Apache Princess Back on Short Rest for Cal Cup Oaks

Since racing on the Southern California circuit moved to Santa Anita Park the day after Christmas, KMN Racing's homebred Apache Princess has been unstoppable.

The California-bred Unusual Heat filly began with a 1 1/2-length maiden win over the hillside turf course Dec. 30 and came back three weeks later to score a first-level allowance on the same course, extending her winning margin to 3 1/2 lengths.

Back three weeks later for another jaunt down the hill in the Sweet Life Stakes (G3), rain washed the race off the grass and she still won, this time by 3 1/4 lengths in the slop Feb. 10.

Another unique challenge could be ahead in the $200,000 California Cup Oaks on the Santa Anita grass as she's scheduled to hit the track just eight days after her first stakes score.

Trainer Keith Desormeaux isn't entirely sold yet on running Apache Princess back so quickly, but if the filly gives him positive signs through the weekend she'll likely be out on the track Feb. 18.

"You have to have the right kind of horse to do that—one who has the right mentality," Desormeaux said. "She doesn't fret on the track, she takes care of herself, and she's a big-boned, solid-bodied horse. She's not frail and she eats up her feed really well. A horse that's small, more fragile, and doesn't eat well—you can't do that.

"She's hardy, has a great mind, and can handle it, but there's a limit to all of them, and we're at that limit. As long as she gives me all the signs horsemen look for, we'll let her go. If she regresses a little, she doesn't owe us anything. We're not pushing her to run."

With the weather forecasts in California changing on a daily basis, currently no rain is expected for the Presidents Day card, but if wet conditions do spring up, Desormeaux said he's not sold on running Apache Princess back on an off main track, even if she impressed last time out. The trainer said, in his experience, turf horses who run well on an off dirt track in their first try can sour in ensuing starts on a wet track.

"I'm not ready to admit she's an off-track horse," Desormeaux said. "She gave me a great race in the mud, but that might just be because she's a hard-trying horse."

Apache Princess is one of three entrants in the nine-filly field with a stakes win in open company.

Reddam Racing's Lippy earned her stripes sprinting on the dirt at Pleasanton in the Juan Gonzalez Memorial Stakes in June, but the Doug O'Neill trainee hasn't competed on turf or past 5 1/2 furlongs and last raced Aug. 1, when she came in third in the California Thoroughbred Breeders' Association Stakes at Del Mar.

O'Neill's second entrant, however, has the most two-turn grass experience in the field and could compete with Apache Princess for favoritism. Lakerball began her career sprinting in the maiden claiming ranks, but when O'Neill stretched her out and moved her to grass, she found her wheelhouse. In her first start on turf, she took the one-mile Surfer Girl Stakes by a head Oct. 8 at Santa Anita, then shipped to Golden Gate Fields, where she trounced her competition on the grass to win the Pike Place Dancer Stakes by five lengths. The Lakerville  filly exits the Nov. 24 Jimmy Durante Stakes (G3T) at Del Mar, where she finished sixth.

The two other stakes winners in the field earned that distinction on the dirt in the Cal-bred ranks and both are trained by Peter Miller. Kookie Gal took the Dec. 15 Soviet Problems Stakes by four lengths at Los Alamitos Race Course, and Creative Instinct won the Generous Portion Stakes sprinting at Del Mar Aug. 29 and hasn't won in five starts since.

Sayjay Racing's homebred Tiz a Master doesn't have a comparable résumé yet, but like Apache Princess she carries a three-race win streak into the Cal Cup Oaks.

The Ministers Wild Cat filly has only sprinted on dirt so far but graduated from the maiden claiming ranks in her second start Dec. 7 at Los Alamitos with a four-length win, stepped up into a starter allowance and won at Santa Anita Dec. 31, then took a Cal-bred allowance Jan. 27.

Trainer Billy Morey said the opportunity to run for a big purse with an improving filly is too much to pass up.

"There are very few Cal-bred, straight 3-year-old races with that kind of purse, so if you're ever going to take a shot, this is it," Morey said. "She's a hot filly, she's winning races, and she's on a roll."

Tiz a Master didn't show Morey much in her early training (which explains the two races for a claiming tag), but something clicked when she ran in the afternoon. Morey said that kind of development is rare but not unheard of.

"Early in her training she wasn't putting a lot into it, but she's improved a ton with racing," Morey said. "Maybe one out of 10 might do that, but usually the ones who don't show a lot in training don't come around that dramatically."

Rounding out the field is stakes-placed Mucho Unusual, last-out six-length maiden special weight winner Silk From Heaven, and Hot On the Trail, who finished third last time out in a starter allowance.

Also on the Monday card is the $200,000 California Cup Derby at 1 1/16 miles on dirt, which features likely odds-on favorite Galilean.

Owned by West Point Thoroughbreds, Denise Barker, and William Sandbrook, the Jerry Hollendorfer-trained Uncle Mo  colt has exclusively raced in restricted stakes company during his three-race career. He debuted with a neck score in the Barretts Juvenile Stakes in September, was beaten a neck by undefeated Cruel Intention in the Golden State Juvenile Stakes in November, and took the King Glorious Stakes by nine lengths last time out Dec. 16.

LARUE: Galilean Much the Best in King Glorious

The only other multiple winner in the five-horse Cal Cup Derby field is the Desormeaux-trained Irish Heatwave, whose victories have come on turf.

Entries: California Cup Oaks

Santa Anita Park, Monday, February 18, 2019, Race 5

• STK
• 1m
• Turf
• $200,000
• 3 yo Fillies
• 2:34 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Lippy (CA)	Mario Gutierrez	124	Doug F. O'Neill	10/1
2	2Mucho Unusual (CA)	Joel Rosario	120	Tim Yakteen	8/1
3	3Tiz a Master (CA)	Heriberto Figueroa	122	William E. Morey	12/1
4	4Kookie Gal (CA)	Flavien Prat	124	Peter Miller	4/1
5	5Silk From Heaven (CA)	Eswan Flores	120	Hector O. Palma	12/1
6	6Hot On the Trail (CA)	Drayden Van Dyke	120	Mark Glatt	20/1
7	7Creative Instinct (CA)	Geovanni Franco	124	Peter Miller	12/1
8	8Lakerball (CA)	Rafael Bejarano	124	Doug F. O'Neill	5/2
9	9Apache Princess (CA)	Kent J. Desormeaux	126	J. Keith Desormeaux	9/5

Entries: California Cup Derby

Santa Anita Park, Monday, February 18, 2019, Race 4

• STK
• 1 1/16m
• Dirt
• $200,000
• 3 yo
• 2:04 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Loud Mouth (CA)	Joel Rosario	120	Jerry Hollendorfer	8/1
2	2Whooping Jay (CA)	Mario Gutierrez	120	Doug F. O'Neill	8/1
3	3Irish Heatwave (CA)	Kent J. Desormeaux	122	J. Keith Desormeaux	3/1
4	4Galilean (CA)	Flavien Prat	124	Jerry Hollendorfer	2/5
5	5Feeling Strong (CA)	Tiago Josue Pereira	120	Hector O. Palma	12/1