TDN RISING STARS

September 27, 2014 - Santa Anita, Race 4, Msw, USD $56,000, 6 1/2f

Punctuate, c, 2, 2012 by Distorted Humor

1st Dam: Peppers Pride (MSW, $1,066,085), by Desert God
2nd Dam: Lady Pepper, by Chili Pepper Pie
3rd Dam: Lady Chanel, by Draconic

Owner: Arnold Zetcher LLC
Breeder: Joe Allen & Michael Stinson (KY)
Trainer: Bob Baffert

   The 13 hole was anything but unlucky for Arnold Zetcher's Punctuate, who was able to work out a decent trip from that high draw and blew the doors off his rivals in the final sixteenth of a mile. The bay took a tour of the Southern Californian ovals during his morning trials, training well in July at Los Alamitos and holding steady with some eye-catching moves at Del Mar before finishing his preparations here. That final stretch included a bullet three furlongs in :35 2/5 Sept. 18, but he was let go at debut odds of 9-1. Away well, Punctuate was then outsprinted by the majority of his rivals, and that allowed Rosie Napravnik to guide her mount into about the two path in the middle portion of the race. He commenced his rally with fully a half-mile to race and advanced while still saving some ground on the turn. Switched out widest at the head of the stretch, Punctuate had half of the field still ahead of him at the furlong marker, but laid his body down and raced away under mostly hand encouragement to score by 1 3/4 lengths. A $300,000 KEESEP yearling, Punctuate is the second foal out of Peppers Pride, who won each of her 19 career starts, 14 in black-type company. She is the dam of a yearling colt by Malibu Moon and a weanling colt by Hard Spun. Peppers Pride was bred back to Malibu Moon in the current breeding season. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $33,600.