Off track brings out Awesome run in Monrovia

Off track brings out Awesome run in Monrovia

Mike Cavanaugh, Clement Hirsch Jr. and Gary Stute's AWESOME LADY (Bianconi)

made good use of her main-track experience on Saturday to dispose of eight

rivals in Santa Anita's

$112,600 Monrovia H.,

moved off the turf because of heavy rain. Originally scheduled as a

Grade 3, the Monrovia lost that status pending review by the American Graded

Stakes Committee.

The newly turned five-year-old tracked the pace under jockey Tyler Baze in the early going as 7-5 favorite Guidebook (Notebook) sped through splits

of :21 3/5 and :44 3/5. Awesome Lady collared that one shortly before the

six-furlong mark, getting three-quarters in 1:09 3/5 and completing the 6

1/2-furlong affair in 1:16 3/5 on the wet-fast track. Sent off at 5-1, the Stute trainee returned

$13.20, $5.60 and $4 to her backers.

"She's a hard-trying filly," Baze said. "I've ridden her on dirt and grass,

and she always seems to try hard. I never hit her, and she ran a good race. I've

had good luck with this filly in the past, and she's coming back around."

Beneficial Bartok (Bartok [Ire]) managed to get up for second, 3 1/2 lengths

behind the winner, returning $4.80 and $3.80 at 4-1 for the place while Allswellthatnswell (Perfect Mandate) hit the final spot on the board, paying

$4.80 at 5-1. Guidebook, Porthcawl (GB) (Singspiel [Ire]), Dominiques Darling

(Deputy Minister), Royal Liverpool (Gulch), Getthepartystarted (Game Plan) and

Lasika (GB) (Pursuit of Love) rounded out the order of finish. Chasethegold

(Touch Gold), Elusive Diva (Elusive Quality), Red Top (Ire) (Fasliyev) and

Resplendency (Tale of the Cat) were scratched from the race.

"I was glad when (Bob) Baffert scratched this morning (Resplendency), that's

all I know," Stute commented. "But I've been dying to run her on this kind of

track. I knew she'd love it. I finally got my wish. We'll take it one day at a

time (as to her next race)."

Bred in Kentucky by R. Alex Rankin and James Ernst, Awesome Lady is out of the

winning mare Risen Witch (Conquistador Cielo), who has also produced stakes

winner Risen Warrior as well as an unnamed two-year-old colt (foal of 2004) by Yonaguska and a

yearling colt (foal of 2005) by Zavata.

This was Awesome Lady's seventh win from 28 starts. She previously won the

Monterey H. at Bay Meadows and shows $284,758 in earnings. The bay was purchased

for $35,000 at the 2002 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.