NEWS
Life Is Sweet bests Country Star
in El Encino
Posted: Sunday, January 18, 2009 7:33 PM
LIFE IS SWEET
Benoit & Associates photo
by Tim Nichols
Life Is Sweet returned from a layoff of more than seven months to score comfortably over multiple Grade 1 winner Country Star in the $150,000 El Encino Stakes (G2) on Sunday at Santa Anita Park.
The four-year-old Storm Cat filly also ended a stretch of consecutive runner-up finishes as she won by 2 1/2 lengths while completing 1 1/16 miles in 1:41.30 on the synthetic Pro-Ride surface.
Life Is Sweet, a full sister to 2004 champion two-year-old filly Sweet Catomine, was reserved in ninth by Garrett Gomez as Czechers led the field through fractions of :23.16, :46.47, and 1:10.52 for six furlongs.
Country Star, the 6-to-5 favorite, was ideally positioned in third as she made her move near the quarter pole. Country Star took a brief lead in early stretch, but Life Is Sweet accelerated past her for the win as the 3.70-to-1 third wagering choice in the ten-horse field.
“Going to the three-eighths [pole], I decided to follow [jockey Jose] Valdivia [on Ginger Pop] and he was about five or six lengths in front of me,” Gomez said. “By the eighth pole, she had inhaled the whole field and she stayed on her left lead, so she’s still learning.”
Country Star held off third-place finisher Miss Singhsix (Ire) by three lengths for second.
Trained by John Shirreffs, Life Is Sweet has shown glimpses of her potential in the past. The El Encino marked her first graded stakes win and was reminiscent of her score by nine lengths from off the pace in her second career start on October 7 at Belmont Park.
Life Is Sweet improved to three wins in eight career starts and earnings of $240,810.
Bred in Kentucky by owners Pam and Marty Wygod, Life Is Sweet is out of the Grade 1-placed stakes-winning Kris S. mare Sweet Life.
For an Equibase chart, click here.
Tim Nichols is a Thoroughbred Times TODAY assistant editor
