Blame the Explosion out West on Bodexpress

In the space of a few hours out west on Saturday, Bodexpress made a statement – adding one stakes-winner, one stakes-placed runner and one first-time winner, all 3-year-olds bred in California by Richard Barton, and Bodexpress is firmly entrenched as Florida’s No. 2 second-crop sire.

At 1:20 p. m., Distorted Cat broke her maiden under Jacquelyn Bobroff at Sunray Park and Casino in Farmington, New Mexico, getting 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:20.57. In her fourth start, the filly came from mid-pack, made a strong five-wide move and was up to win by 1 1/2 lengths. The $5,500 California Breeders yearling paid $8.80 and earned a check for $7,635.

At 4:12, Going Deep, a $10,000 Fasig-Tipton California Fall yearling bred by Barton in partnership with Robert Traynor, finished second in the $125,000 Melair Stakes at Santa Anita and earned a check for $25,000. With Edwin Maldonado in the saddle in the race at a mile and one sixteenth, Going Deep, a 15-1 proposition, raced in second until the stretch, took the lead heading for the wire, and was nailed by half a length by Om N Joy. She’s 2-3-0 in eight starts with earnings of $128,400, second most among all Bodexpress runners.

An hour and a half later, Santa Barbarian, who had broken his maiden in his fourth start, won the $125,000 Snow Chief Stakes under Kazushi Kimura in start No. 5, racing 1 1/8 miles on the grass in 1:49.80. At odds of 43-1, the gelding was eighth and last after a quarter, made a three-wide move to reach contention, and went on to win by half a length, good for a juicy $75,000 payday, which increased his bank account to $113,260. He paid $89.20.