The Shoemaker Mile Stakes (G1T) May 30 at Santa Anita, the first U.S. Breeders' Cup "Win and You're In" Challenge race, features a pair of West Coast turf mile specialists in Smooth Like Strait and Count Again, in a field of six.
Last year's winner, Smooth Like Strait, finished his 2021 campaign running second, just 1/2 length back of Space Blues in the Breeders' Cup Mile at Santa Anita. In that, the son of Midnight Lute yielded only in the final strides after making all the early going.
Leading up to last year's Shoemaker, Smooth Like Strait had lost by a neck in both the
Frank E. Kilroe Mile Stakes (G1T) at Santa Anita and the Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic Stakes (G1T) at Churchill Downs. Now 5 years old, he started 2022 with a third-place finish in the Maker's Mark Mile Stakes (G1T) at Keeneland April 15, beaten a nose and a neck.
"We're very happy with him," trainer Michael McCarthy told Santa Anita's Ed Golden.
Flavien Prat is slated to fly in from the East Coast for the ride.
Phil D'Amato will saddle Count Again, Masteroffoxhounds, and likely long shot Dance Some Mo.
Count Again, a lightly raced, 7-year-old Awesome Again gelding, is a turf mile specialist and counts among his six career wins the Feb. 5 Thunder Road Stakes (G3T) and the March 5 Kilroe Mile, both over the course and distance. He was sixth, beaten just 1 3/4 lengths, in the Maker's Mark Mile.
"He's just one of those dream kind of horses," D'Amato said after the Kilroe Mile. "You know if you have dead aim at the top of the lane with him, he's going to give you his late kick pretty much every time. He's just a fresh happy horse now."
Prat was aboard Count Again for the Kilroe Mile but, with that rider committed to Smooth Like Strait, Irad Ortiz Jr. takes the leg up on Count Again.
Masteroffoxhounds enters the Shoemaker Mile after reporting second in the Charles Whittingham Stakes (G1T) going 1 1/4 miles over the Santa Anita grass April 30. In that, Beyond Brilliant led throughout, turned back a modest bid by Masteroffoxhounds and prevailed by 1 1/4 lengths.
Masteroffoxhounds, a 5-year-old War Front entire racing for Rockingham Ranch, was transferred from Richard Baltas's barn to D'Amato after the Whittingham. He started his career in Ireland, racing first for trainer Aidan O'Brien, then for Jessica Harrington.
Both Beyond Brilliant and Gold Phoenix, who finished third in the Whittingham, were considered possible for the Shoemaker but neither was entered.
Restrainedvengence, a 7-year-old Hold Me Back gelding, returns from a third-place finish in the 2021 Shoemaker Mile and was third again in the Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) at Del Mar. He has performed well on both dirt and turf, most recently finishing eighth, beaten just 3 1/2 lengths, in the San Francisco Mile (G3T) at Golden Gate Fields.
Heywoods Beach and Dance Some Mo round out the field.
The winner is granted an Annie Oakley and a travel allowance for the FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T) at Keeneland Nov. 5.
While the Shoemaker is the first U.S. Breeders' Cup Challenge race of the season, the international part of that program has been in full swing since December.
Jet Dark qualified in the Mile Division with a victory in the L'Ormarins Queen's Plate (G1) in January. Another slot in the same November race is up for grabs May 29 in the Gran Premio Clup Hipico Falabela (G1) in Chile and yet another in the Yasuda Kinen (G1) the following weekend in Japan.
Santa Anita Park, Monday, May 30, 2022, Race 5Entries: Shoemaker Mile S. (G1T)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Masteroffoxhounds (KY) Juan J. Hernandez 122 Philip D'Amato 5/1 2 2Count Again (ON) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 126 Philip D'Amato 5/2 3 3Heywoods Beach (KY) Umberto Rispoli 122 John W. Sadler 10/1 4 4Dance Some Mo (ON) Kyle Frey 122 Philip D'Amato 15/1 5 5Smooth Like Strait (KY) Flavien Prat 124 Michael W. McCarthy 4/5 6 6Restrainedvengence (KY) Edwin A. Maldonado 122 Val Brinkerhoff 6/1
