B Squared captures Silky Sullivan Stakes
On Saturday, jockey Mario Gutierrez, trainer Doug O’Neill and owner J. Paul Reddam will try to win the Kentucky Derby for the third time in six years when they run Irap in the $2 million classic.
First, though, they combined to win the $100,450 Silky Sullivan Stakes with B Squared on Sunday at Golden Gate Fields after finishing a close second with Radish in the $100,225 Campanile Stakes.
The two 1-mile grass races for 3-year-old California-breds are part of the Golden State Series of stakes events whose purses are augmented by the California Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association.
“In this sport no matter what the purse is, with all the hard work that goes into it, when horses do well, it’s very rewarding,” O’Neill said by phone from Santa Anita. “It’s expensive to breed and raise a horse, so it’s important to have this program.”
B Squared was making his first start on grass and around two turns after taking his debut and losing by just a nose in the Echo Eddie Stakes at Santa Anita on April 8.
“He relaxed really well and he liked this surface,” Gutierrez said. “There was no problem putting him behind horses. It’s always fun to win a hundredgrander; it pays the bills.”
B Squared closed steadily from fourth place to draw abreast of Elwood J leaving the second turn and pulled away in the final sixteenth of a mile to win by 1¼ lengths in 1:37.56.
Miss Sunset took 1:39.20 to win the Campanile Stakes for fillies after being able to set a much slower pace than the one in the Silky Sullivan Stakes. The pace allowed Miss Sunset to withstand a stretch-long challenge from Radish in a victory by three-quarters of a length.
Fast enough to run sub-22-second first quarters and sub-45second halves, Miss Sunset got away with fractions of 24.45 and 49.60 under jockey Juan Hernandez while leading by 1½ lengths. Radish, winless in 11 starts with six seconds, moved to within a head on the second turn and appeared to put her nose in front in midstretch before being repelled.
Miss Sunset’s task was made easier when Lucky Christiana, who had shown keen speed in winning two maintrack sprints, broke last in the field of six and did well to finish third.
“I thought the six horse (Lucky Christiana) was going to be with us, but I was alone on the front end and it was a slow pace, so it was really nice,” Hernandez said.
“She’s a Type-A girl that you’ve got to get to relax, otherwise she will cut and run on you, and Juan did a wonderful job of doing that,” trainer Jeff Bonde said.
Miss Sunset, who has four wins in seven starts with three stakes victories, will return to the Southern California division of Bonde’s stable and point to races at Del Mar.
Gutierrez, O’Neill and Reddam are bound for Churchill Downs with Irap, whose first victory in eight starts came in the $1 million Blue Grass Stakes.
“We’re so pumped,” O’Neill said. “He’s always trained like a special horse, and he’s been knocking on the door. The win in the Blue Grass hopefully means he’s getting right at the right time.”