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HOLLYWOOD NOTEBOOK JUNE 17, 2010 by John Mucciolo Two of the best horses in the nation took the spotlight at Hollywood Park last week, led by the queen. Vanity H. (G1): Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Moss' homebred ZENYATTA (Street Cry [Ire]) put her name in the record books by reeling off the 17th consecutive win to start her career with one of her finest performances yet. The otherworldly mare got nine furlongs in 1:49 under Mike Smith while inching a half-length clear under the wire for John Shirreffs. What a star! California S. (G2): Jay Em Ess Stable's RAIL TRIP (Jump Start) made pretty short work of this field while pulling away to a convincing, 2 3/4-length win for trainer Ron Ellis. The gelded five-year-old finished his 1 1/8-miles in 1:48 2/5 with Rafael Bejarano. Track Stats From a total of 44 races held over the Inglewood racetrack during the five-day race week, favorites won at a 47 percent clip and the top two betting choices combined for 66 percent of the wins. From 31 frays contested on the Cushion oval, nine animals won in wire-to-wire fashion (29 percent), while two of the 13 grassy tussles went all the way on the lead (15 percent). Both wire-to-wire winners on the lawn came on Sunday. For the week, we saw a handful of longer-priced winners on the lawn winning from off the early tempo. The main oval seemed quite fair to us, and on a whole, this surface is as fair as there is in Southern California. The fact that favorites are winning at a 41 percent clip backs that statement up. Meet Totals
HORSES TO WATCH Wednesday (6/9) 3RD -- APPEALING AFARE (Successful Appeal) returned from a fine win to just miss in a clear runner-up showing on this day for Doug O' Neill. The sophomore filly looks to be of stakes quality and could show up in a black-type event very soon. Thursday (6/10) 3RD -- While FALCON ROCK (Ire) (Hawk Wing) was very disappointing while third in here, we would not be surprised to see the gelding improve in a big way in his subsequent effort for trainer Simon O'Callaghan. 7TH -- BRADIUM (Forestry) almost pulled off the upset in here for conditioner Mark Glatt, falling a nose short at the wire in a sharp time. The three-year-old colt looks like a major player in his next try, though 11-1 odds are unlikely. Friday (6/11) 7TH -- HOCKLEY (A.P. Indy) was very impressive in here for conditioner Eoin Harty, closing fast while altering course under David Flores. The late developer didn’t beat much, but he proved that he can relax and make a run, coming home in :34 3/5 for his final three-eighths. Saturday (6/12) 8TH -- DOWNHILL DIVA (Swiss Yodeler) put in a fine effort for trainer Patricia Harrington in this dash, blowing her elders away late with a nice burst beneath Brice Blanc. The streaking sophomore has a lot of places she can go, and we'd expect a stakes race would be on the horizon. 9TH -- Former Horse to Watch SANGAREE (Awesome Again) finished another creditable second to a good one and has never been better for Bob Baffert. The five-year-old should feel no shame finishing second to Rail Trip. Sunday (6/13) 8TH -- It's hard to run a better race and not win, but that's what happened to the Mike Mitchell-trained ST. TRINIANS (GB) (Piccolo [GB]) in this one. The ultra talented five-year-old mare has flown to new heights since arriving in the United States and it took a horse for the ages to beat her in this Grade 1 affair. She might be the second-best synthetic horse in training. A Look Ahead The $100,000 Affirmed H. (G3) on Saturday and the $100,000 Will Rogers S. (G3) on Sunday lead the way this week at Hollywood.
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