Early Encore dazzles at Santa Anita, becomes another Early Voting winner

Early Encore did not just win his Santa Anita debut. He stamped himself as a colt worth following, and he did it with the kind of speed figure, visual authority and professionalism that make juvenile watchers sit up.

The California-bred bay colt swept through a 4 1/2-furlong maiden special weight for state-bred or state-sired 2-year-olds on May 24, taking command immediately under Joel Rosario and never giving the field a chance to recover. Sent off the 1-2 favorite after flashing three bullets in seven published works for John Sadler since arriving in the barn in mid-March, Early Encore ran straight to the front from post 4, cut out an opening quarter in :22.11 and finished the sprint in :51.76 while still under a hand ride. He won by 6 3/4 lengths.

The race had a brief moment of drama before the break, when Early Encore spooked in the paddock, knocked over his groom and looked momentarily unsettled. Once Rosario let him settle into stride, though, that was the last sign of hesitation. He handled the fast track with a good start, a 90-foot run-up and complete control from gate to wire, leaving Scam Alert, by Mo Forza, to salvage second by a nose in a race that was effectively over after the first few jumps.

That is the kind of debut that carries weight beyond one winner’s circle photo. Early Encore returned $3.00 to win, with the exacta paying $11.30, the trifecta $24.30 and the 10-cent superfecta $12.04, a reminder that the betting public saw what the stopwatch and the eye both confirmed. In a race with a $65,000 purse, plus $1,500 from other sources and $12,500 in winning-owner CTBA money, the colt looked less like a modest maiden winner and more like an early player in the California juvenile picture.

The performance also gave Early Voting another horse to point to at a time when the stallion’s first crop is beginning to draw real attention. Early Encore became Early Voting’s second TDN Rising Star in two weeks at Santa Anita after He Is No Lie earned the label on May 15, and his third winner overall. In less than a month, Early Voting has had five starters, three winners, one runner-up and one third-place finisher, a start that matters for breeders, buyers and horseplayers alike because it suggests early speed is not a one-off.

That is why the Rising Star tag fits here. Early Encore showed the visual promise, the margin and the clock to back it up. He is out of Lute Player, by Into Mischief, was bred in California by Richard Barton Enterprises, and already looks like the sort of colt that can shape the next round of betting and breeding chatter in the 2-year-old division.