ARCADIA, Calif. – The chaotic history of the Grade 1 La Brea Stakes added another surprise chapter Thursday at Santa Anita, where the longest shot in the field scored a 37-1 upset.
Kopion ($77.40) won the seven-furlong sprint for 3-year-old fillies by 2 3/4 lengths over Splendora. Sugar Fish finished third, followed in order by Hope Road, Accuracy, One Magic Philly (the 7-5 favorite), Sandy Bottom, and Kinza.
Richard Mandella trains Kopion and Tamara, the Grade 1 winner who scratched from the La Brea after spiking a 102-degree temperature Thursday morning.
Kopion was making her first start since April, and Mandella contemplated waiting for the Grade 3 Las Flores Stakes on Jan. 4. However, Kopion was training like she was up for the La Brea. “There’s only one Grade 1 La Brea. Her works got better and better,” Mandella said. “I thought … might as well give this a go.”
Kazushi Kimura rode Kopion, and Mandella cautioned the rider. “She’s quick,” Mandella said. “And I told him, don’t rush her. She’ll put you close enough. He did a great job.”
:: Bet the races with a $200 First Deposit Match + FREE All Access PPs! Join DRF Bets.
Kopion broke running, and pressed pacesetter Sandy Bottom through fractions of 22.71 and 44.32. Nearing the quarter pole, Kopion broke it open to score the upset in 1:22.08. She was the seventh La Brea winner in the last 12 years to pay more than $20. Favorites have won the race only two times in the last 15 years.
As for Tamara, Mandella said her setback is believed minor: “102 temperature this morning, but her blood’s pretty good,” Mandella said. “We think it’s just a little virus.”
The disappointment in the La Brea was 7-5 favorite One Magic Philly, ridden by Flavien Prat. “I thought I had a good trip,” Prat said. “When we passed the chute she switched off nicely. I thought I was in a good spot, and when it was time to get going, no reaction.”
Hope Road had her four-race win streak snapped with a fourth-place finish, while Michael McCarthy-trained Accuracy and Sandy Bottom finished fifth and seventh, respectively.
McCarthy said Sandy Bottom “went to the lead and probably doesn’t want to run that far; [Accuracy] got a bunch of dirt kicked in her face, and wants to run farther.”
:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.