7/2-4 (LRC): Bertrando; Los Alamitos Derby (G2)
 

THURS 7th (5:13) Bertrando S.

1 Mile | Open | 3 Year Olds And Up Stakes | Purse: $100,000

1 1 Spirit Rules Puglisi I Aguirre Paul G 121 L 9-2
2 2 China Prince Nakatani C S Dollase Craig 119 L 12-1
3 3 Rousing Sermon Garcia M Hollendorfer Jerry 121 L 12-1
4 4 Magic Mark Van Dyke D Ellis Ronald W 119 L 15-1
5 5 Old Man Lake Pereira T J Becerra Rafael 119 L 15-1
6 6 Ambitious Brew Smith M E Jones Martin F 119 L 5-1
7 7 Soi Phet Desormeaux K J Powell Leonard 119 L 7-2
8 8 Solid Wager Perez F H Miller Peter 119 L 15-1
9 9 Raised a Secret Talamo J Glatt Mark 119 L 6-1
10 10 Alert Bay Baze T C Wright Blaine 121 L 3-1

$1 Exacta / $1 Trifecta / $1 Superfecta (.10 Min.) / $2 Double

SAT 8th (5:43) Los Alamitos Derby (G2)

1 1/8 Miles | Open | 3 Year Olds Stakes | Purse: $350,000

1 Follow Me Crev Quinonez A 122 L
2 Gimme Da Lute Garcia M 122 L
3 Pain and Misery Prat F 122 L
4 Kentuckian Smith M E 122 L
5 Prospect Park Baze T C 122 L

So I guess that clamoring for a Pharoah-Kentuckian matchup might not be so forthcoming?

I can't wait until American Pharoah hooks up with Kentuckian.

Who's with me??

That's an unfair matchup. A whole country versus a single state???

Wow, I may have been wrong a rare time when I'm really high on a horse. Then again, who knows what happened. Lute was always moving better than kentuckian, leaving me bewildered.

I must really suck. The last two horses I was super high on coming off second career starts are currently the first two ranked horses in the world.

Surely Tonalist will overtake them both.

Maybe they might bring one of the all time best horses back, commentator.

Andy, you are an incredibly negative person.

Of course, I realize you are joking around and that I'm over reacting to your bubbly sense of humor. Rest assured, I am totally messing around too!

I'll take a Competitive Edge-Kentuckian matchup instead.

However, I'll have to clear some space on my schedule if I want to see the last quarter mile.

Gimme Da Lute is a lot better than he showed in KY and MD, and probably will do best at 7f in the long run so hopefully Bob Baffert makes a calculated move and shoots for the King's Bishop next. Otherwise we'll just have to wait for the Malibu.

Meanwhile, the next flashy CA horse to run the internet gauntlet might be Look Twice, who looked like a seasoned professional in his debut last month.

Thanks Rollo.. Hadn't noticed Look Twice (Carla Gaines) much in that 6f debut.

As an aside, rough Eastern swing for the Cali contingent this weekend with Gaines, O'Neill, Eurton and Baltas all going home without major checks.

Carla Gaines has shipped 5 horses out of CA over the last 5 years and is a perfect 5-5. They've all been beaten double digits, including Bolo twice now.

At no point did Bejarano allow Bolo to run, not even as he was challenged on all sides around the far turn. Obviously, he felt that something was amiss. Nevertheless, tanking in Belmont Derby was always inevitable considering Bolo's connections did everything possible to derail his career during the winter. Santa Anita needs to write a $500,000 3yo turf race in February or March so we don't have to watch these nice 3yo turf horses get chewed up on the Derby trail.

Sharla Rae was 99-1 or should have been. Brice Blanc did Spanish Queen no favors, not that she was beating Lady Eli or the Euros anyways.

Ashleyluvssugar was a sitting duck following Shining Copper with no cover. Then again, he was probably one bad effort away from running for a claiming tag back earlier this year. The fact that Finnegans Wake, a perennial also-ran back east at 3 and 4, went to CA and immediately dominated the turf division was all anyone needed to red pen anything silly enough to ship out of CA. Crucero, a horse who only about 70 days ago broke his maiden for a $20k tag, won a 5-horse San Juan Capistrano at Santa Anita on closing day. Why on earth Ashleyluvssugar, a Cal-bred no less, shipped all the way to NJ to face multiple G1 winners is beyond me.

But hey, at least we have Hard Aces.

That colt will be on the "How do I get some track cred" on my resume to stand next year path for the rest of 2015. Maybe something like the Penn derby or some other G3 in the Midwest.

Yep Kentuckian 2nd choice in the BC Classic.

If I had a good horse the last person I would give it to would be Gaines.

Kentuckian will make a top-class sprinter. But, his dam side is poor for routes and it showed.

Forest Music faded in a similar fashion in the 2003 BC Juvenile Fillies.

Spanish Queen had an awful trip. I thought Kentuckian looked a little short behind when he jogged back to be unsaddled.