Columnist Ralph Siraco: Derby hopefuls begin to take the spotlight

Ralph Siraco

Monday, Feb. 26, 2001 | 10:38 a.m.

Ralph Siraco's horse racing column appears Monday, and his Southern California selections appear Tuesday-Friday. Reach him c/o Las Vegas Sun, 800 S. Valley View Blvd., Las Vegas, NV 89107.

This week, the 3-year-olds on the road to the Kentucky Derby will have limited roles in minor stakes and allowance competition while the spotlight turns to the handicap division.

Taking its cue from the Kentucky Derby, which runs the first Saturday of May, the Santa Anita Handicap is run on the first Saturday in March.

For those older horses who don't envision a meeting with current Horse Of The Year Tiznow, Sunday's New Orleans Handicap should serve as a good backup plan.

The Santa Anita Handicap will be renewed for the 64th time at its namesake track at the American classic distance of 1 1/4 miles.

Only the track condition seems to be in flux as the "Big Cap" draws closer. Torrential rain pelted the Los Angeles area over the weekend, and Southern California racing officials are hoping for clear skies and a fast track for the granddaddy of all handicap races.

The Santa Anita Handicap was the first race to carry a $100,000 purse when it was first run at the track's inaugural meeting of 1935. That year, 7-year-old Azucar won the richest race run in America with the famous George Woolf aboard. Since then, a who's who of racing have etched their names on the trophy.

The great Seabiscuit lost the race three times before capturing it in 1940. Other champions who have taken the trophy and big bucks of the Big Cap include Round Table (1958), Hill Rise (1965), Nodouble (1969), Ack Ack (1971), Cougar II (1973), Affirmed (1979), Spectacular Bid (1980), John Henry (1981 and '82), Alysheba (1988), Best Pal (1992) and Free House (1999).

Free House gave trainer J. Paco Gonzalez his first Big Cap victory, and the trainer returns this year with one of the favorites to capture the $1 million Grade I event.

The conditioner will try this year with a horse considered to be a leading candidate for turf horse of the year.

Bienamando, who has been a terror on the green, will make his main track debut in the big race.

Passing up an easy payday in last week's San Luis Obispo on the Santa Anita lawn and bypassing a trip to Dubai later in March, Bienamando will take on the best dirt handicap runners on the West Coast.

But, before you think Gonzalez is an impulsive guy, a check of his Big Cap record could suggest Bienamando is ready for Tiznow and company. In 1995, Gonzalez ran Del Mar Dennis -- who set the pace until deep in the stretch before finishing fourth -- and was beaten less than a length and two heads for it all.

In 1998 he returned with the Cal-bred Bagshot, who gave the winner Malek all he could handle as a runner-up by a half-length.

Then came Free House.

All these runners were owned by the same people who preside over Bienamando -- John Toffan and Trudy McCaffery. It should be noted that Gonzalez's first try was with Bienamando's father, Bien Bien, who finished 3rd -- then moved up to second through a disqualification -- in 1994, and yes, he too was owned by Toffan and McCaffery.

A field of 10 is expected. They include: Bienamando, Tiznow (trying to avenge a second-place finish in the recent Strub Stakes), Wooden Phone (the Strub winner), Beat All, Irisheyesareflying, Jimmy Z, Lethal Instrument, Tribunnal, Jorracks and last year's Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes runner-up Aptitude.

Although the recent San Antonio Stakes winner Guided Tour is still on the grounds at Santa Anita, it is expected that the multiple stakes winner will be heading for an "easier spot" in the $500,000 New Orleans Handicap on Sunday at The Fair Grounds.

That Bayou battle should fill the gate with many runners seeking a pot of gold far from the gold rush in the Golden State.

She won the year-end trophy with a late-year victory in the Clark Handicap, beating male rivals at Churchill Downs.

But, after failing twice as the favorite in stakes at Santa Anita -- she finished last in the recent Santa Maria Handicap -- Lukas has decided to ship her back to Churchill Downs and then on to New York for the remainder of the year.

"I don't think she cares for the (Santa Anita) surface," Lukas said. "I think she could have a million-dollar year."

Caressing, who won the 2-year-old filly trophy last year, is aiming for her 3-year-old debut on March 10 in either the Honeybee Stakes at Oaklawn Park, the Fair Grounds Oaks at the Fair Grounds or the Santa Anita Oaks at Santa Anita.

The bet, called the "Derby Triple," will have a $1 minimum and be offered through the pari-mutuel outlets.

Qawaqeb and Marhoob emerged winners of their heats while beating well-bred stablemates Selsaal and Dubai Vision.

The next desert prep comes March 1 in the UAE 2000 Guineas when Street Cry is expected to make his 2001 debut along with the promising Jendalawi.

The latter pair raced as 2-year-olds in the U.S. and hope to return for the Derby.

A Southern California fixture since his leading apprentice year in 1989, Nakatani won riding titles at Oak Tree (1994-95), Santa Anita (1996), Hollywood Park (1995) and Del Mar (1994).

Although the 30-year-old rider has won five Breeders' Cup races, he has never won a Triple Crown event. He said part of the reason for making the switch is to find a top 3-year-old to ride in the classics.