Weekend Racing at Hollywood Park : Chance of Oaks Upset Is Gorgeous, by George

When owner-breeder Robert Clay wanted to hang the name of Gorgeous on the 3-year-old filly running Sunday in the $150,000 Hollywood Oaks, he was surprised that it hadn’t been used on a horse before.

Clay not only got to call the filly what he wanted, but he has also seen her live up to the name. Imaginary Lady will be favored in the 1 1/8-mile Oaks, but Gorgeous has won four of six starts and came within a head of beating Open Mind, the best 3-year-old filly in the country, at Belmont Park last month.

Six fillies are entered for Sunday’s raceincluding Imaginary Lady and Lea Lucinda from trainer Wayne Lukas’ barn. Imaginary Lady won the Santa Anita Oaks in March and three straight races recently, including two at Hollywood Park. The rest of the field is composed of Kelly, Kool Arrival and Seattle Meteor. All will carry 121 pounds.

Gorgeous, who is trained by Neil Drysdale, is returning to the track where she began her career. She had two wins in Kentucky and that near-miss at Belmont Park against Open Mind, another Lukas filly, in the Mother Goose.

With Eddie Delahoussaye riding her all the way, Gorgeous made two starts at Hollywood Park last winter, finishing third in her debut and winning against maidens on Dec. 3. Drysdale then rushed her into stakes competition at Santa Anita, where Gorgeous won the Santa Ysabel by three-quarters of a length.

En route to New York, there were stops at Turfway Park, for an easy win in the Bourbonette, and at Keeneland, where Gorgeous ran in her first major race and responded with a win by a neck in the Ashland.

Clay, who runs Three Chimneys Farm in Midway, Ky., where Gorgeous’ sire--Slew o’ Gold--and her grandsire--Seattle Slew--both stand at stud, has a good idea about how Sunday’s race will be run.

“Imaginary Lady usually gets out there and then says catch me if you can,” Clay said. “But our filly has good tactical speed and that should help her.”

Gorgeous was the first name that popped into Clay’s mind when he saw the bay foal that Kamar, a Key to the Mint mare, produced.

“It was such a great name that I couldn’t believe someone hadn’t used it before,” Clay said. “I got lucky. A horse in England was called Gorgeous, I was told, but never anyone over here.”

Drysdale liked Gorgeous as soon as the developing yearling got off the plane from Kentucky, but because she was still growing, he waited until November before sending her into action.

“You could tell right away that she was well-made,” Drysdale said. “She was well-balanced.”

In the Mother Goose, Open Mind, who is now on a nine-race winning streak, ran 1 1/8 miles in 1:47 2/5, a stake record.

“As close as we finished to her that day, our filly broke the record, too,” Clay said.

Imaginary Lady hasn’t been a stay-at-home, either, and is much more seasoned than Gorgeous. The daughter of Santa Anita Derby winner Marfa won the Princess Stakes at Hollywood Park for her seventh win in 10 tries and she’s also scored victories at Santa Anita, Oaklawn Park and Pimlico. Her last defeat came when her stablemate, Open Mind, beat her by 2 1/4 lengths in a second-place effort in the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs on May 5.

Drysdale believes that Gorgeous is more effective with extra time between starts. That, he says, is the reason he didn’t take on Imaginary Lady in the Santa Anita Oaks, which came 11 days after Gorgeous’ first stakes win.

Gorgeous is from the first crop by Slew o’ Gold, who was voted the country’s champion 3-year-old colt in 1983 and nearly was voted horse of the year. From this crop have come three major stakes winners--Awe Inspiring, Golden Opinion and Gorgeous, who can only add to the young sire’s reputation with a victory on Sunday.

Horse Racing Notes

Although Wayne Lukas’ strength has been with fillies, the trainer has never won the Hollywood Oaks. Neither have Gary Stevens, who will ride Imaginary Lady, and Eddie Delahoussaye, who will be aboard Gorgeous. . . . Chief’s Crown, standing at Three Chimneys Farm, had his first stakes winner the other day. . . . Hollywood Park will be open Monday, dark Tuesday and resume racing on Wednesday. . . . The long-range plan for Sabona, another Neil Drysdale trainee, is the Breeders’ Cup Mile in December. . . . Today’s stake at Hollywood is the Lanadaluce for 2-year-old fillies, with Dominant Dancer the high weight at 119 pounds. . . . Creme Fraiche, the 7-year-old gelding who won the Belmont Stakes in 1985 and the Jockey Club Gold Cup in both 1986 and 1987, has been retired with career earnings of $4 million. Now the richest active horse is Great Communicator with $2.8 million.