Betting the Santa Ynez on a $20 Budget
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Rattataptap, pictured winning her career debut at Del Mar, seems to have a running style that get her the victory in the 2015 Santa Ynez. (Photo by Benoit Photo)
The 2015 edition of the Santa Ynez Stakes at Santa Anita drew a field of nine 3-year-old fillies, five of which come off a win in their previous start. Light the City is listed as the tepid morning line favorite at odds of 3-to-1 from the barn of Jerry Hollendorfer but she was last seen finishing a disappointing third at Del Mar as the heavy favorite when showing early speed before giving way. I thought that was a dull effort and I think this will be a tough spot for her to bounce back.
If Light the City wants the lead, she will have to outduel the other speedy runners in this field: Seduire, Callback, Xoxo, and Lady Duke. Seduire is a two-time stakes winner that has the experience edge (6 starts) and also owns a win and two second-place finishes over this track. Callback lived up to the betting public’s expectations in her second start when winning nicely at Los Alamitos after leading from gate to wire as the favorite. Xoxo and Lady Duke also come off front-running wins and I expect them to be part of the pace.
SEDUIRE WINS THE GOLDEN GATE DEBUTANTE
Photo by Shane Micheli/Vassar Photography
With all the speed that is lined up, I landed on Rattataptap as my top choice. She won her debut nicely after closing from the middle of the pack in a 12-horse field at Del Mar. I liked that she showed enough tactical speed to establish a good position and was able to settle behind horses. She managed to beat a well-regarded horse that day by the name of Popover who has yet to make her second start. I like Rattataptap’s style for this race and I think she will be able to sit a good trip given that the majority of the speed will start from the inside part of the starting gate.
I will play an exacta and will use the previously mentioned Seduire and also Conquest Harlanate. I think Seduire’s class will have her fighting down to the wire. Conquest Harlanate is an interesting horse in this spot. She will be making her dirt debut but has shown versatility by winning on the synthetic and on the turf while sprinting and routing. She seemed to work well over the dirt leading up to this race. There should be plenty of speed to set up her off-the-pace style.
Bets on a $20 Budget:
$10 Win: #6 Rattataptap
$5 Exacta (total $10): #6 Rattataptap with #1 Seduire and #8 Conquest Harlante
$200,000 Santa Ynez StakesRace 8 at 6:30 p.m. ET, Saturday, January 3 at Santa Anita Park6 1/2 furlongs on the dirt for 3-year-old fillies
PP
Horse
Jockey
Wgt
Trainer
M/L
1
Seduire
Rafael Bejarano
119
Jerry Hollendorfer
4/1
2
Callback
Martin Garcia
119
Bob Baffert
4/1
3
Light the City
Elvis Trujillo
119
Jerry Hollendorfer
3/1
4
Xoxo
Kent Desormeaux
119
Peter Miller
5/1
5
Hennythelovepenny
Fernando Perez
119
Peter Miller
20/1
6
Rattataptap
Edwin Maldonado
119
Jeff Bonde
5/1
7
Morning Coffee
Mario Gutierrez
119
Doug O'Neill
20/1
8
Conquest Harlanate
Mike Smith
123
Mark Casse
6/1
9
Lady Lake
Tyler Baze
119
Jeff Mullins
5/1