Be Your Best Travels West for Gamely

Mike Ryan's homebred Be Your Best  takes her show on the road in search of firmer turf when she starts in the $300,000 Gamely Stakes (G1T) May 26 at Santa Anita Park.

The Gamely, one of the jewels of Santa Anita's spring calendar for older turf females, drew an ultra-competitive field of nine for its special 50th anniversary edition. Six graded stakes winners, including contenders from past Gamely-winning trainers Michael McCarthy, Phil D'Amato, and Brendan Walsh, will bid in the quest for grade 1 glory.

Irish-bred Be Your Best rolled to three consecutive victories for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. from November through January, capped by a neck score in the Jan. 25 Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf Invitational Stakes (G2T) at Gulfstream Park. A mare that prefers a harder grass course, the 5-year-old daughter of Muhaarar  failed to bring her "A" game when facing more give in the ground in Keeneland's Jenny Wiley Stakes (G1T) in her most recent outing.

Based in South Florida, the Gamely would mark Be Your Best's sixth trip to the Golden State, where she is currently winless but has performed admirably over the years. As a 3-year-old, she was twice runner-up in grade 1 company there in the 2023 American Oaks (G1T) and Del Mar Oaks (G1T).

Be Your Best's jockey in the Gamely, Irad Ortiz Jr., who normally rides in New York, also makes the journey out west for Santa Anita's star-studded Memorial Day card. He will also pilot Joseph's Skippylongstocking , one of the top choices in Monday's Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes (G2).

Drawing directly to Be Your Best's inside in post 7 is Alpha Delta Stables' Liguria . The 5-year-old War Front   mare posted her second-highest career Equibase Speed Figure last time out when winning Santa Anita's Buena Vista Stakes (G2T) March 1. The Buena Vista, the third stakes win of Liguria's career, marked only her second start for the McCarthy barn and her second start off a lengthy 16-month layoff.

Sixth in her only prior attempt at the Gamely's 1 1/8-mile distance, Liguria tries the nine panels again, toting the co-high weight of 124 with Umberto Rispoli aboard.

One contender who should have no problems with the 1 1/8 miles is the D'Amato-trained Public Assembly . Relatively lightly raced with only six starts to her name, the 4-year-old daughter of More Than Ready has run progressively higher speed figures since breaking her maiden last fall at Kentucky Downs. Public Assembly, like Liguria, was previously trained by Chad Brown and joined D'Amato's barn over the winter after selling for $225,000 at the Keeneland November Horses of Racing Age Sale last fall.

Campaigned by Abbondanza Racing, Medallion Racing, and Lissa McNulty, Public Assembly has been flawless in her two starts on the West Coast, including a late-running victory in last month's Royal Heroine Stakes (G3T).

Antonio Fresu, the filly's rider for her last two wins, gets the call.

Abbondanza Racing has not just one filly riding a win streak into the Gamely, but two, with Lady Claypoole , who has taken on a new life as a 5-year-old. Owned in partnership with Omar Aldabbagh, Irish-bred Lady Claypool has strung together three straight wins over the Santa Anita turf for trainer Richard Baltas. In her last tally, she broke through at the black-type level for the first time, circling the field for a 2 1/2-length score in the March 15 Santa Ana Stakes (G3T).

Graded stakes winners Alpha Bella  and Where's My Ring , a grade 3 winner and 2024 Kentucky Oaks (G1) contender on the dirt, as well as a fleet of European-breds, Expensive Queen , No Show Sammy Jo , and Khinjani , complete the Gamely line-up.