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SANTA ANITA NOTEBOOK JANUARY 1, 2009 by John Mucciolo The winter/spring meet at "The Great Race Place" kicked off on Friday with the Malibu S. (G1) starring on opening day. Malibu S. (G1): Harmon and Kasparoff's BOB BLACK JACK (Stormy Jack) cruised to the front with little pressure and left little doubt in the stretch in wiring this field with ease for James Kasparoff. The world-record holder smoked seven-eighths in 1:20 1/5 under David Flores to annex his first Grade 1 event. La Brea S. (G1): Hal and Patti Earnhardt's homebred champion INDIAN BLESSING (Indian Charlie) closed out her quest for another Eclipse Award with a measured score in here for Bob Baffert. The sublime sophomore went in 1:20 4/5 beneath John Velazquez while crossing the wire 1 1/2 lengths in front. San Gabriel H. (G2): Johanna Louise Glen-Teven's PROUDINSKY (Ger) (Silvano [Ger]) split horses turning for home and powered clear to a three-quarters of a length victory in here for conditioner Bobby Frankel. The five-year-old settled for many minor awards this campaign and finally broke through in his seasonal finale, completing nine panels on the firm turf in 1:48 1/5 under Rafael Bejarano. Track Stats From a total of 36 races held over the Arcadia racetrack during the week, favorites won at a 42 percent clip and the top two betting choices combined for 64 percent of the wins. From 28 frays contested on the Pro-Ride oval, seven animals won in wire-to-wire fashion (25 percent), while two of the eight grassy tussles went all the way on the lead (25 percent). We really have no gauge on the main oval as we've seen a little bit of everything to this point. There have many races with blanket finishes, sometimes as many as five or six animals within a length at the wire, which further confuses us from a handicapping and betting standpoint. We'll get better as we see more races over the fairly new surface, that's a promise. Only one horse won breaking from the rail during opening week, but we have seen winners stalk or close along the rail. We'll keep an eye on this as the racing continues. This is undoubtedly one of our favorite turf courses, and it seemed to play fairly over the initial four days of racing. Meet Totals RACES: 36 Post Positions (wins): RAIL: 1 HORSES TO WATCH Friday (12/26) 3RD -- POINT ENCOUNTER (Point Given) had a lot of hype surrounding him leading up to this dash, as the juvenile colt delivered with a fine showing for Carla Gaines. We're not sure if the colt is more than an intriguing one-turn horse as of yet, but he impressed while putting away a late threat like a pro. UNIONIZE (Dixie Union) ran huge in defeat in his debut and shouldn't be a maiden for long for conditioner Clifford Sise Jr. The debuter showed good early speed and put a big threat in the favored winner while well clear of third. 5TH -- We're always tabbing the Julio Canani-trained STAND TALL (Tejano Run) and he keeps delivering at good prices, closing well to top a useful group on this day. The gelding, while far from brilliant, is an ultra-consistent late runner on both Southern California ovals. 7TH -- GIO PONTI (Tale of the Cat) made his synthetic debut in here and couldn't have looked much better, blowing past these with a ton of class for Christophe Clement. The sophomore was bottled up for a while late, but there was little doubt once the talented colt got clear. We've always felt like the bay is more of a miler, and it's possible that he moved up some on the synthetic as well. 8TH -- GEORGIE BOY (Tribal Rule) looks like he's lost a step for Kathy Walsh, and we'll be letting the Grade 1 winner beat us against this type. The three-year-old had a dream trip to the stretch in this dash, but lacked the closing punch that made him such a promising youngster prior to his injury, for the second consecutive outing. Saturday (12/27) 3RD -- TEMPLE CITY (Dynaformer) gave Carla Gaines her second impressive debut winner in as many days with a powerful tally in here. The well-bred sophomore raced wide and stayed on well, suggesting that he will eventually be better at two turns. 6TH -- NAUGHTY NINE (Nineeleven) was pressured throughout but still had enough to open daylight late in a fine first showing for Caesar Dominguez, who rarely hits with first-time starters. This one appears to be very playable versus winners next out, presumably in a starter allowance test. 9TH -- DEVIL CAT M D (Tale of the Cat) responded well to the addition of blinkers, and the drop to maiden claiming company, in putting forth a powerful effort for Kathy Walsh. The juvenile finalized his final three-sixteenths in :17 2/5 and might be too good for claimers at this stage of the game. Sunday (12/28) 4TH -- APRIL PRIDE (GB) (Falbrav [Ire]) rallied well in here for James Cassidy to grab the place spot behind a clear early leader. The two-year-old miss should be one to watch in 2009. 5TH -- We're not certain what DEPUTY FLYER (Benchmark) beat in this winning debut, but the sophomore was impressive in doing so, nonetheless. The California-bred is one to watch with more seasoning. Monday (12/29) 6TH -- The well-bred PAPA CLEM (Smart Strike) held off a nice Baffert prospect in the stretch to earn a smart maiden score in here for Glen Stute. We've seen countless well-bred youngsters improve a great deal in a short period of time, so he can be any type and is worth keeping an eye on. 7TH -- SHE'S CHEEKY (Black Minnaloushe) has really transformed into a solid race horse and was wisely withdrawn from the La Brea this weekend by Peter Eurton. The sharp filly has won three straight and has a lot to look forward to in 2009. A Look Ahead A trio of graded tilts will be contested over the New Year Holiday; the $100,000 El Conejo H. (G3) on Thursday; the $100,000 Monrovia H. (G3) on Friday; and Saturday's $150,000 San Gorgonio H. (G2).
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