Give Me a Hint Continues to Roll at Santa Anita
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Photo: BENOIT PHOTO
Schroeder Farms and Welton Mansfield's homebred Give Me a Hint continued to roll through the ranks in Southern California with a 2 1/2-length victory in the $200,000 Golden State Juvenile Fillies Nov. 2 at Santa Anita Park.
The Merit Man filly, now undefeated in three starts, stalked a wall of three of early leaders with a ground-saving trip on the rail, made her move four wide under jockey Evin Roman late in the turn of the seven-furlong dirt test for California-bred fillies, and surged past the trio in the stretch to win in a final time of 1:26.45.
"I wasn't worried about the rail, because she's a very smart filly," Roman said. "She relaxed very well, and she was perfect sitting behind the speed—very relaxed. When we went to the outside, she finished very strong."
Trained by Bob Hess Jr., Give Me a Hint broke her maiden on debut at Del Mar by 9 1/4 lengths under Kent Desormeaux for a $50,000 claiming tag, then jumped up in class to beat winners by 6 1/2 lengths under Gary Stevens in an optional-claiming starter allowance at Santa Anita Oct. 12.
"I trained the sire and this filly's dam (Hint of Promise), so it makes it fun," Hess said. "Mentally she's a cool filly. She does things right. We thought she'd run big today."
Favored Mucho Unusual, who was on the outside of the speedy trio, held second by a half-length over Hotitude.
With the victory, which was also the first black-type stakes win for her sire Merit Man, Give Me a Hint pushed her earnings to $151,040.
A race earlier C R K Stable's Kencumin earned his first stakes victory in the $70,000 Lure, over multiple graded stakes-placed Kenjisstorm (second) and six-time graded winner Alert Bay (third). The French-bred Kendargent colt trained by Peter Eurton had not raced in stakes competition in his previous nine starts, but entered the one-mile grass test off an Oct. 6 optional-claiming allowance win over the same course and distance.
Under the guidance of jockey Brice Blanc for the first time Friday, Kencumin pressed pacesetter Kenjisstorm early and gamely outdueled his rival to the wire to win by a half-length in a final time of 1:33.59. Alert Bay loomed three wide in the stretch but came in third, another half-length behind.