Simply Joking dominates Santa Maria Stakes for first graded win

Simply Joking did not just win the Santa Maria Stakes. She took it apart from the rail and turned Santa Anita’s older-filly measuring stick into a tactical showcase, clearing off early and never giving the race back.

The Practical Joke filly broke from the inside and immediately established control under Emisael Jaramillo, carving out fractions of 23.25, 46.65 and 1:10.44 before drawing away in the stretch to win the Grade 3 by 6 3/4 lengths. She stopped the clock in 1:42.38 for 1 1/16 miles over a fast track, good enough for her first graded stakes victory and a performance that mattered more for the way it unfolded than for the size of the margin.

That was the question hanging over the race before the gate opened: was this a setup advantage in a small, downgraded field, or the sign of a filly ready to climb? The Santa Maria had been reduced from Grade 2 to Grade 3 and trimmed from a $200,000 purse to $100,000, with only five fillies and mares entered. Trainer Michael McCarthy said beforehand that it was “obviously not the strongest Santa Maria we’ve seen,” and the race shape did favor a forwardly placed runner who could control the tempo.

Simply Joking answered that setup with authority. She had already shown class in stronger spots, finishing fourth in the Grade 1 Beholder Mile after a 10-week layoff and third in the Grade 1 La Brea on Dec. 28. She was also scratched from the Grade 2 D. Wayne Lukas Stakes on Feb. 7 by the veterinarian before her return to Santa Anita, but McCarthy said she had trained forwardly into this spot, including a solo five-furlong move in 59.40 seconds, the fastest five furlongs of that morning.

Nafisa, the 5-year-old Quality Road filly trained by Bob Baffert, chased home the winner in second and finished 19 lengths clear of Lemon Muffin. Catalina Cocktail was the other starter, while Syntax was scratched. The result lifted Simply Joking to a record of 9 starts, 3 wins, 2 seconds and 1 third, with $440,750 in earnings.

The Santa Maria has long served as a barometer for West Coast older fillies and mares. Simply Joking handled the reduced version anyway, and the next step is whether she can bring the same tactical speed against deeper stakes company, where the early lead is harder to secure and the class pressure arrives much sooner.