Exotic Wood Dominates Santa Monica Handicap

Trainer Ron Ellis says Exotic Wood looks better now than she ever has and no one could argue with him after watching the 6-year-old Rahy mare dominate her seven rivals in the $200,000 Santa Monica Handicap Saturday at Santa Anita.

Making her first start since finishing fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint on Nov. 8 at Hollywood Park, Exotic Wood made 4-5 look like a gift with a three-length victory over Madame Pandit in 1:21 for the seven furlongs.

This was the fifth victory in six starts at Santa Anita for owner Pam and Marty Wygod’s mare and, in a sense, avenged her only defeat in Arcadia. She was beaten by Serena’s Song in the 1996 Santa Monica.

Ridden by Chris McCarron, Exotic Wood’s victory was her 10th in 14 starts and it seems clear her next race will be around two turns.

“She really ran a super race and it was a great race off a layoff of 2 1/2 months,” said Ellis. “The natural race to look at would be the Santa Maria (at 1 1/16 miles on Feb. 14). It would just be a matter if it would be a little bit too close to go ahead and stretch her out again. We’ve really been working on getting her to relax, and the way she ran, this is the type of race she could stretch out off of.”

Madame Pandit, who won the Monrovia Handicap three weeks ago, finished a length ahead of Advancing Star as the 9-2 second choice. Ski Dancer, Tiffany Diamond, Dixie Pearl, Stop Traffic and Track Gal completed the order of finish.

“Breaking from [the rail] was a little bit of a disadvantage, but I don’t know if it would have made any difference to break from anywhere else,” said Eddie Delahoussaye, the rider on the runner-up. “She tried hard and ran great.”

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Super Bowl Sunday was kind to trainer Bob Baffert a year ago and he hopes the same holds true today at Santa Anita.

In 1997, Baffert won the Santa Ynez Stakes with Queen Of Money and he will try for a repeat in the Grade III race with two-time stakes winner Vivid Angel this afternoon.

The winner of the Del Mar Debutante and Oak Leaf Stakes as a 2-year-old, Vivid Angel is the 2-1 second choice in the seven-furlong Santa Ynez. Superlative, who hasn’t been worse than second in five starts, is the 7-5 morning line choice.