2006 Sunshine Millions

Da Stoops is Da Pick

ARCADIA, Calif. (Jan. 26, 2006) -- The University of Arizona’s head football coach is expected to be at Santa Anita on Saturday to witness the four local races on the fourth Sunshine Millions card.

Mike Stoops normally deals with two-legged runners, but his venture to Arcadia has nothing to do with recruiting athletes for his Wildcats football program.

He’ll be there to watch the horses, especially the newly-minted 3-year-olds competing in the six-furlong $250,000 Sunshine Millions Dash.

One young runner will be of particular interest to the coach. That one is Da Stoops, who is named for him and who figures to be sent off as the betting favorite.

“The colt is named for the good Stoops,” said Bob Baffert, who trains the colt and is an Arizona alumnus.

Baffert wants to make it clear that his colt, who won his last start, the seven-furlong California Breeders’ Champion Stakes for 2-year-olds on Dec. 26, opening day of the Santa Anita winter meet, has no connection to Oklahoma football coach Bob Stoops, who is Mike’s older brother.

Mike Stoops was one of brother Bob’s top assistants with the Sooners before leaving for the job in Tucson in 2004. His 2005 Wildcats club inflicted a 52-14 pasting on UCLA in November, ending the Bruins’ dream of an undefeated season.

Similarly, Da Stoops won the Cal Breeders’ by a romping 8¾ lengths to emerge as possibly the best 3-year-old Cal-bred in training who isn’t named Brother Derek.

Da Stoops’ convincing Cal Breeders’ victory under Victor Espinoza was only his second success in seven starts and snapped a three-race losing streak. But he’d run second to Your Tent Or Mine in the Grade III Hollywood Prevue on Nov. 9.

Bred by Malibu Valley Farms, Da Stoops is by Distorted Humor, who sired 2003 Kentucky Derby winner Funny Cide and 2005 Travers champion Flower Alley, and was foaled by the unraced Kingdom of Spain mare Glamorous Lady.

In the Cal Breeders’, he shot to the lead at once from his No. 2 post position and was never challenged, completing his seven-furlong journey in 1:21.63 as the 9-10 betting favorite in the field of seven.

The winning time was only one-hundredth of a second slower than the clocking turned in by Cal-bred Proud Tower Too in capturing the Grade I Malibu Stakes later on the season-opening program in Arcadia.

“I knew there were a couple of other horses in there with speed, but nothing comparable to mine,” Espinoza said afterward. “Still, you never know, especially in a short field.”

The Sunshine Millions Dash was won last year at Gulfstream Park by Lost in the Fog, that Florida-bred’s first start of a campaign that would end in his being voted the Eclipse Award as North America’s best sprinter.

No Cal-bred has won the Dash in its three runnings, but Da Stoops leads a strong Cal-bred contingent in this year’s edition.

Two other Cal-bred winners of local stakes are in the field. Brite Maneuvers recorded an upset victory in the Cal Cup Juvenile on closing day of Santa Anita’s fall Oak Tree meet and Plagiarist was an impressive 8¼-length debut winner.

Brite Maneuvers was bred by Chris Jones and is by High Brite out of Broccozola, whose sire, Brocco, won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita in 1993. Plagiarist was bred by Betty Mabee and is by Souvenir Copy.

--Larry Bortstein