Drain the Clock's Half Sister Scores at Second Asking

This column highlights the performances of maidens who have made no more than five starts and who either sold for more than $500,000 at public auction, have siblings that are graded/group winners, or have dams that are graded/group winners. BloodHorse research shows maiden winners, in particular, who meet these criteria are more likely to go on to be graded stakes winners.

Santa Anita Park

Despite being a half sister to grade 1-winning sprinter Drain the Clock  , it appears Corposo  takes more after her sire, Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) hero Vino Rosso  , after her maiden-breaking performance March 8 at Santa Anita Park.

#4 CORPOSO ($11.00) gets her nose down on the wire first in a thrilling stretch battle in R2 at @santaanitapark. The three-year-old Vino Rosso (@SpendthriftFarm) filly breaks her maiden for @EurtonRacing with @JockeyHerrera aboard. pic.twitter.com/hgOR70czy2

— TVG (@TVG) March 8, 2024

Corposo, bred and campaigned by Nick Cosato's Slam Dunk Racing, didn't quite show her older half brother's penchant for speed in her Feb. 18 debut. Stalking behind the pace, the filly scrambled home in fourth in the 6 1/2-furlong maiden special weight, never quite looking comfortable chasing the quick early fractions.

Wheeling back three weeks later, trainer Peter Eurton stretched the chestnut out to a mile in her second outing. Breaking awkwardly under Diego Herrera, Corposo settled in her rhythm this time, laying second behind the front-running favorite, the Bob Baffert-trained Bonaqua . Cutting the pacesetter's lead to a half-length at the quarter pole, Corposo battled Bonaqua shoulder to shoulder down to the wire.

Corposo prevailed by a nose in a painstakingly close head bob. The Eurton trainee clocked the mile in 1:38.68 over a track rated as "good."

The effort earned the filly an impressive 105 Equibase Speed Figure.

Corposo became the fourth winner for her dam, the Arch mare Manki. Time will tell if she can reach the heights attained by Drain the Clock, whom Cosato also bred. Drain the Clock, retired last year to stand stud at Lexington's Gainesway Farm, was a three-time graded stakes winner and earner of $698,000. The son of Maclean's Music   scored in the 2021 Woody Stephens Stakes (G1) at Belmont Park | BloodHorse.com Track Profile">Belmont Park, defeating that year's eventual sprint champion Jackie's Warrior   in a heart-pounding finish.

Corposo's sire, Spendthrift Farm's Vino Rosso, is still paving his way in the breeding shed, with his oldest crop to race just turning 3 this year. After finishing third in the first-crop sire standings in 2023, it wouldn't be a surprise to see the stamina-laden stallion's offspring improve as older horses as the distances only grow longer.