Starr of Quality stands out

Days after the top horse in his California stable was unexpectedly transferred to another trainer in a different state, Bill Spawr was looking around for a silver lining.

Midnight Bisou was gone after winning the Grade 1 Santa Anita Oaks and two other graded stakes. Employees of Spawr, and his loyal clients, were down.

“All the guys felt so bad about losing Midnight,” Spawr said. He tried to lighten the mood. “I said – ‘Hey, we’ve still got Starr of Quality!’ ” Starr of who? A 4-year-old filly, Starr of Quality could make a name for herself this summer starting Saturday at Los Alamitos. Based on her Cal-bred allowance romp last out, Starr of Quality looks tough to beat Saturday in the race 8 feature, a first-level allowance.

In the one-mile race there are 10 fillies and mares, including graded stakes-placed comebacker Vexatious, turf-to-dirt contenders Morning Dance and Lightning Dove, and potential pacesetter Robin’s Love.

None is as sharp as Starr of Quality, whose official margin last out was 7 1/2 lengths. Spawr jokingly disputes the margin: “She won by 10 – I don’t care what it says.”

Either way, it was the most decisive victory by Starr of Quality, who filled out and developed after Spawr reclaimed her in February for owners Tom Acker and Jon Lindo.

“She’s a Cal-bred, and she ran well every time,” Spawr said, citing Starr of Quality’s attributes.

She already earned back her $32,000 claim price, having earned $33,600 for her Cal-bred allowance win.

“She’s got a lot of potential,” Spawr said, hinting she may have more improvement in her. If she runs as expected on Saturday, Starr of Quality will be tough to beat.

KEY CONTENDERS

Starr of Quality, by First Dude Last 3 Beyers: 82-66-48

◗ She is by the same sire as the best recent claim by Spawr, Skye Diamonds, expected to seek a repeat victory in the Grade 2 Great Lady M. Stakes on July 7 at Los Alamitos.

◗ Starr of Quality has idiosyncrasies, Spawr acknowledged. “She has some bad habits, like getting loose and running back to the barn all the time,” he said.

◗ She has won 4 of 14. Her rider is Tiago Pereira.

Vexatious, by Giant’s Causeway Last 3 Beyers: 88-85-87

◗ Graded placed twice as a 3-year-old, 1-for-8 Vexatious is trained by Neil Drysdale and will be racing for the first time since last summer.

◗ She finished fourth in the 2017 Kentucky Oaks. Her rider is Rafael Bejarano.

Morning Dance, by Broken Vow Last 3 Beyers: 76-69-79

◗ She stretches out, adds blinkers, and moves to dirt.