Enola Gray Returns to Racing in Royal Heroine

After a soft-tissue injury sent her to the sideline last summer, Nick Alexander's homebred six-time stakes winner Enola Gray will make her return to racing April 7 in the $200,000 Royal Heroine Stakes (G2T) at Santa Anita Park.

Last time out July 1 at Santa Anita, the daughter of Grazen broke through for her first graded win in the Wilshire Stakes (G3T), and trainer Phil D'Amato did not hesitate to throw her back into graded competition with the Royal Heroine at the same one-mile distance on the grass.

BALAN: Enola Gray Speeds to Wilshire Win

"The timing was right, and her best race to date was probably going two turns on the grass," D'Amato said of the 5-year-old mare. "This is a good spot to try her out, and (jockey) Tyler (Baze) has been working her and said she's been ready to go for the last couple weeks."

Enola Gray has been versatile in her 11-race career, with seven wins and three stakes placings to show for it, including a third-place finish in the 2016 La Brea Stakes (G1). To go along with her Wilshire win at two turns on the grass, she's won three stakes down the hillside turf course, a stakes around two turns on the dirt (the 2016 Melair), and a stakes sprinting on the dirt (the 2016 Fleet Treat), all for California-breds.

"We've been very patient with her and given her extra time, and I think it's paid off," D'Amato said of Enola Gray's comeback from injury. "She's trained very well, but she has to show that in the afternoon."

Two other mares who earned their first graded victories during the current meet at Santa Anita—Midnight Crossing and Madame Stripes—appear to be the main challengers to Enola Gray, along with grade 1-placed filly Beau Recall.

Midnight Crossing, trained by Richard Baltas, earned her graded score in the Robert J. Frankel Stakes (G3T) at the start of the Santa Anita meeting in December. She validated her form over the Southern California grass last time out with a second-place finish to stablemate Madam Dancealot in the Santa Ana Stakes (G2T) March 18.

Madame Stripes, trained by Neil Drysdale, won the Megahertz Stakes (G3T) Jan. 15.

Beau Recall, trained by Simon Callaghan, has had some tough luck since her California debut in January of 2017. In eight starts since that victory, she's yet to return to the winner's circle but has placed in four stakes, including a neck second in the 2017 Honeymoon Stakes (G2T) and a nose second in the Del Mar Oaks Presented by The Jockey Club (G1T).

Earlier on the Saturday card at Santa Anita will be El Camino Real Derby winner Paved's return to turf in the $150,000 Providencia Stakes (G3T).

Ciaglia Racing and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Quality Road  filly broke her maiden by 5 1/2 lengths in January at the Providencia's 1 1/8-mile distance before she shipped north to Golden Gate Fields to defeat male rivals by 1 1/4 lengths in the synthetic-track prep for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1).

BALAN: Paved Beats the Boys in El Camino Real Derby

A pair of last-out stakes winners will challenge the Michael McCarthy-trained Paved in Pulpit Rider and Ms Bad Behavior.

Pulpit Rider defeated California-breds Feb. 19 by 2 1/2 lengths in the California Cup Oaks at a mile on the grass, while Ms Bad Behavior won the China Doll Stakes against open company March 10 by 2 1/4 lengths.