You don’t have to be a consistent winner to be a very nice horse. Take Desert Dawn for example. The convincing victress of Saturday’s Grade 3 La Cañada Stakes does not make many trips to the winner’s circle, but her accomplishments to date leave her on the brink of joining racing’s millionaire club.
An Arizona-bred daughter of Cupid, Desert Dawn was not exactly a hot commodity when she arrived at the Ocala Breeders’ Sale in the fall of 2020. The yearling filly did not meet her reserve of $32,000, which turned out to be a stroke of great fortune for her owner and breeder H & E Ranch.
Sent to the barn of trainer Phil D’Amato, she turned out to be good from the beginning. A rallying third in her debut at Del Mar in the summer of her juvenile season, she romped home a winner at the same track in her next start.
Since breaking her maiden by more than four lengths in her second career start, the bay mare has been money in the bank. Granted, she has won only twice in 17 consecutive graded-stakes attempts, but her unwavering rally has become a constant on the Southern California racing scene.
Still, it had been long between drinks for the classy mare. Eleven starts had come and gone without Desert Dawn collecting a winner’s check. As good as she’s been in defeat, it was a pleasure to see her score that long-awaited first win in better than 21 months Saturday at Santa Anita.
Ridden with patience and confidence by Flavien Prat, who was aboard Desert Dawn for the first time, the 5-year-old mare always looked good while tracking the early leaders in the 1 1/16-mile feature.
Swung out for the stretch drive, the second choice in the field of five quickly moved to the heavily favored Midnight Memories turning for home and easily went by that rival in early stretch.
A late rally by Coffee in Bed never threatened the winner, who last visited the winner’s enclosure after the Santa Anita Oaks (G2) on April 9, 2022.
Out of the Honour and Glory mare Ashley’s Glory, Desert Dawn earned $60,000 with the victory, and she looked good doing it. Still, her lifetime record now reads: 19: 3-5-5.
I get it, America loves a winner and Desert Dawn is anything but a winning machine. She lacks the sex appeal of a talented winner of their first three races, but wouldn’t you rather own a horse like her?
She dances every dance and fires every race. She also has earned $956,525 in her career.
Among her 11 straight losses between the Santa Anita Oaks and the La Canada, she came home third of 14 in a strong edition of the 2022 Kentucky Oaks, which was one spot ahead of the champion Echo Zulu.
Desert Dawn also finished second in four graded stakes in that stretch, and in her second try in the Breeders’ Cup, she was beaten by only 1 1/4 lengths by Idiomatic in the $2 million Distaff late last year.
Saturday’s win in the La Cañada was a long time coming for a very good horse. Perhaps it will prove to be just an anomaly in a long series of cashing solid checks while not winning.
Or maybe, at 5, she is now ready to turn the corner and prove herself as one of the top older females in the nation by winning big races. Either way, she deserves some credit now.
Desert Dawn is proof positive that you don’t have to be a consistent winner to be a very nice horse.
