Silver Medallion, Tales in Excess score at Santa Anita

Then the late-running Ten Devils (Rock Hard Ten), part of the favored entry

with Robie the Cat at 4-5, erupted from the pack and posed a danger in deep

stretch. Silver Medallion answered Garrett Gomez's every call, continuing to

find enough to preserve a half-length margin. Dispatched as the 5-1 third

choice, he reeled off the mile on firm turf in 1:35 3/5 and returned $12.60,

$4.80 and $3.20.

"We've got a lot of good horses beaten here, so any win right now feels

good," assistant trainer Scott Blasi said. "This is a nice colt Mike Ryan sent

us for a winter run on the grass. He's trained well, and he ran like we thought

he would. I thought he'd be pretty sharp. I was a little worried. We missed a

lot of training here with the rain and such. I was worried he'd be a little

fresh."

"He's a little goofy," Gomez said of Silver Medallion. "He's a difficult

horse, and Scotty's been working with him. Mentally, he's just not there yet,

but it's nice to know that a horse is this talented and he's not totally focused

yet. Hopefully they can get him moving forward, get him serious, and get him to

where he really wants to do his job. Right now, he doesn't even know what his

job is. Once he figures it out, hopefully he'll turn into a really nice horse."

Ten Devils finished second by a half-length, with Moment of Weakness (Ire)

(Big Bad Bob) along for third. Major Art (GB) (Compton Place) checked in fourth,

followed by Oakcrest Drive (Arch), Dominator (GB) (Motivator), Robie the Cat and

Celestic Night (Vindication).

Silver Medallion had previously been based with Chad Brown. A winner at first

asking in a photo-finish at Saratoga on August 4, he was among those compromised

by an eventful start in the September 3 With Anticipation S. (G3) at the Spa and

wound up a distant fifth. Silver Medallion switched to Keeneland's Polytrack for

the October 9 Breeders' Futurity (G1), where he again met with trouble en route

to finishing seventh. Back on the turf for an entry-level allowance at Churchill

Downs on November 7, Silver Medallion was pinched back at the break, but did

better to get up for second. With this victorious debut for Asmussen, the bay

has bankrolled $92,904 from his 5-2-1-0 line.

Bred by Brereton C. Jones in Kentucky, Silver Medallion brought $150,000 as a

Keeneland September yearling. He is out of the Stalwart mare Another Vegetarian,

whose best runner is the aforementioned Sweet Talker, heroine of the 2005 Queen

Elizabeth II Invitational Challenge Cup (G1) and five other stakes. Another

Vegetarian has since produced an unnamed soon-to-be two-year-old filly by

Harlan's Holiday. This is also the family of 2010 Garden City S. (G1), Sands

Point S. (G2), Virginia Oaks (G3) and Appalachian S. (G3) winner Check the Label

(Stormin Fever), and further back, Grade 1 queen Likeable Style (Nijinsky II).

Tales in Excess rolled to a 4 1/2-length debut maiden victory at Del Mar on

September 4, but had been stuck on minor awards ever since. The bay finished a

close second in an entry-level allowance, was runner-up again in the October 24

Anoakia S., and was most recently a fading third in the November 21 Moccasin S.

Her Blue Norther success improved her resume to 5-2-2-1, $109,800.

The Kentucky-bred is out of the winning In Excess (Ire) mare Excess's Best,

whose latest foal is an about-to-be two-year-old filly named Danger in Excess

(Forest Danger).