Dianehill’s Trainer Says Filly Can Be the Princess of This Field

Brian Lynch won’t come out and say Dianehill is going to upset Excellent Meeting and Olympic Charmer in the $125,000 Princess Stakes today at Hollywood Park, but the Australian-born trainer definitely believes in his filly.

“I’m quietly confident,” he said. “She’s put on some weight and she’s doing super. I’m really excited about running her on Sunday. She couldn’t be training up to the race any better.”

A 3-year-old daughter of Danehill out of the multiple-stakes-winning mare Very Subtle, whose victories included the 1987 Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Hollywood Park, Dianehill will be looking for her first stakes success in the 1 1/16-mile Princess, the final prep for the Hollywood Oaks on July 17.

Owned by Ben Rochelle, who raced, among others, Very Subtle and Snow Chief with the late Carl Grinstead, and his wife Diane, whom the filly is named after, Dianehill hasn’t been worse than third in her five starts, winning twice.

After breaking her maiden in her debut last Aug. 22 at Del Mar, Dianehill looked like a 2-year-old who would make some noise the rest of the year. However, she disappeared almost as quickly as she surfaced.

According to Lynch, this was by design rather than because of any physical problem.

“We just wanted to give her time to mature,” he said. “The Rochelles have been great to train for and they allowed me to give her the time off.”

After finishing second on March 12, then winning an allowance race on April 7 in her first two starts of the year at Santa Anita, Dianehill was third in her turf debut in the Senorita Stakes on April 23, opening night at Hollywood Park, then second to Olympic Charmer in the seven-furlong Railbird a month later.

However, the Irish-bred has had excuses in both of her races at Inglewood.

“She got a little stirred up in the paddock [before the Senorita], then after she came through the tunnel and got to the track, there was a band playing like mad and she threw [jockey] Alex [Solis] right there.

“She wasn’t settled going to the gate and they swallowed her up at the wire.”

In her turf debut, Dianehill was defeated by 1 1/4 lengths in 1:34 for the mile.

In the Railbird, Mis Upstart, who wound up being disqualified for the incident, came in at the start and bothered Dianehill, who recovered, got up to within a head of the lead, and wound up only 1 1/2 lengths behind Olympic Charmer while seven clear of third-place finisher Fee Fi Foe.

“She broke from [post] 4 and Mis Upstart broke from [post] 5 and just cold-cocked her,” said Lynch, 35, who came to the United States in 1992 and has been around horses for most of his life. His brother Michael is also a trainer in Australia.

“Alex said she got the wind knocked out of her. She made a nice run and it was only at the end that Olympic Charmer [drew clear].”

Trained by Ron McAnally, the runaway leader in the standings at Hollywood Park, and owned by his wife Debbie, Olympic Charmer will be trying two turns for only the second time. Earlier this year, she was a distant second to Three Ring in the Bonnie Miss at Gulfstream Park.

Excellent Meeting, meanwhile, will be making her first start since being pulled up in the Preakness because of what was termed a breathing problem. This came two weeks after she had finished a troubled and fast-closing fifth in the Kentucky Derby.

Owned by John and Betty Mabee’s Golden Eagle Farm and trained by Bob Baffert, Excellent Meeting, the 4-5 choice on Russ Hudak’s morning line, is unquestionably the most accomplished filly in the Grade II with six stakes victories, including the Las Virgenes, Santa Anita Oaks and Fantasy this year.

Horse Racing Notes

Knight Raider, the 7-2 third choice, led most of the way to win the $76,270 Haggin Stakes at Hollywood Park. A 2-year-old gelded son of Tough Knight trained and owned in partnership by Bruce Headley and ridden by Kent Desormeaux, Knight Raider won for the second time in four starts in a race that won’t have anybody rushing to purchase future book tickets for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile later this year. He completed the 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:04 3/5. . . . Sister Act became a Grade I winner, leading every step of the way to win the $250,000 Hempstead Handicap at Belmont Park. With Pat Day riding, the 4-year-old Saint Ballado filly and 7-5 favorite held off 4-1 shot Beautiful Pleasure to win by a half-length in 1:40 3/5 for the 1 1/16 miles.