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Santa Anita Stable Notes Saturday, June 8, 2024
6/8/2024
STABLE NOTES BY VICTOR RYAN SATURDAY, JUNE 8, 2024
• FORMER LEADING RIDER CEDILLO BACK AT SANTA ANITA • TALAMO RETURNS TO SA WINNER’S CIRCLE AFTER WILD FINISH • FRESU WINS 3 FRIDAY, TAKES LEAD IN JOCKEY’S STANDINGS • FRIDAY’S $1 PICK 6 PAYS $55,415.80 for 1 WINNING TICKET
FORMER LEADING RIDER CEDILLO BACK AT SANTA ANITA After a successful winter and early spring at Turfway Park in Kentucky, jockey Abel Cedillo is back at Santa Anita. He plans to ride full-time in Southern California through at least the end of the Santa Anita Autumn Meet later this year.
Cedillo, 35, is a former top rider at Santa Anita. In 2019, the native of Guatemala finished the Autumn Meet in a tie atop the jockey’s standings with Flavien Prat. Additionally, from 2019 through 2022, he finished in the top five during three straight Santa Anita winter-spring seasons.
“This is the place to be. I just love to ride here,” Cedillo said Friday.
At Turfway Park, Cedillo finished fourth in the jockey’s standings at its Holiday Meet then was third at its Winter-Spring Meet, which opened Jan. 3 and ended March 30.
Cedillo is represented locally by agent Ryan Glatt, son of trainer Mark Glatt. Ryan Glatt spent years as his father’s assistant before recently making the switch to jockey agent.
“Maybe in the future I’ll return to (horsemanship) but I want to give this a try for now.” Glatt said.
Cedillo had three rides Friday on his first day back at Santa Anita. He has six more booked over the next two days. His mounts Sunday include two for Bob Baffert: Cornell (5-1) in the featured Affirmed Stakes and Hudson Ridge in the seventh, which is a 1 ¼-mile allowance/optional claimer on turf.
“Hopefully we can get off to a fast start,” Cedillo said.
Cedillo, whose first full season was 2010, has 1,659 career wins and more than $48.2 million in purse earnings.
TALAMO RETURNS TO SANTA ANITA WINNER’S CIRCLE AFTER WILD FINISH It was a thrilling return to the Santa Anita Winner’s Circle Friday for jockey Joe Talamo.
Riding 16-1 longshot Daniel’s Magic in the seventh race on turf for trainer Eoin Harty, Talamo prevailed by a nose in a wild blanket finish. The top-six finishers on the wire were separated by a nose, head, nose, nose and a neck.
“I didn’t know if I won or not. It’s great to be back here,” Talamo said from the Winner’s Circle.
The win was Talamo’s first at Santa Anita since Jan. 5, 2020, according to Equibase statistics. Soon after that victory, Talamo relocated to the Midwest.
Talamo first arrived at Santa Anita in March 2007 at age 17. He was fresh off winning the riding title at Fair Grounds in his native Louisiana as an apprentice. At the conclusion of 2007, Talamo would receive the Eclipse Award as North America’s outstanding apprentice jockey.
Over the next decade-plus, Talamo was a stalwart on the Southern California circuit. He won such major races as the GI Santa Anita Handicap and GI Hollywood Gold Cup in 2016 with Melatonin and the GI Shoemaker Mile in both 2013 and 2014 with Obviously. In addition, his only Breeders’ Cup win, which came in the 2009 Turf Sprint at Churchill Downs, was aboard Santa Anita-based California Flag for trainer Brian Koriner.
Talamo’s 43 stakes wins at Santa Anita ranks eighth among all active jockeys. For his career, Talamo has 2,335 wins and nearly $131 million in purse earnings.
FRESU WINS 3 FRIDAY, TAKES LEAD IN JOCKEY’S STANDINGS With a hat trick on Friday’s nine-race card, Antonio Fresu now holds a two-win advantage in the race for leading jockey at the Hollywood Meet. Six race days remain in the stand.
Fresu won the opener with Rhino ($5.20) for trainer Dan Blacker, the sixth with Devil Be Me ($16.80) for trainer Jeff Mullins and eighth with favorite Lyell’s Song ($5.60) for trainer Mark Glatt. He now has 27 wins at the stand. Juan Hernandez, who rode one winner Friday, is second in the standings with 25 wins.
Fresu, a 32-year-old native of Sardinia, Italy, arrived at Santa Anita in April 2023 after previously riding in Dubai. At the most recent Classic Meet, which ended April 7, Fresu finished second in the jockey’s race, seven wins behind Hernandez.
Fresu has a combined 12 mounts Saturday and Sunday. Hernandez, who is seeking a sixth Santa Anita riding title, has 14 mounts scheduled.
The Santa Anita Hollywood Meet ends Sunday, June 16.
THE CHOSEN VRON RETURNS TO WORK TAB AFTER 17th STAKES WIN Top sprinter The Chosen Vron on Saturday had his first work since collecting his 17th stakes win in the Thor’s Echo Stakes for California-breds on May 25.
Trained and co-owned by Eric Kruljac, The Chosen Vron went three furlongs in 36.20 seconds.
A 6-year-old gelding by Vronsky, The Chosen Vron rolled in the six-furlong Thor’s Echo by 2 ¼ lengths. It upped his record to 23: 18-1-2 with $1,419,678 in earnings.
Among a slew of workers for trainer Phil D’Amato was Grade I winner Gold Phoenix. The 6-year-old gelding went four furlongs on the synthetic training track in 49.40 seconds. Gold Phoenix most recently won the GII Charles Whittingham Stakes at 1 ¼ miles on turf May 4 at Santa Anita.
Graded stakes winner Straight No Chaser also worked. The 5-year-old Speightster horse went four furlongs in a sharp 46.80 seconds. Straight No Chaser on May 11 returned from a nearly year layoff in the GIII Runhappy Stakes at Aqueduct and finished fourth as the favorite after setting the early pace.
In all, there were 203 workouts combined between the main track and training track Saturday.
FINISH LINES: Friday’s $1 Pick Six paid $55,415.80 to a single winning ticket. The consolation payout for tickets with five winners was $214.70. The winning horses in the sequence starting with the fourth race were #1 J Dutton ($2.40), #1 Dolly May ($12.80), #2 Devil Be Me ($16.80), #3 Daniel’s Magic ($35.80), #2 Lyell’s Song ($5.60) and #6 Cali Bay ($7)…The 50-cent late Pick 5 paid $16,223.60…Friday’s $3 All-Turf Pick 3 paid $1,290.00…Today’s featured GII Summertime Oaks goes as the seventh race at approximately 4:15 p.m. PT… Next week Santa Anita will host four days of racing starting Thursday and ending on Sunday, which is closing day of the Hollywood Meet…Thursday’s card will be set later today…Saturday’s $1 Coast-to-Coast Pick 5 starts at 2:20 p.m. PT with the ninth race from Gulfstream Park… Horseplayer Steve Pollack will be host Tom Quigley’s handicapping guest Sunday on the Santa Anita simulcast feed starting at 11:50 a.m.