Senor Rain caused a huge upset in an allowance feature
Trainer Peter Miller would have been expecting another lack luster performance from his 3-year-old gelding, Senor Rain, when he got pointed toward the Santa Anita’s $58,350 allowance feature, which reeled in 3-year-olds to run over a distance of seven furlongs.
Cecil and Gary Barber’s Senor Rain was coming off 4 consecutive defeats. He broke his maiden at second asking and finished second in the C. B. Afflerbaugh Stakes on dirt at about seven furlongs, and landed a starter allowance in his next start at Santa Anita
over a mile last year.
However, the next results of the next four races wasn’t going to stir much excitement up in the ranks, as Senor Rain finished third to Liaison in the Real Quiet Stakes, ninth in the Grade 3 Generous Stakes to Stoney Fleece at Hollywood Park to cap off a
mixed season.
Started off his 2012 campaign with a third place finish in the Cal Derby at about 1 1/16 miles to winner Russian Greek, and another ninth place finish in the Grade 3 El Camino Real Derby.
That is when Miller decided to opt for allowance races, and it was a right decision in terms of getting their hopes high. Coupled with apprentice Eswan Flores in the saddle, Senor Rain was sent as the 21 to 1 choice.
The gelded son of El Nino, out of mare Make My Marq by Marquetry, Senor Rain went all out in the stretch to defeat the odds on favourite, Consulado by 1 ½ lengths.
The race was perfectly set up for Senor Rain, as he tracked the leader and the pace presser, Brigand, who carved fast fractions and turned in half a mile in 44.74 seconds.
“This was a super performance,” Miller said in the winner’s circle on Friday, “by far his best race. We’ll look at some stakes here and around the country, and kind of play it by ear.”
Peter Miller didn’t rule out a possibility of a run in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby, but he said that they will take it race by race and see where the horse takes them.
Tags: