Vino Rosso 2yo colt wins stakes debut at Santa Anita, on to Breeders’ Cup

Pali Kitten closed with a fury to out-footed Smash It in the final furlong and win the $100,000 Speakeasy S. by a neck on Oct. 5 at Santa Anita Park.

This was the stakes debut for the 2-year-old son of Vino Rosso, who now has a total of 15 stakes horses in 2024. Vino Rosso is currently fourth on the Second-Crop sire list with more than $4.5 million in progeny earnings.

Trained by Doug O’Neill, Pali Kitten trailed the field of four for most of the five-furlong trip. It wasn’t until turning for home that he moved away from the rail to start a three-wide rally. Smash It had taken the lead from Dreamaway with a furlong to run, but could not hold off the closing kick of Pali Kitten, who stopped the timer in :56.11 on the firm turf.

“Everybody in these races ultimately wants to get the lead,” said winning rider Kazushi Kimura. “So, I just focused on taking it easy and finishing up strong. Thankfully, everything worked out well and we were able to do just that.”

The winner is owned by Robert A. Bambauer, James F. Cahill, Scott Knight, Richard L. Sutcliffe Jr., Robin A. Sutcliffe, Kelli S. Walsh and Timothy H. Walsh and has two wins in three starts with earnings of $97,200. The colt’s connections are giving strong consideration to the lucrative Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint next month at Del Mar.

Bred by Mike Abraham, Pali Kitten is out of three-time stakes winner Artemus Kitten.