Race Sets Up for Grey Memo

Grey Memo, after winning on the bullring at Fairplex Park and the downhill turf course at Santa Anita, became a stakes winner on Hollywood Park’s main track, edging 2-1 second choice Magical Dragon by half a length to capture the $100,000 Hollywood Prevue Stakes on Saturday in Inglewood.

Grey Memo won for the third time in four starts in his initial graded stakes appearance. He completed the seven furlongs in 1:24 2/5 in the Grade III race over a refurbished track that produced much slower times than normal.

Ridden by Matt Garcia, Grey Memo--the 5-1 fourth choice in the field of six--was close early, dropped back and then got up in time through a 13 1/5 final furlong.

Grey Memo ended a streak of three consecutive Prevue wins for trainer Bob Baffert, who sent out Magical Dragon and third-place finisher Cameron Pass.

“The race set up right for this horse,” said Warren Stute, Grey Memo’s trainer who is still winning at a high percentage at age 78. “It almost looked like his last race all over again.

“Please give [Garcia] some credit too. He rode a beautiful race and he’s a lot better rider than people give him credit for.”

Joopy Doopy, the 13-10 favorite on the strength of his win in last month’s Sunny Slope Stakes at Santa Anita, checked in fourth, three lengths back.

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Astra, who has won three of four for races trainer Simon Bray and owner Allen Paulson, is the 2-1 favorite in today’s $70,000-added Matiara Stakes at Hollywood Park.

A winner over three different turf courses--Hollywood Park, Hialeah and Santa Anita--Astra will be opposed by seven others in the nine-furlong race.

Chris McCarron will ride Astra, who is unbeaten at the Matiara distance, including a victory last month at Oak Tree.

Completing the field are Camargo--second by a neck to Olympic Charmer in the Possibly Perfect at Oak Tree on Oct. 24--Filitosa, Bright Magic, Spicy Girl, Tycoon’s Dolce, Aviate and Keemoon.

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Jockey Laffit Pincay Jr., who failed to win with two mounts Saturday, is scheduled to ride five horses today. . . . Grey Memo is owned by partnership that includes Ridgeley Farm, Russell Sarno and Ron Manzani . . . Afternoon Deelites in 1994 was the last 2-year-old to win both the Hollywood Prevue and Hollywood Futurity. . . . Eddie Delahoussaye won two races, taking the fifth with heavily favored Malabar Gold, a 2-year-old son of Unbridled who was a $1 million yearling purchase, and the seventh with C’s Chocolate.

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COUNTDOWN TO 8,833 / RIDING TO THE RECORD

Charting Laffit Pincay Jr. as he closes in on Bill Shoemaker’s record for victories by a jockey:

SATURDAY AT HOLLYWOOD PARK

Mounts: 2

Victories: 0

Overall: 8,819

Wins needed for tie: 14