On Saturday, April 6th we (Woodford Racing) ran Campaign in the Grade 1, $600,000 Santa Anita Handicap which is an historical race in Southern California. While Campaign ran fourth, he didn’t get the pace set up he prefers and the 1 1/4 mile distance proved to be too short. Since he came out of the Santa Anita Handicap in good order, our trainer (John Sadler) suggested running Campaign back 8 days later in the Grade 3, $100,000 Tokyo City Cup Stakes at Santa Anita on Sunday, April 14th. The distance of the Tokyo City Cup Stakes was 1 1/2 miles a distance at which Campaign had previously won.
Campaign took his customary place in the back of the field and bided his time through the first 1 1/4 miles. As the pace quickened, jockey Rafael Bejarano guided Campaign to the center of the track and Campaign responded. The winning margin was officially 3 1/2 lengths and it confirmed Campaign is a marathon runner with a bright future. His versatility has been demonstrated by winning on grass as well as fast and muddy dirt tracks!
Campaign’s Grade 3 win puts him in very good company as his stablemates Catapult (Grade 2), Engage (Grade 3) and Hot Springs (Grade 3) are all graded stakes winners!