ARCADIA, Calif. – Bad trips come in different forms, as illustrated by a pair of contenders in the $100,000 Clocker’s Corner Stakes on Sunday at Santa Anita.
Seven older horses entered the six-furlong turf sprint, restricted to non-winners of a graded stakes in 2025-26. Sumter could start favored based on his last-out runner-up finish in the Grade 2 Joe Hernandez Stakes on the hill, but two who finished behind Sumter might slip through the cracks.
Yellow Card finished sixth after being blocked the length of the lane. Flyover finished eighth after a wicked pace duel. Circumstances change Sunday in race 7. Both bad-trippers enter the Clocker’s Corner with legitimate chances to upset.
The truth is, there is not a toss-out in the seven-runner field. Speed Boat Beach won the Grade 1 Malibu in 2023 and showed signs of life last out when second in a hillside allowance; multiple stakes-placed late-runner Sorrento Sky is fast enough on figures; Irish Royalty crushed a California-bred allowance by open lengths; allowance-caliber comebacker Virat always fires fresh.
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Yellow Card did not have a fair shot in the Hernandez. He tucked in fourth on the rail and waited for an opening that never materialized. Yellow Card was blocked in traffic most of the final quarter-mile. He missed by five lengths.
Since then, trainer Michael McCarthy said Yellow Card has trained “very, very well. Looking forward to leading him over there.”
Emisael Jaramillo is Yellow Card’s new rider, and with a clean trip Sunday he can spring an upset. Is he good enough? His runner-up finish in the Grade 2 Eddie D. last fall at Santa Anita suggests the answer is yes.
Flyover is not good enough yet, but he is getting there. John Sadler trains the improving 5-year-old, who also had a compromising trip in the Hernandez. Flyover is a front-runner who was unable to cope with fractions of 20.91 and 42.82 seconds.
The pace was extreme, even for a downhill race. Every speed horse in the Hernandez, including Flyover, backed up. The tempo of the Clocker’s Corner should be softer. Flyover and new rider jockey Florent Geroux might have an easier time, though they must cope with front-runners Speed Boat Beach and Virat.
In addition to his pace rivals, Flyover faces a challenging course profile. With the turf rails at the 20-foot setting, as they are Sunday, six-furlong turf races have been dominated by closers this winter. Ten of the 12 were won from the middle or back of the field.
Sumter took advantage of the hot pace and a trouble-free trip to nearly upset the Hernandez. He finished second to Gas Me Up, a contender Saturday in the Grade 3 Thunder Road Stakes. Flavien Prat is back aboard Sumter, who is trained by Richard Mandella and will rally late.
Speed Boat Beach could improve after his neck defeat last out, which was his first start in four months. He drifted wide into the lane, and got collared. Speed Boat Beach has lost all four starts since the Malibu, three as the favorite.
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