Ruben Alvarado, a longtime assistant to Peter Miller, took over training duties of Miller's Southern California stable as the five-time Breeders' Cup-winning conditioner began a hiatus from training in December. Having worked with a number of stakes horses in his previous role, Alvarado can now place "stakes-winning trainer" on his résumé.
On Jan. 9 at Santa Anita Park Alvarado saddled Zero Tolerance to win the $101,000 Las Cienegas Stakes (G3T). The 4-year-old Mizzen Mast filly stalked the pace, took over in the stretch, and held off Tapwater by a head to capture the 6 1/2-furlong sprint for older fillies and mares on the downhill turf.
#7 Zero Tolerance & Flavien Prat get up for the win in the G3 Las Cienegas Stakes at Santa Anita Park! pic.twitter.com/4eSQBTZQmn
— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) January 9, 2022
"Unbelievable, I don't have the words to say," Alvarado said. "I remember I had this moment when Roy H won the Breeders' Cup (Sprint, G1, in 2017 and 2018). That was a moment I would never forget. I'd like to thank my owners, my boss that gave me the opportunity to be part of this team. It's been great. It's just a dream. You just never know when it's going to happen, so I feel like, wow. Is this real? I just thank God and I'm just so happy and want to keep winning races."
With Flavien Prat up, Zero Tolerance tracked in second as Hear My Prayer posted opening fractions of :21.99 and :44.16. She took over at the eighth pole and easily put away Hear My Prayer, but had to fend off Tapwater's charging bid approaching the wire. Zero Tolerance held on to complete the distance on firm turf in 1:13.26. She paid $6 for a $2 win ticket.
"She was traveling super relaxed, and it does help to have a target, I think it helped her to relax," Prat said. "She can be a little, on her toes sometimes, but she was relaxing well today and when it was time to make a move, she responded well."
Tapwater was second by 1 1/2 lengths over Hear My Prayer in third and Ginja was fourth in the seven-horse field.
Zero Tolerance, owned by Custom Truck Accessories, Jason Hall, Joe Kelly, and Michael Riordan, made her first start in Alvarado's name Sunday. With Peter Miller as her trainer, she won the Unzip Me Stakes in October at Santa Anita and took an allowance optional claimer last out Nov. 20 at Del Mar. She now has a record of 4-1-0 from six starts and earnings of $215,000.
"That's just her (Zero Tolerance), I knew she could run," Alvarado said after the Las Cienegas. "She's a horse that can come off the pace or be on lead. In the beginning when we started her at Del Mar, we could tell she was a nice filly. We won a few times over there and then brought her here. She loves 6 1/2, so I knew she was going to run huge for me, she was a little fresh, so that was what we expected from her."
Zero Tolerance was bred in Kentucky by Hall, Kelly, Louis Eymard, and Herschel Martindale out of the El Prado mare Torreadora. She is a half sister to 2019 Ricoh Woodbine Mile (G1T) winner El Tormenta (Stormy Atlantic). Torreadora's latest foals include a 2-year-old Munnings filly named Domerelle and a yearling Tapit colt. She was bred back to Tapit for 2022.
