Stars wins the Gamely Stakes at Santa Anita Park
Often overshadowed by racing in Southern California, Golden Gate Fields gets some time in the California spotlight April 24.
The Northern California track hosts six stakes Saturday, topped by the $250,000 San Francisco Mile Stakes (G3T), the ninth race on an extended 12-race card. The grass contest is part of an all-stakes late Pick 4 with a $200,000 guaranteed pool.
As usual for a major stakes race at Golden Gate, the San Francisco Mile drew southern invaders. Six of the eight entrants either raced or recorded their last workouts at Santa Anita Park, including 3-1 morning-line favorite Whisper Not .
The two horses with recent starts and works at Golden Gate are longshot Diamond Blitz and Keeper Ofthe Stars , a grade 1-winning female who takes on males in the San Francisco Mile.
Owned by Tommy Town Thoroughbreds and conditioned by Golden Gate leading trainer Jonathan Wong, Keeper Ofthe Stars won the Gamely Stakes (G1T) last May at Santa Anita before going off form in her final two races of the year, both in the summer. Freshened until this spring, she returned in an April 3 allowance race at Golden Gate and prevailed by a neck. That victory improved her local course record to 3-for-3. The 5-year-old daughter of Midnight Lute is an eight-time winner from 18 starts.
Ohio wins the Cotton Fitzsimmons Mile Stakes at Turf Paradise
The only entrant with more trips to the winner's circle is Ohio , who is 11-for-36. He is also a grade 1 winner, having won the Frank E. Kilroe Mile Stakes (G1T) as an 8-year-old in 2019. Now 10, he won the $75,000 Cotton Fitzsimmons Mile Stakes at Turf Paradise March 12 for the third consecutive year.
He is one of two entrants for trainer Michael McCarthy, who also starts Brown Storm .
Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Bruce Treitman own Ohio, while Matriarca campaigns Brown Storm.
Whisper Not doesn't have the grade 1 stakes victories of Keeper Ofthe Stars and Ohio, but possesses sharp current form. On the board in five straight races, he ran third in the Mathis Brothers Mile Stakes (G2T) over the winter at Santa Anita and has since run second and first in allowance races there.
He fired two bullets at Santa Anita earlier this month for trainer Richard Baltas. The Poet's Voice 4-year-old races for Electric City Racing, Madaket Stables, Christopher Dunn, and Jeremy Peskoff. Whisper Not is one of at least four horses that are capable of setting fast fractions.
Immediately before the San Francisco Mile, C R K Stable's Parnelli receives class relief to compete in the $100,000 California Derby, the second richest of the stakes at Golden Gate Saturday. The California Derby is a 1 1/16-mile race on Golden Gate's Tapeta surface.
The John Shirreffs trainee has run exclusively on dirt, last competing in the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby (G1) April 3. That day he chased Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) prospect Rock Your World before retreating to sixth, beaten 19 lengths by that rival.
Lost In Space , Stalking Shadow , and Jimmy Irish head the opposition.
In total, Golden Gate will host eight stakes April 24-25, two days of racing the track refers to as Gold Rush Weekend. Both cards have a first post of 12:45 PM PT.
Golden Gate Fields, Saturday, April 24, 2021, Race 8Entries: California Derby
PP
Horse
Jockey
Wgt
Trainer
M/L
1
1Lost In Space (IRE)
Tyler Baze
122
Simon Callaghan
3/1
2
2Jimmy Irish (KY)
Armando Ayuso
122
Jonathan Wong
9/2
3
3Parnelli (KY)
Edwin A. Maldonado
122
John A. Shirreffs
8/5
4
4Twilight Rider (KY)
Irving Orozco
122
Blaine D. Wright
20/1
5
5Stalking Shadow (CA)
Evin A. Roman
122
Jonathan Wong
4/1
6
6Govenor's Party (CA)
Cristobal Herrera
122
Daniel Franko
15/1
7
7Tesoro (KY)
Kyle Frey
122
O. J. Jauregui
10/1
8
8Omph (CA)
Frank T. Alvarado
122
Quinn Howey
15/1
Golden Gate Fields, Saturday, April 24, 2021, Race 9Entries: San Francisco Mile S. (G3T)
PP
Horse
Jockey
Wgt
Trainer
M/L
1
1Kiwi's Dream (AUS)
Irving Orozco
123
Victor M. Trujillo
5/1
2
2Keeper Ofthe Stars (KY)
Frank T. Alvarado
118
Jonathan Wong
6/1
3
3Whisper Not (GB)
Geovanni Franco
123
Richard Baltas
3/1
4
4Diamond Blitz (KY)
Assael Espinoza
123
Jesus Ramos
30/1
5
5Ohio (BRZ)
Ricardo Gonzalez
123
Michael W. McCarthy
6/1
6
6Border Town (KY)
Evin A. Roman
123
Richard E. Mandella
7/2
7
7Brown Storm (CHI)
Kyle Frey
123
Michael W. McCarthy
9/2
8
8Restrainedvengence (KY)
Tyler Baze
123
Val Brinkerhoff
6/1