SANTA ANITA : McAnally Again Dominates Santa Margarita With a 1-2 Finish

Instead of breeding her to a top stallion in Kentucky, owner-breeder Alex Campbell brought Queens Court Queen back for another year of racing. Instead of keeping the 6-year-old mare on grass, trainer Ron McAnally switched Queens Court Queen to dirt.

The payoff for these moves has been extraordinary: Queens Court Queen has won all three of her races this year, earning $331,300. In Sunday’s $300,000 Santa Margarita Handicap, Queens Court Queen not only won by two lengths, but she also beat Paseana, her Eclipse Award-winning stablemate, for the second time at Santa Anita in three weeks.

With Queens Court Queen’s latest victory, McAnally reinforced his grip on the Santa Margarita, which began with a victory by Bayakoa in 1989. Bayakoa also won the stake in 1990 and ran second in 1991. Paseana sandwiched two Santa Margarita victories around a second-place finish in 1993, and now there’s her second to Queens Court Queen on Sunday. That brings the 1989-95 McAnally box score to five Santa Margarita victories, three seconds and total purses of $1.08 million.

“They have different running styles,” McAnally said Sunday, comparing his three Santa Margarita mares. “Bayakoa, she always liked to be out there winging. But all three are very equal in class.”

Like Paseana, Bayakoa won a pair of Eclipse Awards before she was retired, and Queens Court Queen seems to be setting her sights on a championship this year. Her biggest immediate obstacle will be Paseana, that 8-year-old mare just down McAnally’s shed row at barn No. 99. Queens Court Queen’s next assignment will be the $500,000 Apple Blossom Handicap at Oaklawn Park on April 21, and Paseana also will be there, trying to win the stake for the third time.

While Campbell campaigns Queens Court Queen, Paseana runs for Sidney and Jenny Craig, who bought her for $320,000 in 1991, after one of McAnally’s scouts spotted her in Argentina. Paseana didn’t collect the $180,000 winner’s purse Sunday, but the $60,000 for second sent her over the $3-million mark. On the distaffers’ money list, she trails Lady’s Secret by about $1,000, and she’s $243,433 behind another retired mare, Dance Smartly, who’s No. 1 with $3.2 million.

McAnally has two leading Kentucky Derby candidates, Mr Purple for Campbell and On Target for Verne Winchell, but for now he can split them by sending On Target out of town. The options are not as plentiful for his two mares.

“We’ll keep them on the same course,” McAnally said. “They deserve to run in the Apple Blossom, which is a very prestigious race.”

Going into this Santa Margarita, McAnally was unhappy that Paseana had been assigned 123 pounds, the same weight she carried when Queens Court Queen beat her by 4 1/2 lengths in the Santa Maria Handicap on Feb. 5. Queens Court Queen picked up two pounds, to 120, for Sunday’s race.

Queens Court Queen, paying $4.20 as the slight favorite over Paseana, ran 1 1/8 miles in 1:48 4/5 for jockey Corey Nakatani. Klassy Kim, the third betting choice in the field of five, was the pace-setter, but she was only crawling along while Nakatani waited to make his move. That came on the far turn, with Queens Court Queen taking the lead in mid-stretch. Paseana, in fourth place under Chris McCarron early, also made a dedicated move about the same time as Queens Court Queen.

Klassy Kim finished third, a half-length behind Paseana.

Nakatani began a five-day stewards’ suspension Thursday, but was able to ride in the Santa Margarita because of a California rule that applies to important stakes.

“She’s getting better and better each time she runs,” Nakatani said of Queens Court Queen. “She’s ultra tough. I pressed Klassy Kim just enough to where it would be to my advantage. I’ve run against Paseana five times, and she’s such a great mare. But I’ve been able to beat her four times--with Southern Truce, Supah Gem and Queens Court Queen twice.”

After Campbell made the decision to keep Queens Court Queen racing, McAnally started the year on dirt with a victory in the San Gorgonio Handicap on Jan. 14. Last year, Queens Court Queen was concentrated on grass, winning three of 10 races.

“She’s by Lyphard, a grass stallion,” McAnally said. “For that reason we thought that she might not like the dirt, so we kept her on grass. But then she showed us that she likes the dirt. I liked Paseana’s race, too. She was carrying top weight, and she didn’t get beat by 4 1/2 (lengths) this time. Pace means so much in a race, and it helped Queens Court Queen today.”

Of Paseana, McCarron said, “Everything is still there. We just couldn’t beat the other mare today.”