ARCADIA, Calif. (Jan. 8, 2015)—Trainer Eric Kruljac’s longshot Not too Shiny attended a fast pace and prevailed in a desperate finish under Tyler Baze to take Thursday’s $60,000 allowance feature at Santa Anita by a head while covering 6 ½ furlongs down the track’s hillside turf course in 1:13.26.
A close third crossing the dirt at the top of the stretch, Baze bided his time inside and shifted three off the rail a furlong out.
“She loves the hill,” said Baze. “I liked her chances looking at the Racing Form even though I knew she was the longest shot on the board. Looking at the Fo
rm though, it set up perfect. A lot of horses can come from way out of it. Two horses hooked up right in front of me and I was able to have just a beautiful trip.”
The longest shot in a field of nine older fillies and mares at 21-1, Not too Shiny paid $44.20, $18.80 and $10.00. Owned by Kings River Ranch, the 5-year-old Kentucky
-bred mare by Modigliani notched her second hillside win and her third overall from seven starts. With the winner’s share of $36,000, she increased her earnings to $97,520.
“I thought we got caught but then I looked at it and she dug in and got the bob on the wire,” said Kruljac. “She loves the grass. I don’t know why I ever ran her on the dirt…She’ll never see the dirt again, as long as she’s with us. I don’t know where she’ll go from here. She’s got a half brother that has won five, or six hundred thousand sprinting in Europe. She’s got a little pedigree. We’ll keep her here (on the hill).”
Irish-bred Royal Temptress, who came rolling from far back under Mike Smith, was off at 9-2 and finished second, a half length in front of Air of Royalty and paid $6.00 and $4.00.
Ridden by Edwin Maldonado, Air of Royalty pressed the pace, made the lead briefly inside the sixteenth pole and held off Black Bird Rock by a nose for third. Off at 4-1, Air of Royalty paid $4.40 to show.
Fractions on the race were 21.21, 43.42 and 1:07.16.
There is a Pick Six carryover into Friday of $45,364 and it is expected that Friday’s total pool should approach $250,000. There is also a carryover into Friday’s Super High 5 of $33,767. (The Super High 5 requires players to select the first five finishers of the last race in exact order).
First post time on Friday is 1 p.m. Admission gates open at 11 a.m.