SANTA ANITA : Garcia Loses a Loser, Gets a Winner

As it turned out, the best thing that could have happened to Julio Garcia was losing the mount on Highland Tide in Saturday’s $216,700 La Canada Stakes at Santa Anita.

This left him free to ride Fit To Scout, and the 4-year-old Fit To Fight filly responded by ending a year-long slump.

Fit To Scout, the second-longest shot in the field at nearly 10-1, rallied in the final furlong to defeat 6-1 shot Vieille Vigne by a half-length in 1:48 2/5 for the 1 1/8 miles.

Six days after finishing sixth of seven in the Santa Monica Handicap, Fit To Scout ended a slump during which she had won only one of her previous 11 starts, including seven consecutive defeats in Southern California.

A Wild Ride was third in the La Canada and Highland Tide, with Gary Stevens replacing Garcia, finished last as the 2-1 favorite. Highland Tide ran on Lasix for the first time.

Sixth behind a moderate pace for six furlongs, Fit To Scout found room between horses in the stretch and caught Vieille Vigne in the final yards.

“If I was going to have her ready for this race, I either had to run her (in the Santa Monica) or work her a mile,” trainer Jack Van Berg said after Fit To Scout’s $21.40 upset. “I figured I might as well run her, and if the (pace-setters) came back she had a chance.”

“Speed held that day. The race did her more good than anything. She came out of it strong. I told Julio, ‘She’ll pull on you. Don’t be afraid of her.’ He rode a masterful race.”

Fit To Scout went sour last year after a banner January at Santa Anita. She won an allowance race Jan. 4, came back to win the La Centinela Stakes 13 days later, then won the Santa Ynez Jan. 27.

“Last spring, I thought she’d be a top, top horse,” Van Berg said. “When I shipped her to Oaklawn Park (in Arkansas) for the Fantasy, she got a little sick. Then, she went off form. I thought maybe she’d be better on grass, but that didn’t work, so I finally turned her out and started over again.

“She’ll stay on dirt. She runs big on dirt, so we’ll just keep her there.”

Vieille Vigne, a five-length winner in the mud in her U.S. and main track debut Jan. 9, put away Questioning to draw clear in the stretch, but couldn’t stave off the winner.

Eddie Delahoussaye, Vieille Vigne’s rider, thinks things could have been different if he had been outside of Questioning.

“Being inside I had to move on her a little more than I would have liked so I could keep my position,” he said. “If I had been outside the other filly, I would have just been able to sit there and wait.

“She’s still a little green on changing her leads and everything, but I think she’s going to be a real nice filly.”

A Wild Ride, purchased by Zenya Yoshida for $525,000 three days after she won the El Encino, looked finished at the top of the stretch, but closed well and wound up beaten by slightly more than a length.

After coming up a neck short at 13-1 in the El Encino, Highland Tide was well-placed early by Stevens, but had nothing to give late.

“It’s quite possible she could have bled again,” he said. “I was real happy with my position, but it went from a pull to a push real quickly at the five-sixteenths pole.”

Unbeaten in three starts, Apollo will be heavily favored to make it four consecutive victories in today’s $141,500 California Breeders’ Champion Stakes.

Owned and bred by Diane and Harold Keith and former Daily Racing Form columnist Leon Rasmussen, Apollo won the San Miguel Stakes by 4 1/2 lengths Dec. 28, covering six furlongs in 1:08 3/5. Trained by Gary Jones, the Falstaff colt had beaten allowance rivals by five lengths Dec. 6 at Hollywood Park, five months after he broke his maiden.

Kent Desormeaux, who missed the San Miguel because of a suspension, will be back aboard Apollo this afternoon. Chris McCarron rode him in last victory.

Eleven other 3-year-olds foaled in California were entered Friday morning for the seven-furlong stakes.

Jones will also be represented by Let’s Go Flying, a Flying Paster colt who easily won his debut Dec. 23 at Hollywood Park. Others in the field include Bandix; April Fools Gold; James Esquire; Brisk Sailing, who has won his last four starts at Turf Paradise; Knockdown; Caliche’s Secret; Sew Predictable; Thisonesforyoumike, and Slew The Surgeon.

Horse Racing Notes

Bayakoa, who will make her 1991 debut in next Saturday’s Santa Maria Handicap, worked a mile in 1:39 1/5 Saturday morning. “We’ll blow her out (before the race),” trainer Ron McAnally said. “She’s ready.” . . . Flying Continental, who will return in the San Pasqual Handicap Feb. 3, worked the same distance in 1:37 1/5 under Corey Black.

Sandy Hawley, who arrived in town Friday, will begin riding at Santa Anita Wednesday. . . . Eddie Delahoussaye rode two first-time starters to victories Saturday. Fowda, a daughter of Strawberry Road, led wire to wire in the fourth race, beating Paris In Spring by 4 1/2 lengths in 1:16 4/5 for the 6 1/2 furlongs. Two races later, Walk With Royalty, a Slew’s Royalty colt, used the same tactics in defeating California breds in 1:09 3/5. . . . There was one perfect ticket in the Pick Six Saturday and it was worth $353,352.20.