HORSE RACING : Filly Can Clinch Eclipse Award

Despite her loss in the Breeders’ Cup, Stella Madrid can wrap up an Eclipse Award Sunday.

All the 2-year-old Alydar filly has to do is win the $500,000 Hollywood Starlet against nine of her classmates.

Third in the Juvenile Fillies, beaten by slightly more than three lengths by Go For Wand, Stella Madrid drew the rail in the mile Grade I event. But it isn’t the ideal post for the run up the long chute.

Still, Peter Brant’s filly has proved herself adept around one turn. She won four of five races in New York, three of them Grade I events--the Spinaway at Saratoga and the Matron and Frizette at Belmont.

Those successes, plus her 1-1 standing against her conqueror in Florida, make her the prohibitive favorite for the Eclipse.

“The way it stands right now, she beat Go For Wand once and Go For Wand beat her once,” said Jeff Lukas, Wayne’s son and the chief trainer of the stable’s Hollywood Park horses. “Stella Madrid won three Grade I’s before that and that should mean something.

“She’s done well since the Breeders’ Cup. She didn’t have any excuses in that race, but it was her first race around two turns. That’s one thing about back East. They don’t get that experience. We thought she ran well. She didn’t get beat very far.”

Even though Stella Madrid has never raced in California, she is no stranger to Hollywood Park.

“She was here from February to May and has been here for a month since leaving Florida,” said Lukas. “She’s got a lot of experience on this surface.

“The rail really doesn’t bother me. There’s a long enough run (down the backside) and she’s got enough speed. She came through along the inside when she won the Spinaway.”

The Lukas barn, seeking its first Starlet success since Althea won in 1983, will also be represented by Special Happening. Fourth in the Breeders’ Cup after setting the early pace, she was purchased by Mel Hatley at the Gene Klein dispersal sale, then was sold to Daniel Wildenstein, who paid a $30,000 supplementary fee to get her into the Starlet.

Special Happening won her first race, at Del Mar, finished second in the Arlington Lassie, then led all the way in the Alcibiades at Keeneland.

“She came out of the Breeders’ Cup fine and she’s trained well here,” Lukas said.

Dominant Dancer’s people believe that their filly should also be given Eclipse consideration, based on her four stakes victories at four tracks.

She sat out the Breeders’ Cup, though, because of a shin problem that developed after her three-length victory in the Oak Leaf Oct. 9. The daughter of Moscow Ballet had some fast drills at Santa Anita in preparing for her return, but there are concerns about her soundness. She is one for one at Hollywood Park, having easily won the Landaluce last July.

Besides Special Happening, Effusive Bounty and Tasteful T.V. were supplemented.

A California-bred filly, Effusive Bounty, upset males in the B.J. Ridder at Santa Anita and her trainer, Dan Hendricks, seems to be developing a knack for springing surprises in big-money races. In addition to the Ridder, he won the Del Mar Oaks with Stylish Star, a 15-1 shot.

Four races before the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, Tasteful T.V. made it three wins in four appearances for Brian Mayberry, winning the seven-furlong Lady’s Secret by 2 1/2 lengths.

The rest of the field includes Ten K, the beaten favorite in the opening-day Moccasin; the Jerry Fanning duo of Dramatic Joy and Icy Folly, Cheval Volant, who was seventh in the Breeders’ Cup, and Annual Reunion, who was jockey Gary Boulanger’s last local winner. He has ridden 57 consecutive losers since she won the eighth race Nov. 16.

Today’s main event is the $114,300 Affirmed Handicap, featuring 3-year-olds going a mile.

Flying Continental, who beat older horses in his last start for his first victory since February, is the 121-pound high weight and will be ridden by Chris McCarron. The distant runner-up in the Santa Anita Derby will also try to make it consecutive Saturday stakes victories for owner Jack Kent Cooke. Seven days ago, Cooke’s Single Dawn edged Pleasant Tap to win the Hoist the Flag.

Among Flying Continental’s rivals are three sophomores on the upswing. Splurger also beat older horses in his last appearance for Hap Proctor.

Exploding Prospect, a son of Miswaki, was beaten in his first start for Vladimir Cerin, then returned to win two in a row at Santa Anita. He beat maidens in a sprint, then was able to pull away late in his first try around two turns despite a fast early pace.

Handled by Gary Stevens in his two wins, Exploding Prospect’s jockey today will be Laffit Pincay. Stevens will be on Splurger.

A winner of only a $40,000 race for maidens until late in the Oak Tree meeting, King Taufan will get his first crack at a stake after scoring two victories.

Trained by Richard Cross, the stretch-runner won going away from allowance opponents two weeks ago, after upsetting heavily favored Kaboi in his previous appearance.

Others in the 12-horse lineup are Hollywood Reporter, also trained by Cerin and making his first start since he shocked Music Merci in a division of the Spotlight last May; Immortal Script, who prompted the pace before weakening in the Volante; Friendly Ed, a winner down the turf course hillside at Santa Anita in his last outing; Broke The Mold, idle since Del Mar, and imports Call The Tower, Dusty Mag, Ricandry and Some Forest.

Horse Racing Notes

All of a sudden, speed is king on the Hollywood Park grass. The auxiliary rails were put up Thursday and Dancinginthepark barely missed going all the way in the feature. Friday, Maroon Buck in the fifth and Regal Fawn, a 34-1 shot ridden by Chris Davenport in the eighth, led all the way in the day’s two turf races.

Besides the Affirmed, Hollywood Park will offer simulcast wagering on the $100,000 Bay Meadows Derby. The Derby, which has attracted a full but far from top-quality field, will go at about 1 1/8 miles on the grass and will be shown between the sixth and seventh races here. It will not be included in the Pick Six or the middle triple, however. With Charlie Whittingham keeping his sophomore turf specialists home, the starting high weight in the Derby is Go Milord, who was seventh for Jeff Lukas in his American debut in the Hollywood Derby. Ed Gregson will have two starters, Flint and Strogien, and Fernando Toro will ride Polar Boy for Richard Mandella.

Gregson was dealt a blow when the promising 2-year-old Lord Luvabuck bowed a tendon Tuesday. Second to Tarascon in his debut, Lord Luvabuck would have been odds-on in a maiden race Wednesday.