Nearly 60% of the $200,000 bet into the win pool for Saturday's Los Alamitos Derby was on 'TDN Rising Star' Kentuckian, making him the heavy favorite to give trainer Jerry Hollendorfer and jockey Mike Smith a second-straight win in the race following Shared Belief (Candy Ride {Arg})'s victory in last year's inaugural running. But trainer Bob Baffert and the Watson, Weitman and Pegram ownership triumvirate had different ideas as Gimme Da Lute just held on to defeat Prospect Park, with Kentuckian a tame third.
Leaving nothing to chance, Smith sent Kentuckian straight to the front, and the gray looked to be doing things easily enough, with Martin Garcia and Gimme Da Lute not far away. When most expected Kentuckian to display the same brilliance which saw him land the GIII Laz Barrera S. last time out, Gimme Da Lute drew even into the long Los Alamitos straight, had Kentuckian beaten with three-sixteenths of a mile to run and earned the head-bob victory over Prospect Park. It was a significant gap back to a disappointing Kentuckian in third.
A nose second to next-out San Pedro S. winner Yiannis (Midshipman) on debut at Santa Anita Jan. 31, Gimme Da Lute easily earned his diploma when facing fellow Cal-breds there Feb. 21 and made it two in a row in that venue's restricted Echo Eddie S. Apr. 4. Third behind 'Rising Star' Competitive Edge (Super Saver) around one turn in Churchill's GIII Pat Day Mile May 2, the bay filled that spot again behind another 'Rising Star,' Holy Boss (Street Boss), when cut back to six furlongs for Pimlico's Chick Lang S. May 16. He earned his first graded stakes win last time in Arcadia's 1 1/16-mile Affirmed over Prospect Park and Om (Munnings), who defeated Triple Crown winner American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile) in his debut at Del Mar last year.
“After he won the Affirmed, I could tell that he was craving more distance,” said Baffert. “He's getting better and better and Martin rode him flawlessly today. I'm glad to be back here at Los Alamitos where it all started [as a Quarter Horse trainer] and winning this race means a lot to me. This horse had been working really well, so we were confident, but we just didn't know what [Kentuckian] was going to do because you never know how they're going to react when you stretch them out.''
Gimme Da Lute's dam produced a filly by Stormin Fever in 2013, a colt by Coil last year and a full sister to the winner this term.
Saturday, Los Alamitos Race Course
LOS ALAMITOS DERBY-GII, $350,000, LRC, 7-4, 3yo, 1 1/8m, 1:47.09, ft.
1–GIMME DA LUTE, 122, c, 3, by Midnight Lute
1st Dam: Casino Gold, by Proud Citizen
2nd Dam: American Affair, by American Chance
3rd Dam: Idle Affair, by Try My Best
O/B-Karl Watson, Michael E. Pegram & Paul Weitman
(CA); T-Bob Baffert; J-Martin Garcia. $210,000.
Lifetime Record: 7-4-1-2, $457,560. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick Rating: C+.
2–Prospect Park, 122, c, 3, Tapit–Quiet Romance, by
Bertrando. O/B-Pam & Martin Wygod (KY); T-Clifford
W. Sise, Jr. $70,000.
3–Kentuckian, 122, c, 3, Tiznow–Forest Music, by
Unbridled's Song. ($610,000 Ylg '13 KEESEP). O-Fox
Hill Farms, Inc.; B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings
LLC (KY); T-Jerry Hollendorfer. $42,000.
Margins: NO, 7 3/4, 3/4. Odds: 3.30, 3.70, 0.40.
Also Ran: Follow Me Crev, Pain and Misery.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
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