ARCADIA, Calif. -- Horse racing’s gaze this weekend will largely be on Tampa, as some of the top 3-year-olds will contest its Derby in pursuit of a spot in Kentucky Derby 151.
In Arcadia, the focus is on older fillies and mares. The race, the Grade 1 Beholder Mile, is named for one of the very best ever. Beholder had an incredible career, including 18 wins in 26 starts. She won a grade 1 race at ages 2, 3, 4, and 5. She finished outside the top 3 in a race only twice. Simply, a remarkable race horse.
This field features fillies and mares with numerous grade 2 and grade 3 wins, but not one has won a grade 1 in North America. It’s a smaller field, but an encouraging third of the entrants shipped from east of the Rockies. Trainer Bob Baffert has the two favorites - are they vulnerable? Let’s meet the field, and put together a wager. And when you get your bets together - check out our friends at AmWager! They’re live in California, and offering a 100% deposit match up to $150 for new customers.
Santa Anita Park. Race 8. Grade 1 Beholder Mile.
1 mile, dirt. Fillies & mares 4+up. $300k.
1. Richi. 2/1. Jockey: Antonio Fresu. Trainer: Bob Baffert.
Richi is a Chilean-bred, a rare origin point for the Baffert barn. She comes in having won a Grade 1 two turn stakes in Chile, and the Grade 3 Las Flores, a 6 furlong sprint. She’s a daughter of Practical Joke, and has shown plenty of ability prior to her newfound sprinting career in the US. If she were to win, it would be no surprise - but we’ll play against for value.
Comment: Reluctant leave out.
2. Hoosier Philly. 8/1. Jockey: Umberto Rispoli. Trainer: Tom Amoss.
Hoosier Philly ran one of the best 2-year-old races in recent memory at Churchill Downs, winning the year-end Grade 2 Golden Rod Stakes in 2022 by 5 lengths. She’s had a mixed bag of results since then, with no subsequent graded stakes wins. She was a half-million dollar purchase as a yearling, and she’s royally bred. Note: it’s never good when you’re propping up a 6-year-old with breeding potential. Toss.
Comment: Toss.
3. Cavalieri. 9/5. Jockey: Juan Hernandez. Trainer: Bob Baffert.
The other Baffert entrant in this recondition of the Beholder Mile is Cavalieri, a lightly raced daughter of Triple Crown winner Justify. She’s a late bloomer, running - and winning - her first career race in August of her 3-year-old year. She’s now 3-for-3, her most recent win coming in the Grade 3 La Canada, the unofficial prep for this race. She’s had her way in every race she’s run, and if she can get the lead in this one, don’t expect anyone to catch her.
Comment: Most likely winner.
4. Ultimate Authority. 15/1. Jockey: Ramon Vazquez. Trainer: Tim Yakteen.
Ultimate Authority was on the Kentucky Oaks trail this time last year - albeit for a single race. She gave it a go in the Grade 3 Santa Ysabel, a 2 turn dirt race for 3-year-old fillies. She finished a decent 4th in an 8 horse field that day, but needed significant time off after that race, returning in late November at Del Mar. She ran, and won, most recently in January, in a time of 1:37 and change; this can be a winning time in this group. While she’s unlikely to win, include her in your exacta and trifecta plays for maximized value.
Comment: Use underneath.
5. Tarifa. 3/1. Jockey: Mike Smith. Trainer: Brad Cox.
Tarifa was the darling of the Fair Grounds NOLA Kentucky Oaks trail in 2024, winning both Grade 2s at the track on her way to a disappointing 9th place finish in the Oaks. To her credit, the 14 horse field in the Oaks is the largest she’ll ever run against, and outside of that race, she’s never finished worse than third in her 10 career starts. She won the Grade 2 Mother Goose at Aqueduct in the fall, before finishing her year with a disappointing second as the favorite in the Grade 3 Falls City at Churchill Downs. She’s absolutely capable here, but we’ll play against again for value.
Comment: Reluctant toss.
6. Alpha Bella. 6/1. Jockey: Hector Berrios. Trainer: John Sadler.
There’s an old joke in horse racing, that once an older horse figures out that he gets the same meal whether he wins or finishes up the track, he’ll never win again. Alpha Bella is certainly not in this category, but she has run second in an astonishing 7 races of her 19 starts. Her breeding points to a turf pedigree, where she began her career; she’s run 3 seconds in 3 starts since moving to dirt in the Sadler barn. If someone includes her as part of an exacta or trifecta play, they’d get no argument here. As a winner? Harder to see.
Comment: Include in exactas and trifectas.
The Sporting Tribune Wager:
Late Pick 4, Starts Race 8: 3 / 3,4,6,8 / 5,6,7,8 / 1,2,3,4,10 $.50 play = $40.