Racing


See Through It, Sweet Sonny, Dutton Shine At 1,000 Yards
See Through It, under jockey Edgar Payeras, winning the $50,000 1,000 Yard Winter Championship here on Sunday night.

© William Zuazo
See Through It, Sweet Sonny, Dutton Shine At 1,000 Yards

LOS ALAMITOS, CA—DECEMBER 4, 2022–Lizbeth Medina and Belico Racing’s See Through It continued his recent dominance in the Los Alamitos distance ranks by winning the $50,000 1,000 Yard Winter Championship here on Sunday night.

Ridden by Edgar Payeras and trained by Milton Pineda, See Through It was the 1-5 favorite in this race and he did not disappoint.

The Ed Allred-bred runner chased the pacesetting Bound To Bet during the first half of the race before sailing past him around the turn and then holding off the late challenge of Alpine Thunder.

See Through It also posted his third victory in a row, all of them here and after being claimed on October 10.

A two-length winner in this race, See Through It covered the distance in :51.808. In his first start for Medina and Belico Racing, the 5-year-old gelding by Curlin To Mischief set a then 1,000-yard track record of :51.60.

See Through It won his next start by 2 1/2 lengths on November 19. Those two wins earned him enough points to be among the top 10 runners in this division, which qualified for this $50,000 race.

"I loved it," said Albert Gonzaz of Belico Racing. "(Milton) and I were cheering him on. He deserves a lot of rest now. He raced two weeks ago and before that about five weeks ago. He had to because otherwise he would not have made this race. Now he’ll get some rest."

Gonzaz’s chose his nom the course to honor his father.

"Belico is my dad’s nickname," he said. "He was the oldest of six kids. He had one sister, and she couldn’t say his name. She called him ‘Belico’ and that became his nickname. I figured I would honor my father by naming my company Belico Racing."

In the winner’s circle, Pineda, who ranks third in the Mixed-bred standings with 19 wins this season, credited his team for a successful year in 2022.

"I’m thankful for my grooms and all of my help, who are 100% with me," Pineda said. "I’m very thankful for them. There’s no trainer without the help and that’s what counts."

Now a winner of 10 races from 29 starts, See Through It earned $11,125 for the win. He’s earned $235,019 during his career.

Huntertown Farm LLC’s Alpine Thunder earned $6,125 for running second for Diego Herrera and trainer Jose Hernandez, Jr., while Oscar Prieto Casilla’s Bound To Bet earned $3,625 for running third.

Sweet Sonny On A Roll In $30,000 Filly And Mare Final

Jesus Uranga will long remember the running of the 2022 Los Alamitos Winter Final for Fillies & Mares. The owner/trainer swept the top three finishes in the 1,000-yard final on Sunday night after the razor-sharp Twirling Candy mare Sweet Sonny crossed the wire first followed by stablemates Coruscation in second and 2021 Winter Final winner CA Dreamer completing the trifecta in third.

Sweet Sonny crossed the wire first followed by stablemates Coruscation at Los Alamitos Race Course.
© William Zuazo

"This type of race, that’s not an everyday occurrence to get first, second, and third," Uranga said. "They were prepared all three of them. We got them. I’m happy."

Uranga is wrapping a great season with his 1,000-yard runners, as he’s the leading trainer in Mixed-Breed races with 35 victories while also sitting third in the Thoroughbred standings with 14 victories.

"I love these 1,000-yard races, in fact about 90% of my horses are for 1,000 yards," Uranga added. "We take good care of our horses. I have great grooms; I must give them credit. They are on top of what’s happening with the horses every day. They are happy horses, healthy horses, it’s good."

Sweet Sonny has won three races in a row at 1,000 yards and for the year, the Machmer Hall & D+J Racing Stables LLC-bred mare has finished in the top two in all eight of her starts. The Kentucky-bred earned $15,900 for this win to take her career earnings to $124,138. Ricardo Ramirez piloted Sweet Sonny to her sixth career victory.

Bred by Amy Boulton, Coruscation earned $6,600 for running second. The Kentucky-bred 3-year-old filly has finished in the money in six consecutive starts at Los Alamitos.

"She’s been good," Uranga said. "I’ve been trying to run her longer distances at Santa Anita. We’re working on that to see if we can help gain more speed."

CA Dreamer, who won this race last year and was second in the 1,000-yard Summer Final for Fillies & Mares earned $3,600 for running third. 

Dutton Sets New Track Record In 1,000 Yard Event

What a tremendous eight days of racing Vicki Potter’s Dutton has enjoyed at Los Alamitos. On Sunday, November 27, the Noosito gelding scored a 2 ¼ length win at 1000 yards, an effort that earned him a spot in the $30,000 Los Alamitos Winter Final.

Dutton, under jockey Cesar Ortega, posted a new track record for 1000 yards at Los Alamitos Race Course Sunday. © William Zuazo

On Sunday night, Dutton showed he’s one of the top distance horses at the Orange County oval, as he posted a new track record at the distance while winning the final by three lengths and in a time of :51.514.

Dutton’s win broke the previous record at this distance of :51.604 set by See Through It on October 30. Ridden by Cesar Ortega for trainer Lorenzo Ruiz, Dutton took the lead shortly after the start and was never challenged from there. The Washington-bred recorded his fifth win in 12 career starts.  

"Once he got in front of Run Factor, I thought we had a really good shot at winning," Ruiz said.

Dutton earned $16,200 for the win to take his career earnings to $88,869.

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For more info, please contact larace@losalamitos.com. Follow us on Twitter or Instagram at @losalracing or visit us online at losalamitos.com.