Trainer Neil Drysdale confirmed Saturday that the 4-year-old filly
Amani will be entered in the $1 million TVG Pacific Classic and take on males in the signature race of the summer meeting on Sunday, August 26.
Amani worked seven furlongs Saturday morning at Hollywood Park in 1:26 4/5 to signify readiness to her Hall of Fame trainer.
“I was very pleased with her, she worked very well,” Drysdale said by telephone. “I’m going to call the owner and let him know she’s going to run in the race.” Amani is owned by the Sumaya U.S. Stables of Oussama Aboughazali.
Amani was a winner of 10 of 11 starts in her native Chile in a one-year span starting in December of 2010. Nine of the victories in Chile by the daughter of Morning Raider, a son of champion Giant’s Causeway, and the Doneraille Court mare Just Fine, were in Group-level events, generally by margins of eight or more lengths with the largest being 25 lengths. Her only loss in Chile came in her ninth start, in October of 2011, by 2 ¾ lengths.
Trained in Chile by Marco Antonio Pavez Ochoa, Amani was sent to Drysdale following a win in the $200,000 Group I St. Leger Cristal at the Hippodromo Chile in a suburb of Santiago on December 17, 2011.
Amani made her U.S. debut, and first start for Drysdale, in the Grade I $300,000 Clement L. Hirsch Stakes here on August 4, and was a fast-closing third, beaten 1 ¾ lengths by Include Me Out, after bobbling at the start and making a three-paths-wide run down the stretch.
Garrett Gomez, aboard for the Clement Hirsch, has the mount in the Classic.
Gomez’s agent, Tony Matos, was enthused about the prospect.
“She’s a very good filly, she’s run against colts before and I like my chances,” Matos said. “Fillies can do well against colts this time of year and Garrett wins these kinds of races.”