Rashmi Returns From 13-Month Layoff With Dominant Wilshire Stakes Win

Rashmi answered 13 months of questions in the Grade 3 Wilshire Stakes at Santa Anita Park on March 28, leading from gate to wire over one mile on turf and pulling clear by 2 3/4 lengths to stop the clock at 1:34.73. The 5-year-old Oscar Performance mare, trained by Jonathan Thomas for owner-breeder Augustin Stable, posted her second career graded stakes victory and immediately drew connections toward a Grade 1 campaign.

Jockey Kazushi Kimura, taking his first mount aboard Rashmi, found the trip uncomplicated from the break. She "hopped out smooth," he said, as he settled her on the front end and controlled the tempo through a quarter-mile fraction of 23.53 and a half in 47.73 while fielding pressure through the early going. When Kimura asked for more at the quarter pole, Rashmi "picked it up nice and smooth," extending her margin without struggle through the lane.

Miss Artois and Antifona filled the superfecta spots behind her, though neither mounted a serious challenge. The $2.80 win mutuel reflected how quickly the market factored in Rashmi's class despite her layoff, a recognition that proved well-founded.

Thomas said the mare had been doing particularly well in the barn in the weeks before the race, and that the Wilshire result confirmed she belongs at the graded level. Her previous stakes score had come in the Grade 3 Megahertz, and this performance built directly on that foundation, demonstrating that neither the long absence nor the pace pressure on a pressured front-end trip dulled her tactical speed or finishing response.

Thomas has already signaled the Grade 1 Gamely Stakes at Santa Anita on May 25 as a likely next target. The Gamely stretches the distance to 1 1/8 miles on turf, a test that will ask more of Rashmi's stamina than the Wilshire required. Given how easily she cleared the field on March 28, connections appear confident the answer will be the same.