Weekend Stakes Rundown: Big 'Cap Day at Santa Anita

Each week BloodHorse.com looks forward to the weekend's biggest races. Consider this your weekly guide to the best stakes races in North America. This week we have a trio of grade 1 races at Santa Anita Park, a Triple Crown prep on each coast, and more. Races are listed in chronological order (all times Eastern) and full previews are available through the links below.

Saturday, March 11

4:25 p.m.—$200,000 Florida Oaks (G3T) at Tampa Bay Downs

Daddys Lil Darling, who held her own against the best 2-year-old fillies last fall, tackles turf for the first time for her 2017 debut. The daughter of Scat Daddy faces a tested bunch that includes the second-, third-, and fourth-place finishers from the Feb. 4 Sweetest Chant Stakes (G3T) at Gulfstream Park.

4:39 p.m.—$125,000 Hot Springs Stakes at Oaklawn Park

The six-furlong sprint stakes drew a quality field of eight older horses, including grade 2 victor Holy Boss, grade 3 winners Fish Trappe Road and Ivan Fallunovalot, and last year's classic contender Whitmore.

4:50 p.m.—$200,000 Tom Fool Handicap (G3) at Aqueduct Racetrack

Green Gratto, with $859,538 in earnings making him the most accomplished runner in the field, heads the list of hopefuls for the inner-track sprint. The 7-year-old son of Here's Zealous is coming off a front-running score over the same track and distance in the Jan. 16 Toboggan Stakes (G3).

4:55 p.m.—$200,000 Hillsborough Stakes (G2T) at Tampa Bay Downs

Isabella Sings comes into the race off a strong, three-length win the Lambholm South Endeavour Stakes (G3T) at Tampa Bay Feb. 11. In that 8 1/2-furlong race, Isabella Sings beat Martin Schwartz' Irish-bred Light In Paris and Lambholm Stable's Evidently, who will both be challenging her again in the Hillsborough.

5 p.m.—$400,000 San Felipe Stakes (G2) at Santa Anita Park

Mastery, an undefeated son of Candy Ride  , got a late start to his juvenile season, but has yet to misfire under the care of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who has won the Kentucky Derby (G1) four times. Mastery may not have a loss, but the San Felipe will undoubtedly be his toughest test yet, with former stablemate Iliad and relatively seasoned grade 1 winner Gormley trying to steal the show.

5:27 p.m.—$350,000 Tampa Bay Derby (G2) at Tampa Bay Downs

When it was announced last week that Sam F. Davis Stakes (G3) winner McCraken would miss the Tampa Bay Derby with a slight ankle strain, a new level of opportunity was placed at the feet of some classic aspirants. Led by Sam F. Davis runner-up Tapwrit, the signature prep at Tampa Bay Downs is a wide-open affair filled with promising but unproven youngsters.

5:38 p.m.—$200,000 Honeybee Stakes (G3) at Oaklawn Park

Chanel's Legacy has certainly come into her own this winter at Oaklawn Park, sweeping to victories in the Dixie Belle and Martha Washington stakes at the Hot Springs, Ark., oval. The 3-year-old daughter of Dominus   takes the next logical step in the Honeybee.

6:30 p.m.—$400,000 Triple Bend Stakes (G1) at Santa Anita Park

The connections of Masochistic hope their talented sprinter opens the 2017 season in better fashion than he closed 2016. Not that Masochistic disappointed on the track in his final start last season, reaching the wire second in the TwinSpires Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) at Santa Anita. But a post-race drug positive for the anabolic steroid stanozolol ultimately saw Masochistic disqualified to last in the Sprint.

7 p.m.—$400,000 Frank E. Kilroe Mile (G1T) at Santa Anita Park

A new trainer led to a new surface for Kaleem Shah's Dortmund. Stabled with Art Sherman at Los Alamitos Race Course after Shah and Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert parted ways at the end of 2016, the 5-year-old will take his first steps onto the Santa Anita lawn in the Kilroe.

7:30 p.m.—$750,000 Santa Anita Handicap (G1) at Santa Anita Park

All it took was a couple standout starts on dirt for Midnight Storm to go from gutsy turf miler to highweight in the premier handicap race on the West Coast. After five graded wins on the grass, including a grade 1 victory in the 2016 Shoemaker Mile Stakes, the son of Pioneerof the Nile   has won two straight graded dirt races impressively—the Native Diver (G3) and San Pasqual (G2).

Sunday, March 12

4:50 p.m.—$125,000 Stymie Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack

Fresh off back-to-back stakes wins, Paul Pompa, Jr.'s homebred Send It In will look to sustain his recent hot start in the 1 1/8-mile test. Send It In's stretch-drive rally resulted in a win by a nose over Fox Rules when he made his 5-year-old debut in the Feb. 11 Haynesfield Stakes. That followed a New Year's Eve win against state-breds in the Alex M. Robb Stakes.

6:30 p.m.—$200,000 Santa Ana Stakes (G2T) at Santa Anita Park

Abbondanza Racing's Goodyearforroses will look to claim her third straight stakes since relocating to Southern California, and will seek her first graded score. She won a stakes that was supposed to be graded Dec. 31 in the Robert J. Frankel, her first start for trainer Richard Baltas, but the grade 3 event was taken off the turf and after she won by 5 1/4 lengths, the grade was not reinstated. Back on turf for her next start in the Astra II Stakes Feb. 2, Goodyearforroses stalked and pounced to win the 1 1/2-mile test at Santa Anita.