SANTA ANITA : Mandella Gets Stakes Hat Trick

Multiple stakes victories on weekends are becoming somewhat routine for trainer Richard Mandella.

When Corrazona surged past Cargo to win the $154,000 Santa Anita Budweiser Breeders’ Cup on Sunday, it was the third added-money success in a bit more than 24 hours for Mandella and the second of the afternoon.

Earlier, at Keeneland, Memo returned from a four-month layoff to easily win the $200,000 Commonwealth Breeders’ Cup and, on Saturday, King’s Blade overcame a slow start to win the $110,700 San Pedro Stakes at Santa Anita.

Owned by La Presle Farm, which sent Mandella Kotashaan and saw him eventually develop into the 1993 Horse of the Year, Corrazona has the look of a star herself.

A month after she easily defeated allowance rivals in her American debut, the 4-year-old El Gran Senor filly stalked Cargo and Skimble for most of the mile, then came around those two entering the stretch and went on to win by three-quarters of a length in 1:34 3/5. Ridden by Chris McCarron, she paid $4.60.

Cargo, the third-longest shot in the field of six at 6-1, finished a length in front of 2-1 second choice Skimble. Island Orchid, Lyphard’s Delta and Shooting The Moon completed the order of finish.

A winner of her first three starts in France, Corrazona went off form when she started to bleed and was sent to America so she could race on Lasix.

“When she came here, we gave her a little rest and brought her back slowly,” Mandella said. “She’s just getting better as she goes.”

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Soul Of The Matter worked seven furlongs in 1:27 4/5 Sunday morning and is scheduled to ship to Kentucky tonight to run in Sunday’s $125,000 Lexington Stakes at Keeneland.

Scratched from the Santa Anita Derby because of a leg blister and bothered by a nagging quarter crack for several weeks, the Private Terms colt will go east if he comes out of the work in good shape.

“If everything’s right, he’ll leave (tonight) and will probably have one short blowout at Keeneland before the race,” Mandella said.

“It wasn’t a fast work, just something to put a little air back into him. He galloped out (a mile) in 1:41 and he was a little tired afterward. But that will probably do him some good.”

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Alex Solis, who sat out the entire week because of a deep cut on his right foot, will return Thursday, according to agent Harry Hacek.

However, Solis has relinquished the mount on Blumin Affair in Saturday’s Arkansas Derby to Eddie Delahoussaye. Blumin Affair was a fast-finishing second behind Smilin Singin Sam in the Remington Park Derby on April 9.

“Because of the uncertainty of Alex’s injury, we couldn’t commit to riding Blumin Affair,” Hacek said. “The main thing now is to get a good start at Hollywood Park (which begins April 27). That will be very important for Alex.”