SANTA ANITA : Tsu’s Dawning Finishes Third at 1-5

Most observers figured that the $80,700 Santa Catalina Stakes Wednesday at Santa Anita looked about as competitive as the La Canada Stakes and Santa Maria Handicap had last weekend.

But to the dismay of those who took 1-5, Tsu’s Dawning didn’t come close to emulating Gorgeous or Bayakoa.

Impressive in defeating Land Rush and Assyrian Pirate, two other promising 3-year-olds, Dec. 28 after having routed maidens a few weeks earlier, Tsu’s Dawning came up empty Wednesday against a less than stellar lineup.

The son of Tsunami Slew finished third, beaten by 14-1 shot Music Prospector, who won by a nose over 22-1 outsider Senegalaise, providing trainer Steve Miyadi only his seventh win in the last four major local meetings.

Boxed in early after breaking a step slowly, Tsu’s Dawning got clear down the backside, then was outrun in the final furlong. Perhaps he would have been better served opening up, considering how pedestrian the fractions were.

Another possible reason for his failure was the track. The surface is considerably looser and slower than it was when Tsu’s Dawning won opening week in Arcadia.

“I don’t know, I can’t make any excuses for him,” trainer Ed Gregson said. “He didn’t break well and he was climbing a little bit, but Chris (McCarron) did the right thing and moved him up into the right spot.

“We’ll scope him and see if we see anything. The track is a lot looser, so it’s a possibility (he didn’t care for it), but he had trained well over this track. It’s very disappointing.”

After Music Prospector’s second victory in as many U.S. starts, Miyadi couldn’t wait to gloat.

“I’d been reading some articles about the wonder horse (Tsu’s Dawning),” he said. “But, then I remember reading some other articles, too. Remember Ziggy’s Boy, the media horse from New York a few years ago?”

Actually, nobody could recall Ziggy’s Boy being hyped and nobody ever termed Tsu’s Dawning a wonder horse. He is simply considered one of the area’s better 3-year-olds.

This was the second stakes collaboration for Miyadi and Frank Olivares. Last September, Drag Race, thanks primarily to Single Dawn’s bad luck, pulled a surprise in the Del Mar Futurity, an effort he hasn’t come close to duplicating.

A son of Crafty Prospector, Music Prospector won a maiden race in Ireland before he was purchased by Miyadi for owner Motohide Aoki.

“He’s gutty,” said Olivares after his second win of the day. “I think he’s turning out better than expected. He never works fast in the morning, but he acted like there was another gear, I always thought.”

Shapiro’s Hero was fourth, then came Flying Reb, the 5-1 second choice and Short Timer.

Horse Racing Notes

Mister Frisky, unbeaten in 13 starts in Puerto Rico, will make his local debut in the seven-furlong $100,000 San Vicente Breeders’ Cup Stakes Saturday at Santa Anita. Trained by Laz Barrera since his arrival last month, the Florida-bred broke track records at El Comandante for six and seven furlongs. One of the marks was held by Bold Forbes, another Puerto Rican import who won the 1976 Kentucky Derby and Belmont. Mister Frisky worked five furlongs in 1:00 4/5 Wednesday morning. Among Mister Frisky’s expected opponents are Leading Laddie, who won four races in Canada, Farma Way, Phantom X., Tarascon and Top Cash. . . . Akinemod won’t be joining Gorgeous and Bayakoa in the Santa Margarita a week from Sunday. The 4-year-old filly, who missed the La Canada Saturday because of a temperature and infection, will be away for two months, according to trainer Jerry Fanning. Akinemod had won six straight after beginning her career with a loss. Most recently, she won the El Encino by 18 lengths in her first try around two turns.

Gary Stevens escaped injury when Chief Dare, his mount in the second race, veered in and attempted to scale the auxiliary rail shortly after the start. Stevens was a bit slow to get up, but rode the rest of the day after having been examined at the first aid station. “I had the wind knocked out of me,” he said. “At first, I thought I had broken a couple of ribs. As soon as I was able to get some air, I was all right.” . . . Lans Manus, a 7-year-old gelding who had spent his entire career in trainer Bill Stepp’s barn, was claimed Wednesday for $10,000 by Willie Washington after the horse had scored his 12th victory in the first race. Lans Manus, who has 62 starts, has now been in the money 29 times, earning more than $215,000. Later in the program, Lark’s Legacy, a 9-year-old gelding, won for the 23rd time in his 100th appearance. He has been first, second or third 57 times. He was also claimed for the third straight race, going from Julio Canani to Sandy Shulman. . . . Grand Canyon had his first recorded workout of 1990 when he went a half-mile in :48 4/5 Tuesday morning.