La Force Upsets Paradise Woods in Santa Maria Stakes
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Photo: Benoit Photo
La Force wins the Santa Maria Stakes at Santa Anita Park
Roberta Williford, Ward Williford, and Charles Winner's La Force has been knocking on the door of a graded stakes victory since last summer, and the German-bred mare pulled off the feat June 1 by upsetting Paradise Woods in the $200,000 Santa Maria Stakes (G2) at Santa Anita Park.
Patrick Gallagher trained La Force, a 5-year-old daughter of Power, to three grade 1 runner-up finishes last year. She was second to Unique Bella in the Beholder Mile and Clement L. Hirsch Stakes, then was close behind Vale Dori in the Zenyatta Stakes.
Following an off-the-board effort in the Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1), La Force made her seasonal debut April 27 in the Santa Margarita Stakes (G2). Grade 1 winner Paradise Woods romped by 10 1/2 lengths, with La Force beating out five others for second. That victory garnered Paradise Woods 1-5 favoritism in the Santa Maria, but a stumble out of the gate left her in last at the start.
Jockey Mike Smith was able to usher Paradise Woods into fourth, leaving her ahead of only La Force at 5-1. La Force received a patient ride from Drayden Van Dyke as Just a Smidge set fractions of :24.21, :48.51, and 1:13.32.
With the field compact in the second turn, Van Dyke took La Force four wide and the mare began to open up in the stretch. Paradise Woods came rolling late, but she could not find the momentum to catch La Force, who wrapped up 1 1/16 miles in 1:45.91 on a fast main track.
"Mike (Smith) and Paradise Woods stumbling at the start really didn't change anything for me," said Van Dyke. "I had a great outside post and she tends to like being in the clear, my horse. It did help a little, her stumbling, obviously because it made the trip more difficult for him and only helped us. She's just an honest, trying filly. She's very, very classy.
"It's very rewarding getting this win with her. She ran second to Unique Bella so many times, so I really believe she deserves this."
Paradise Woods was 1 1/4 lengths back in second, followed by Just a Smidge, Exuberance, and Tapped.
La Force has a 3-8-4 record from 25 starts and $550,800 in earnings. She was bred by Gestut Karlshof and is the first of two foals out of the German mare La Miraculeuse, by Samum.
"The filly was in a good spot," said Gallagher. "The favorite stumbled at the start. I have to watch the replay, but we thought (Paradise Woods) would be on the lead, but it didn't turn out that way. La Force put it together, and we were very happy. Chuck gave instructions to the jockey when we were in the paddock, and that was it.
"We finally got the win today after knocking on the door so many times. We're just glad to get there and win. Winning a graded race is a big help for a broodmare prospect, so now she's done that. We're really, really happy with her performance."
"It is very rewarding. Thank you to Paddy, who did a great job. Thank you to Drayden, who always rides her beautifully," said Winner. "She tries hard every single time. Paddy's done a great job with her, and it all worked out today. Drayden told me she'd win!
"I'm so happy for my partners, Ro and Ward. It was a terrific race, and to beat Paradise Woods was really special because she is a special horse. We're dreaming!"
Lady Prancealot represented another filly on the verge of a breakthrough, which came in Saturday's $150,702 Honeymoon Stakes (G3T) for 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/8 miles on Santa Anita's turf.
Owned by Craig Arntz, Josie Arntz, Donald Durando, Jules Iavarone, Michael Iavarone, and Jerry McClanahan, Lady Prancealot made an impact on the West Coast since her arrival from Europe. She was second in both the Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf and Surfer Girl stakes, then traveled east to compete in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1T).
The Sir Prancealot filly kicked off this season with an allowance optional claiming victory before running third and second, respectively, in the Providencia (G3T) and Senorita (G3T) stakes.
In the Honeymoon, Lady Prancealot, 3-1, was tucked into sixth by jockey Joe Talamo while Holly Hundy set fractions of :23.69, :48.79, and 1:13.53. Lady Prancealot was three wide turning for home and still sixth at the top of the stretch before unleashing a furious turn of foot. She out-rallied Hostess and Over Emphasize to win by three-quarters of a length in 1:49.08 on firm going.
"I waited a little longer today," said Talamo. "Last time, I probably moved a touch early. Today I waited, and sure enough turning for home she switched leads and really cut. She's very handy, very relaxed, and she has that 'turf' turn of foot. … She might be best at a mile and a quarter."
Seranitsa, Maxim Rate, Holly Hundy, and Dr Wysong completed the order of finish.
"It is so exciting to win any race, but to win this kind of race is very exciting," said McClanahan. "The more ground, the better for this filly—she tries so hard and she's so exciting. Every time we run her, she shows them what she's made of. I didn't know if they were going fast enough, but as she made her move, they started to come back a little more and we felt good about it. But we were definitely worried about the pace. They were slowing it down pretty good, but she tries so hard. If you have a horse like this that tries as hard as she does, you always have a shot. We always miss Mike Iavarone and his wife, Jules, when they are not here. We would have had a heck of a party tonight if they were here. We miss them so much, but we will see them in New York."
Lady Prancealot was bred in Ireland by Tally-Ho Stud and is the first of three foals out of the Irish mare Naqrah, by Haatef. The Honeymoon improved her record to 3-4-2 in 13 starts and boosted her earnings to $219,341.
Video: Santa Maria S. (G2)