Gas Station Sushi Speeds to Victory in Beverly J. Lewis

Gas Station Sushi has always shown talent, but the way she won the $75,000 Beverly J. Lewis Stakes at Los Alamitos Race Course Sept. 8 not only showed something new, but also something special.

Unlike her trip en route to victory in the Beaumont Stakes Presented by Keeneland Select (G3) in April at Keeneland, when she raced in mid-pack early and closed in the stretch to win, in the six-furlong Beverly J. Lewis she was in the leading pack and the pace was blazing.

In between horses, three wide in a four-filly sprint for the lead, the 3-year-old Into Mischief  filly led at every point of call, but only had a head in front as she set fractions of :21.71 and :43.91 through a half-mile.

Steph Being Steph was the only one of the speedy quartet to hang around for the stretch run and remained on Gas Station Sushi's hip at the top of the lane, but the classy frontrunner kicked away without any asking from jockey Mario Gutierrez. She finished off the six furlongs in 1:08.54, was six lengths in front of Steph Being Steph at the wire, and Gutierrez never uncocked his whip. Best of Me, who stalked the leaders in fifth early, completed the trifecta.

"I had the opportunity to work her at Del Mar last week and that gave me a lot of confidence," Gutierrez said. "I thought there would be a little more speed, but she broke really well and I just went on with it. This is a very nice filly.''

Earlier in the week trainer Richard Baltas indicated the long-term target for Gas Station Sushi was the La Brea Stakes (G1) at Santa Anita Park in late December. After the Beverly J. Lewis, co-owner Jerry Riley said a start in the Oct. 20 Lexus Raven Run Stakes (G2) at Keeneland could be next for the filly. Baltas was at Kentucky Downs this week, where he saddled winners Next Shares in the Old Friends Stakes Sept. 6 and Insta Erma in the Kentucky Downs Ladies Turf Stakes (G3T) Saturday.

After Best of Me came Broome, Rayya, and Wicked Storm, to complete the order of finish.

Bred in Kentucky by Spendthrift Farm, out of the Five Star Day mare Five Star Daydream, Gas Sation Sushi now has a 3-0-1 record from four starts and $187,600 in earnings for Riley Racing Stables, Jason Tackitt, Megan Tackitt, Mike Henson, and Tiger Racing Stable. She was a $240,000 purchase out of the 2017 Ocala Breeders' Sales Company March Sale of 2-year-olds in Training.

Earlier on the Los Alamitos card, owner/trainer Reed Saldana's Shades of Victory stunned a quality field at 80-1 in the $75,000 E.B. Johnston for Califorina-breds. B Squared and 4-5 favorite Edwards Going Left both loomed as threats late, but Shades of Victory, who led at every point of call, prevailed by a head over B Squared.

"Down the stretch I was just hoping he could hold on. (Jockey) Martin (Pedroza) rode a great race," said Saldana, who claimed the 4-year-old Thorn Song colt for $12,500 out of a six-furlong sprint at Golden Gate Fields April 7. "We decided to run him here, because another race we wanted to run in at Del Mar didn't fill, so this worked out great. I though the distance would be to his benefit. One of the reasons I claimed him was because he had won a race at Sacramento, where he showed a lot of fight just like he did today."

Shades of Victory set a pace of :23.51, :46.76, and 1:11.21 with a 1 1/2-length lead, and finished off the one-mile test in 1:35.17.

"I had a sprinter and put him on the lead and said, 'Come catch me,'" Pedroza said. "He was very game when they came to him."