BY BROCK SHERIDAN
Peter Redekop B.C. Ltd’s April Vintage will try to finish off the year with her first stakes victory when the Florida-bred filly takes on eight other 2-year-old fillies in the $100,000 Blue Norther at Santa Anita Friday. After sprinting five furlongs on the turf in each of her first four career starts, April Vintage will go two turns for the first time in the one-mile Blue Norther on the Santa Anita grass course.
Trained by Peter Miller, Blue Norther looks for better racing luck in her second start against stakes company after finishing a troubled third versus the boys in $102,000 Speakeasy won by Slider at Santa Anita on Oct. 7.
Miller entered April Vintage for the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint at Santa Anita on Nov. 3 but she was unable to get into the body of the race and had to scratch off the also-eligible list.
She has one start since, finishing fourth behind winner Julia’s Dream in a first condition, $80,000 optional claiming at Del Mar on Nov. 10.
Her lone victory came against special weight maiden fillies at Del Mar on Sept. 1 in her second career race and she has earned $65,480 in her four starts.
By Vino Rosso out of Beautissimo, by Uncle Mo, April Vintage was bred in Florida by Loren Nichols and was purchased by Redekop for $175,000 out of the Top Line Sales consignment earlier this year at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Spring Sale.
Miller has given the riding assignment on April Vintage to Edwin Maldonado and they have the outside post nine.
Two stakes winners are set for the Blue Norther in Zona Verde (Ire) for trainer Phil D’Amato and the Mark Glatt-trained Chatalas.
Zona Verde exits a length victory in the Grade 3 Jimmy Durante going a mile on the turf at Del Mar on Dec. 2, a race in which Blue Norther entrants Antifona (Fr), Mo Fox Givin and Blue Oasis were fourth, sixth and tenth respectively.
Unsuccessful in four races versus maidens in her native Ireland to start her career, Zona Verde won a maiden special weight going a mile on the turf at Del Mar on September in her first stateside start and first for D’Amato.
Zona Verde has two wins with a second and a third with earnings of $114,926 and will race in the colors of owners Benowitz Family Trust, CYBT, McLean Racing Stables and Michael Nentwig.
Juan Hernandez will ride Zona Verde from post six.
Chatalas makes her first start on the grass after racing at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on dirt in three previous races. She earned her stakes-winning credentials with a length-and-a-half score in the Grade 2 Chandelier on Oct. 7 at Santa Anita before finishing ninth in the Grade 1 NetJets Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies won by Just F Y I at Santa Anita on Nov. 3. In her last race, the daughter of Gun Runner finished fourth, but was placed third, in the Grade 2 Starlet won by Nothing Like You at Los Alamitos on Dec. 9.
Chatalas has won two of five starts with one third while banking $231,200 for Rancho Temescal Thoroughbred Partners, Dan Agnew and William Chatalas.
Frankie Dettori has accepted the mount and they will break from post three.
Others set for the Blue Norther are Hattie T with jockey Armando Ayuso, Antifona will be ridden by Hector Barrios, Blue Oasis has Kazushi Kimura named to ride, Flavien Prat ride Highlands, Medoro has jockey Antonio Fresu and Umberto Rispoli will ride Mo Fox Givin.
