Santa Anita's Sept. 26 turf program turned into a Breeders' Cup launching pad, with veteran miler Cabo Spirit and rising sprinter Sorrento Sky converting graded stakes wins into firm autumn targets at Keeneland while fellow winner Bishops Bay quietly enters the conversation for a turf route spot.
Cabo Spirit delivered the most jarring blow to the national Mile picture when he wired the Grade 2 City of Hope Mile on the Santa Anita grass, ending a six-race skid and outlasting El Potente by a head in a hard-fought stretch duel. Sent off around 7-1, the 7-year-old gelding was allowed to control a moderate pace in fractions of 23.47, 46.91 and 1:10.36 before stopping the clock in 1:33.06, earning $16.40 to win and securing an automatic berth in the $2 million Breeders' Cup Mile at Keeneland on October 31. Trained by George Papaprodromou for Kretz Racing and ridden by Mike Smith, Cabo Spirit's City of Hope success marked his sixth graded stakes victory and seventh overall stakes win from 45 career starts, pushing his earnings comfortably into millionaire territory.
From a handicapping standpoint, the City of Hope was a classic case of an old pro getting the right trip at the right time on a course he knows intimately. Equibase-style figures and commercial handicapping data had consistently flagged Cabo Spirit as a forwardly placed type who does his best work when he can settle into a rhythm rather than chase, and Santa Anita's firm turf and uncontested lead gave him exactly that scenario. The win also represented a sharp turnaround from his recent form cycle, which included several respectable efforts against similar company without quite finishing the job, suggesting that his current fitness level and pace advantage could make him far more dangerous than his bare recent running lines would imply when he heads east for the Mile.
On the hillside turf, Sorrento Sky reinforced his claim as California's top turf sprinter by taking the Grade 2 Eddie D Stakes for the second consecutive year, rallying from sixth of seven to score by a length. Under Umberto Rispoli for trainer Phil D'Amato, the 2-1 favorite needed every bit of the about 6½-furlong trip, producing a sustained run to overhaul Sumter and stop the timer in 1:12.30 while earning a 94 Beyer Speed Figure. Pari-mutuel returns showed Sorrento Sky paying $6.20 to win, $3.60 to place and $2.60 to show, a tidy outcome for bettors who trusted his affinity for the hillside layout and recent graded win in the Green Flash Handicap at Del Mar.
The Eddie D also carried important Breeders' Cup implications for Sorrento Sky's connections, who had already paid a hefty supplemental fee to make him eligible for the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint. In the days leading up to the race, D'Amato told the Daily Racing Form that a strong performance would help “earn out” that investment and cement a Turf Sprint campaign, and Saturday's decisive win did just that, leaving the stable with a fast, in-form gelding perfectly suited to five- and six-furlong turf dashes. His ability to handle Santa Anita's demanding hillside course while finishing strongly suggests the shorter, sharper configuration of the Keeneland Turf Sprint could play right into his late-kicking style, provided he draws a post that lets him settle and tip out in the clear.
While Cabo Spirit and Sorrento Sky grabbed most of the headlines, industry chatter indicates that Bishops Bay, another graded turf winner on the Santa Anita card, is also being evaluated for Breeders' Cup participation, likely in one of the longer grass events where his stamina could be an asset. Viewed together, the trio's performances underscore how Santa Anita's September turf stakes have become key West Coast staging posts for the fall championships at Keeneland, and how seasoned campaigners like Cabo Spirit can suddenly alter division hierarchies when they find the right race shape at the right moment. For bettors and fans tracking the Breeders' Cup preps, the message from Arcadia is clear: don't sleep on the California turf form when the gates open in Lexington on October 31.
