Cal Cup

Quality Field for Cal Cup Matron

By Steve Anderson
Daily Racing Form

ARCADIA, Calif. (Oct. 12, 2004) -- In some years, races such as Saturday's $150,000 California Cup Matron are showcases for a standout statebred filly or mare, an opportunity to beat an easy field.

This year, the Matron seems more like a Grade 2 or Grade 3 race. The top contenders are Summer Wind Dancer, the winner of the Grade 2 Delaware Handicap; Yearly Report, the winner of the Grade 2 Delaware Oaks; Dream of Summer, the winner of two graded sprint stakes; and the durable Royally Chosen, who has started in nine consecutive stakes.

The race has such depth it hardly seems fair.

"It should be that way, good racing," said trainer Bob Baffert, who starts Yearly Report.

"You can't have every race be a walkover. I'd prefer a walkover."

The Matron should be one of the highlights of the 10-race California Cup program for statebreds. The top race of the day in terms of prize money is the $250,000 California Cup Classic, featuring the first three finishers of last year's race - Tizbud, Kedington, and Commander's Flag - and the 2002 winner, Calkins Road.

The Matron is run over 1 1/16 miles. The presence of four top-class fillies and mares will scare off some competition.

Summer Wind Dancer would have gone to the Breeders' Cup Distaff if she had run better than fourth in the Grade 2 Lady's Secret Breeders' Cup Handicap at Santa Anita on Oct. 3. When she failed as the 6-5 favorite, trainer Jeff Mullins turned to the Matron, hoping a quick pace will develop and help his filly's chances.

"The pace was slower than I thought it would be, and that didn't help her at all," Mullins said of the Lady's Secret. "She probably needed that race."

Royally Chosen was scratched from the Lady's Secret. She had finished third in the Clement Hirsch Handicap at Del Mar after leading for the first seven furlongs. Her presence in the Matron helps Summer Wind Dancer.

"The faster the pace, the better," Mullins said.

Dream of Summer, who won the A Gleam and Rancho Bernardo handicaps, is a front-runner. The Matron will be her first start around two turns.

Yearly Report has not started since finishing fourth in the Grade 1 Alabama Stakes, a loss that ended a four-race winning streak, all in stakes. The Matron will be a tough place to start a new winning streak.

"I just freshened her up," Baffert said. "I'm happy with her."