Attima Easily Wins Honeymoon

Two starts into her career in the United States and Attima has yet to be tested.

Less than a month after toying with an allowance field, the 3-year-old daughter of Zafonic had a wire-to-wire win in the $137,150 Honeymoon Breeders’ Cup Handicap on Sunday at Hollywood Park.

The margin of victory over 7-2 second choice Foxysox, who lost for the first time in five starts in California, was only 1 1/4 lengths in the Grade II stakes race, but Attima, the 4-5 favorite, won without having to be asked for her best by jockey Victor Espinoza.

A winner once in five starts in France, Attima was purchased by trainer Julio Canani for owners Anthony Fanticola and Joseph Scardino on the recommendation of bloodstock agent Hubert Guy.

She certainly has the look of another grass star for Canani, who has trained talented turfers Tranquility Lake, Tuzla, Amorama, Val Royal, Silic and Ladies Din among others.

Foxysox, who was a maiden after five starts before joining the Carla Gaines barn, chased the winner throughout and the two fillies could very well have a rematch in the $750,000 American Oaks on July 2. The Oaks is a Grade I race at 1 1/4 miles, but Canani wasn’t willing to commit to the race just yet.

“It looked like a pretty easy [race] for her, but we will know more [today],” said Canani after his second graded stakes win on grass with a female in less than a week. He captured the Gamely on May 29 with Shining Energy, a 4-year-old filly who was also ridden by Espinoza. “I don’t know what I want to do. She is a very nice filly.”

Espinoza certainly hopes Attima returns in four weeks.

“I think she would be really tough in there,” he said. “She’s definitely ready to go in that race. I really don’t know how much she has because I’ve never really had a chance to ask her for anything.

“Until you have to push her button, we really are not going to know what we have, but I didn’t want to test her today when I didn’t need to. She was just cruising today.”

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The investment on the extremely lucrative winning pick six ticket last Friday night at Hollywood Park was $192, purchased in Nevada by a bettor who remained anonymous.

The ticket, which was worth a track record $1,540,401.60 -- before taxes -- and included 11 consolations worth $3,915.80 apiece, had two singles -- Unbeatable East, a 9-1 shot who won the sixth race, and Investingold, who won the eighth at 7-1. The ticket used all eight runners in the third and was fortunate to catch Getnhotnhere, who reversed her form in a big way to post an $82.40 shocker as the longest shot in the field of $8,000 fillies and mares.

The winners in the other three races were Unusually Chic ($11.80), Bullet Train ($5.40) and Santa Fe ($21.40).

The perfect ticket used one other horse in the races won by Unusually Chic and Santa Fe and two others in the Bullet Train race.

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Lava Man, who made a successful return to the turf with a record-setting win in the Khaled Stakes on April 30, is among the probables for the $300,000 Charles Whittingham Memorial Handicap on Saturday at Hollywood Park.

The 5-year-old gelding, who has won all three of his starts in 2006, worked six furlongs in 1:14.80 two mornings ago for trainer Doug O’Neill preparing for the Whittingham, a Grade I race at 1 1/4 miles.