Santa Ysabel renews rivalry between Killer Graces and Charm the Maker
The Grade 3, $100,000 Santa Ysabel Stakes at Santa Anita Park has reeled in seven 3-year-old fillies to run over a distance of 1 1/16 miles on dirt, on 28 January, 2012.
The 45th running of the event will renew the rivalry between the Jerry Hollendorfer trained 3-year-old filly, Killer Graces, and Ronald L. McAnally trained Charm the Maker, who were at each other on 13 November, 2011, in the Sharp Cat Stakes at about 1 1/16 miles.
That was round one, and Charm the Maker won it over Killer Graces by 1 ¼ lengths over the Hollywood Park’s cushion track, covering the 1 1/16 mile distance in 1 minute and 45.14 seconds.
There was an instant rematch as both contenders met after the Sharp Cat Stakes in the Grade 1 Hollywood Starlet Stakes, again over the Hollywood Park’s cushion track, over the same distance as the Sharp Cat Stakes, 1 1/16 miles.
On 10 December, 2011, Killer Graces completed her revenge on Charm the Maker, and downed the filly by one-half length to even the score, 1-1.
Now we enter Santa Anita Park, with the same distance of 1 1/16 mile, but the rivalry for supremacy will go down over a different surface, and that would be dirt.
While the two fillies would try to adjust on the new surface, they would have to neutralise another threat from trainer Bob Baffert, Eden’s Moon, who is exiting her maiden special weight race at second attempt with a win over Santa Anita’s dirt course by a staggering eleven and a half lengths, while going one mile on 8 January, 2012.
The Florida bred daughter of Malibu Moon, out of mare Eden’s Causeway by Giant’s Causeway, the 3-year-old filly will not get a more lucrative opportunity to make a name for herself in the early stages of the season by dowining both, Charm the Maker and Killer Graces in one race.
It is going to be an exciting matchup between the two, but the newly turned 3-year-olds' field would likely cause a lot more trouble to the protagonists than expected, which is all the more healthy for this division.
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