Jewel Princess, Sharp Cat Loom as Big Favorites

After adding to his stable earlier this week in Pomona, Prince Ahmed bin Salman should be able to recoup some of his investment Sunday at Santa Anita.

At the two-day Barretts sale of 2-year-olds at Fairplex Park, Salman’s Thoroughbred Corp., which consists of him and businessmen from Saudi Arabia, Europe and the United States, bought six horses for $3,565,000. The topper was a Seeking The Gold filly, a half-sister of the stakes-winning Capote Belle, for $1 million.

A member of the ruling family of Saudi Arabia, Salman, 38, may be making consecutive trips to the winner’s circle Sunday because he will have the heavy favorites in the $200,000 Santa Anita Oaks and the $300,000 Santa Margarita Invitational Handicap.

In the Oaks, Salman’s Sharp Cat will be looking for her sixth stakes win in her 10th start. She will have four opponents and will probably go off at about 1-5.

In the next race, Jewel Princess, last year’s Eclipse award winner as the nation’s top older filly or mare, looks to have only Belle’s Flag to beat in the Santa Margarita. The 5-year-old is owned by Richard and Martha Stephen and Salman, who bought a half-interest in her last summer.

Reversing a trend in which three ’96 Eclipse winners lost their first starts of the new year, Jewel Princess easily ran past Cat’s Cradle and five others in the Santa Maria Handicap last month, winning by five lengths.

She carried 123 pounds that day and was given 125 for the Santa Margarita.

She has won 12 of 23 races and earned a little more than $1.5 million.

“She’s doing great,” trainer Wally Dollase said Friday morning. “I couldn’t be happier. I think she’s better now than she’s ever been. She’s 110% right now.”

Third in last year’s Santa Margarita behind Twice The Vice and Sleep Easy, Jewel Princess will be racing Belle’s Flag, the queen of the local 4-year-old set, for the first time Sunday.

A California-bred daughter of Avenue Of Flags, owned by Ernest Auerbach and trained by Darrell Vienna, Belle’s Flag has won six of eight, including the La Canada and El Encino in her last two starts.

Horse Racing Notes

Owners Ron and Susie Anson, trainer Doug Peterson and jockey Matt Garcia have won five consecutive races in tandem, Moonlit Swoon and Tobin Ruler both having won Thursday. The streak began with Fraley a week ago, then continued Sunday with Spectal and Reality Changes. . . . Trainer Ted West’s Spicy Saga won the sixth race Friday, and West has won with seven of his 13 starters at the meeting. . . . Nick Canani, 23, the son of former trainer Julio Canani, has acquired his trainer’s license and claimed his first horse, Zero Henry, Friday for owner Joe Scardino. Zero Henry won as the 2-1 favorite and Canani won a four-way shake for the gelding.