No longer a Grade 1 race and its purse cut in half, the $200,000 Hollywood Gold Cup (G2) on Monday still draws some of the top horses in the country.
In what shapes up as a competitive field of eight 3-year-olds and up, Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert sends out 2-1 favorite Mr. Fisk and 4-1 third choice Reincarnate, while fellow Hall of Famer Richard Mandella saddles Subsanador, and Mark Glatt has Judge Miller (with Frankie Dettori aboard), both at 5-2.
Mr. Fisk. Benoit Photo
Baffert is seeking a 10th victory in the 1 ¼ Gold Cup and fourth in the past five years. His most recent winners were Defunded (2023), Country Grammer (2021), and Improbable (2020).
Mr. Fisk, a 4-year-old son of Arrogate, comes into the race off a 2 ¼-length victory over odds-on favorite Judge Miller in the 1 1/8-mile Californian (G3) on April 20. Canada’s top rider Kazushi Kimura as the call leaving from post 5.
Subsanador was beaten a head by Newgate in the Santa Anita Handicap on March 3, but finished 2 ½ lengths ahead of Reincarnate, who went on and finished fourth in the Oaklawn Handicap (G2) last month.
Also entered are Mixto (12-1), Ashcroft (15-1), Oviatt Class (30-1), and Arrowthegreat (30-1).
The picks: 1 Mr. Fisk 2 Judge Miller 3 Subsanador
The 86th Hollywood Gold Cup is part of a Memorial Day card that also features a pair of Grade 1s – the $300,000 Gamely and the $300,000 Shoemaker Mile.
Previews of the Gamely and Shoemaker Mile:
$300,000 Gamely Stakes (G1)
Anisette, a two-time Grade 1 winner, makes her long-awaited 4-year-old debut in the 1 1/8-mile Gamely on turf.
The filly returned to work just last month after a 60-day break, and trainer Leonard Powell feels she’s ready to go. The oddsmakers agree: She’s the 5-2 favorite in a field of nine.
Anisette. Benoit Photo
“We gave her a small vacation that was much deserved,” Powell said. “She’s come back as good, if not better, than before.”
The race won’t be easy. Among the top challengers are recent graded stakes winners Ruby Nell (3-1) and Linda’s Gift (5-1) for trainer Richard Mandella.
Olivia Maralda (6-1) comes west for her second start in the U.S. and will have the services of Flavien Prat. Forever After All (15-1) arrives from Kentucky for trainer Brendan Walsh, and will be ridden by Juan Hernandez, a five-time leading rider at Santa Anita.
Anisette will have regular rider Umberto Rispoli riding out of post 6.
The picks: 1 Olivia Maralda 2 Ruby Nell 3 Anisette
$300,000 Shoemaker Mile (G1)
The top two finishers in the Franke E. Kilroe Mile Stakes (G1), Easter and Du Jour, go at it again in the Shoemaker. Easter (7-2) is trained by Phil D’Amato, who excels with turf runners, while Du Jour (3-1) is trained by Bob Baffert, who excels with dirt runners. A field of 11 is entered, and while these two could hook up again, D’Amato also sends out Conclude (6-1) for his 4-year-old debut.
Du Jour, co-owned by Baffert’s wife, Jill, has won three of four starts since running sixth in the 2023 Shoemaker Mile. Flavien Prat, who was aboard for wins in the Del Mar Mile and the Kilroe as well as a 10th in the BC Mile, has the call leaving from post 2.
Easter, a 6-year-old gelding, had won three consecutive stakes dating back to last fall – the Lure and Seabiscuit Handicap (G2) at Del Mar, and the San Gabriel Stakes (G2) at Santa Anita. Antonio Fresu rides from post 11.
Keep tabs on There Goes Harvard (15-1), who hasn’t started since the 2023 Santa Anita Handicap. The 6-year-old was nominated to the Hollywood Gold Cup, a race he won in 2022, but not entered. He’s 2-for-4 on the turf for trainer Michael McCarthy. Juan Hernandez rides from post 3.
The picks: 1 Du Jour 2 There Goes Harvard 3 Conclude