Stop Traffic Rallies and Beats Belle’s Flag in the Santa Monica

Stop Traffic made amends for the only poor performance of her career in a big way Saturday at Santa Anita.

Stop Traffic, beaten by 14 1/2 lengths when finishing seventh behind Exotic Wood in last year’s Santa Monica Handicap, did much better in her return engagement in the Grade I race.

Able to surge through an opening after jockey Corey Black found room, Stop Traffic rallied to beat 9-5 favorite Belle’s Flag by a length in 1:22 for the seven furlongs.

Owned by Gerald Ford’s Diamond A Racing Corp. and trained by Richard Mandella, Stop Traffic has six wins in 13 lifetime starts and the 1998 Santa Monica is the only time she has been worse than third.

“She was really game,” said Mandella of the 6-year-old Cure the Blues mare. “She was really game. She was stuck down [inside] for an eighth of a mile and she just dug in and got the job done.

“She’s better than ever. This was a nice win, very important. There aren’t many Grade I sprints for mares.”

This was the second Grade I victory for Stop Traffic in her last five outings. Last Aug. 23, she won the Ballerina Handicap at Saratoga, a race where she was saddled by Mandella’s son Gary.

“It was just a matter of finding room,” said Black, whose last Grade I victory came aboard 35-1 shot Frenchpark in the 1994 Hollywood Turf Cup. “I had to bide my time and that’s all she needed. She was obviously on her game.

“[Mandella] had been . . . telling me that she’s just been training unbelievably well.”

Belle’s Flag, who raced coupled as the 9-5 favorite with third-place Closed Escrow, got the lead in midstretch after putting away pace-setting Enjoy The Moment, but couldn’t hold off the winner.

Seeking The Pearl, shipped in from Japan, was fourth in her dirt debut, a head in front of Tomorrows Sunshine. Then came Enjoy The Moment, Love That Jazz and Funallover.

Love That Jazz, who had won her three previous races, was the disappointment in the Santa Monica. She was well-positioned for the first half-mile, but had nothing late.

“I must have gotten on her bad side on the way to the gate because she wasn’t up to the task today,” said jockey Kent Desormeaux of the 2-1 second choice. “I went to the gate thinking she couldn’t lose, but she simply wasn’t up to the challenge.

“I know one thing: She’ll be looked over with a fine-tooth comb by [trainer Neil Drysdale] and whatever the problem was, it will be fixed.”

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Controlled, unbeaten in four races around one turn, is the 6-5 favorite against only three rivals in the $100,000 Santa Ynez Stakes today at Santa Anita.

Controlled, a California-bred daughter of In Excess owned by Edward Hand and trained by Ed Gregson, suffered her only loss in the Cal Cup Juvenile Fillies when going around two turns at 1 1/16 miles. All four of her victories have come against California-bred horses.

Honest Lady, owned by Juddmonte Farms and trained by Bobby Frankel, is the 8-5 second choice in a field reduced Saturday with the scratches of Cosmic Wing and Western Woman.

Honest Lady broke her maiden at first asking last month at Hollywood Park, beating a field that included Olympic Charmer, who returned to win in impressive fashion early in the Santa Anita meeting. Kent Desormeaux will ride Honest Lady.

The other two entrants are Rayelle, unbeaten in sprints and making her first start since finishing far back in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, and Perfect Six, who won the Moccasin Stakes at Hollywood Park at seven furlongs--the distance of the Santa Ynez.

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Silver Charm apparently won’t be the only locally-based horse to run in Saturday’s $500,000 Donn Handicap at Gulfstream Park in Florida.

Puerto Madero, who made a successful comeback in the Native Diver Handicap last month at Hollywood Park, is now considered a likely starter for the Donn, the first of the 11-race National Thoroughbred Racing Assn.’s “Champions on Fox “ series.

Puerto Madero, trained by Mandella, has won 10 of 15 lifetime. . “[The Fox series] is a factor,” Mandella said. “The horse is doing very, very well.”

Puerto Madera, in addition to his Native Diver win, was also second to Skip Away in the Pimlico Special and Hollywood Gold Cup in 1998.

Silver Charm, who began his 5-year-old season with an impressive victory in the San Pasqual Handicap, will work this morning at Santa Anita before shipping to Florida.

Horse Racing Notes

There is a Pick Six carryover for today of $485,414.88 after nobody was able to isolate all six winners for a second consecutive day. . . . Stop Traffic earned $120,000 out of the $200,000 purse for the Santa Monica and pushed her career earnings to $725,395. . . . Jockey Garrett Gomez had two victories, winning the opener with Goldfame and the final race with Slash The Price. . . . Jockey Eddie Delahoussaye remains six wins shy of 6,000 for his career. He is trying to become the 14th rider to reach that figure.