ARCADIA, Calif. -- Every track has its marquee races. At Churchill Downs, it’s the Derby and Oaks; at Saratoga, it’s the Travers and and Whitney.
Santa Anita has a number of top races every year, but it would be tough to place very many above the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile, a two turn race on the grass for older horses. In years past, it was “The Big Cap,” but the Santa Anita Handicap has lost its spot amongst the very top older horse dirt races.
The Shoemaker, in that way, symbolizes the strength of the current Santa Anita: turf racing. Few courses have the diversity of turf courses Santa Anita does - down the hill sprinting, flat course sprinting, and turf routes which either cross the dirt course or start on it. It’s quite the diversity of course options.
The Shoemaker is named for jockey Bill Shoemaker, who was so small at birth in Texas he was placed in a shoebox the night he was born. He won his first race in 1949 in Berkeley, and was the top ranked jockey in the USA by annual wins five times in the 1950s, and led the nation in yearly earnings ten times. He rode Spectacular Bid in his final 13 career races in 1979-80, losing only once. His last race came at Santa Anita in 1990, where a record crowd saw him finish 4th.
Let’s meet the field, and put together a wager.
Race 9. Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile. 1 mile, turf. 3+up. $300,000.
1. Seal Team. 6/1. Jockey: Juan Hernandez. Trainer: Richard Mandella.
Seal Team hasn’t won a race in a few years, but he seems to get a nice check no matter when he runs. A Bass Stables homebred, he has more than paid his bills in his life. We’ve seen flashes of talent with him, but every time he appears to be on his way to victory, he falters. I would include him in exacta and trifecta plays, but we’ll let him beat us here.
Comment: Include in exotics.
2. Atitlan. 10/1. Jockey: Antonio Fresu. Trainer: John Shirreffs.
Atitlan has won his last two races coming into this one, both of them graded stakes at longer distances. He does his best running late, and closes with a fury at the ends of races. The question for Atitlan is simple: can he get his engine moving quickly enough - and early enough - to compete in this field. He finished a very good third in the Grade 2 Mathis Mile here at Santa Anita in December; he’ll need to repeat his good early form in that race if he is to have a shot in this field.
Comment: Value include.
3. Seminole Chief. 8/1. Jockey: Irad Ortiz, Jr. Trainer: Jack Sisterson.
Seminole Chief is flying in from Miami for this one, coming out of a win in the listed Appleton at Gulfstream Park. While that was a solid field, and Seminole Chief’s run a good one - this field towers over that one, and he won’t get away as easily in this company. Jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr., amongst North America’s best jockeys, is in town to ride for the day. This seems like a step too far; but no one will be stunned if he puts it all together on Monday.
Comment: reluctant leave out.
4. King of Gosford. 7/2. Jockey: Flavien Prat. Trainer: Phil D’Amato.
King of Gosford enters this race as my most likely winner, having won twice at the distance in stakes company. He ran a good second to Cabo Spirit last out, the Grade 3 American right here at Santa Anita. He has won four of his six lifetime starts at Santa Anita, finishing in the money in all three. Add the Prat / D’Amato connection, and you’ve got your most likely winner.
Comment: most likely winner.
5. Formidable Man. 3/1. Jockey: Umberto Rispoli. Trainer: Michael McCarthy.
Formidable Man will likely be the favorite in the betting, having won the Grade 1 Kilroe Mile back in March. He’s been terrific in his last five, his only loss a cross-country ship to try the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup in South Florida. McCarthy and Rispoli have been teamed on Journalism, and should attract a ton of money. Can he win? Of course. Is he a deserved favorite? Or course.
Comment: major contender.
6. Zio Jo. 30/1. Jockey: Kyle Frey. Trainer: Doug O’Neill.
You can hear trainer Doug O’Neill’s moniker when you gaze upon the past performances of a horses like Zio Jo: Why not us? Since a win at Del Mar in November in an optional claimer, O’Neill has put Zio in numerous stakes, nearly winning the aforementioned Kilroe Mile at 23/1. He’s a capable son of Nyquist, and has already earned $72,000 this year. If you’re looking for a horse to include in a longer ticket that’ll pay stacks - and has a shot - he’s it.
Comment: toss.
7. Mi Hermano Ramon. 5/1. Jockey: Hector Berrios. Trainer: Mark Glatt.
Mi Hermano Ramon was made favorite in the Kilroe Mile this year, only to finish fifth in the blanket finish which included four of the runners in this race. He’s well thought of, including being bet down to 6/1 in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup. His sole stakes win was in a blacktype at Santa Anita back in May of 2023; we’ll play against until he breaks through.
Comment: toss.
8. Cabo Spirit. 20/1. Jockey: Frankie Dettori. Trainer: George Papaprodromou.
Morning lines are meant to be an estimation of what the betting public will do leading into a race. Cabo Spirit, a 20/1 morning line longshot, will be nowhere near that number. Add top rider Frankie Dettori, and the fact that this horse won the Grade 3 American at Santa Anita - another graded turf mile race - which followed a 3rd place finish by less than a length in the Kilore Mile - and you’ve got a horse that’ll be bet to 8/1, in my estimation. In his last two races, the pace has been rather tepid; I think it’ll be quicker in the Shoemaker, and force him to close into the pace.
Comment: pace toss.
9. Goliad. 4/1. Jockey: Mike Smith. Trainer: Richard Mandella.
I think it’ll be Goliad who sets the pace here, as jockey Mike Smith will see the outside post as a requisite to go. He’s capable: many of his races start with him kicking away quickest from the gate. Like last year’s rendition, I expect him to be part of a torrid pace, and simply not be able to keep it going. In his races at Kentucky Downs, he showed an ability to maintain early speed over the entirety of the course; Santa Anita’s course plays very differently, and while I’ll be betting Goliad when he returns in a few months to Kentucky Downs, we’ll pass here.
Comment: Toss.
The Sporting Tribune Play:
All Stakes Pick 3, starts race 7:
4,5,8 / 5 / 4,5. $5 Pick 3 = $30. Good Luck!