River Boyne (Dandy Man {Ire}) will face 10 rivals as the 8-5 morning-line favorite in the GII Mathis Brothers Mile S. Wednesday at Santa Anita. A two-time graded stakes winner, the dark bay colt just missed out on a top-level score when second, beaten a half-length, in the Dec. 1 GI Hollywood Derby last time at Del Mar. He was unable to hold off Raging Bull (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}) in the late stages of that 1 1/8-mile race, and cuts back a furlong Wednesday. The consistent River Boyne, trained by Jeff Mullins, has won five of eight starts this year, including the Nov. 4 GII Twilight Derby and the Aug. 5 GII Del Mar Derby.
Todd Pletcher ships Gidu (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) west as the Zayat Stables runner looks to rebound from recent lackluster efforts. Winner of a pair of stakes last spring, the gray colt was far from disgraced when sixth in the June 22 G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot. Back stateside, he was fourth in the Aug. 3 GII Hall of Fame S. and was seventh over the main track in the Aug. 25 GI H. Allen Jerkens S. before finishing fifth in the Oct. 6 Belmont Turf Sprint and seventh in the Nov. 3 Showing Up S. at Gulfstream Park West last time out.
Zayat Stables will also be represented by the Richard Baltas-trained Desert Stone (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), who broke his maiden over the Santa Anita lawn in May and added a optional-claimer over course and trip in June. Third in the Twilight Derby, he is coming off an eighth-place finish in the Hollywood Derby.
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