Total Impact Effects Surprise Victory in Gold Cup

Maybe trainer Laura de Seroux should watch all of Total Impact’s races on television.

Wishing to spend some time at home in Rancho Santa Fe with her husband, Emmanuel, after a busy morning with her barn at San Luis Rey Downs, De Seroux didn’t make the approximate 90-minute drive north to Inglewood for the $750,000 Hollywood Gold Cup on Saturday.

Saddled by assistant trainer Jeff Ford, Total Impact, a 6-1 shot, saved ground throughout under jockey Mike Smith, took the lead from pacesetter Yessirgeneralsir in midstretch and went on to beat 3-1 second choice Olmodavor by 1 1/4 lengths in the 65th Gold Cup.

Like many others, De Seroux, who has seen her stable win three graded stakes in the last week, thought Even The Score would be awfully difficult to deny in the Gold Cup. “I was hopeful we could win, but Even The Score had been so dominant,” De Seroux said by phone. “I thought he looked a cinch.”

Seeking to become only the second horse to win the Mervyn LeRoy Handicap, Californian and Gold Cup, Even The Score, the 7-10 favorite, had to settle for third, beaten 1 3/4 lengths, after racing wide throughout.

“You can’t go four-wide every time and expect to win,” Even The Score’s trainer, Vladimir Cerin, said. “It’s nobody’s fault, it’s just the way it turned out. I don’t think this was his best race, but I think you will see it come Pacific Classic day [Aug. 22 at Del Mar]. This is a top, top horse.”

No one could blame De Seroux for thinking Total Impact, who is owned by Prince Sultan Mohammed Al Kabeer and Bridport S.A., was running for one of the minor prizes in the Grade I.

After all, the Chilean-bred had lost seven in a row since winning the 2002 Mervyn LeRoy. He had finished five lengths behind Even The Score in the LeRoy on May 8 and was 3 1/2 lengths back in the Californian.

Perhaps, the stretch to 10 furlongs was the difference. Total Impact was one of only two members of the field -- the other was the runner-up -- who had experience at 1 1/4 miles. He had finished second in the United Arab Emirates Derby on March 23, 2002, in his only previous try at the distance.

“He does relish the mile and a quarter,” De Seroux said. “I always thought that was his best distance. I was looking forward to the trip and did have a positive feeling about the distance.”

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Getting away from Smarty Jones and a drop into a Grade II was enough to get Rock Hard Ten his elusive first stakes victory.

The 3-5 favorite in the $409,300 Swaps Breeders’ Cup at Hollywood Park, the 3-year-old Kris S. colt, who had finished second in the Preakness and fifth in the Belmont Stakes, stalked pacesetter Boomzeeboom for most of the way, then kicked away in the stretch to win by 3 3/4 lengths.

In his first collaboration with jockey Corey Nakatani, Rock Hard Ten ran the 1 1/8 miles in 1:47.42.

Owned by Ernie Moody’s Mercedes Stable and Madeleine Paulson and trained by Jason Orman, he now has three wins in six starts, but this was his first victory since March 3 at Santa Anita.

“We’ve asked a lot of this horse, going from an allowance to three Grade Is” -- he ran third in the Santa Anita Derby before the Preakness and Belmont -- “and he’s never disappointed us once,” Orman said. “He tried hard every race and today was his day.”

Rock Hard Ten, a handful before the start in the Preakness and Belmont, didn’t need much coaxing to enter the starting gate Saturday, then had to wait about two to three minutes after longshot Brands Hatch had some problems with his bridle.

Suave, the 9-2 third choice, finished second, three lengths ahead of Boomzeeboom, the 4-1 second choice. Then came Capitano, Brands Hatch and Bear in The Woods.

Neither Orman nor Moody indicated where Rock Hard Ten would make his next start, but both mentioned the $1-million Travers on Aug. 28 at Saratoga as a possibility.

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Dream Of Summer, a 9-1 shot making her first start in a graded stakes, led throughout to win the $150,000 A Gleam Invitational Handicap at Hollywood Park.

Trained by Juan Garcia for owner-breeder James Weigel, the 5-year-old Siberian Summer mare ran the seven furlongs in 1:21.16 under Mike Smith.

It was her fifth win in seven starts.

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Ema Bovary, who had a nine-race win streak ended in the Desert Stormer on June 5 at Hollywood Park, picked up her 13th lifetime victory, upsetting heavily favored Bear Fan in the $500,000 Princess Rooney Handicap at Calder.

The Princess Rooney was part of an all-stakes pick five in the track’s Summit Of Speed. The other winners were Whenthedoveflies in the $100,000 Calder Turf Sprint Handicap, Dazzle Me ($300,000 Azalea Breeders’ Cup), Weigelia ($300,000 Carry Back) and Champali ($500,000 Smile Sprint Handicap).

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Kitten’s Joy, the 8-5 second choice, beat favored Artie Schiller in the $500,000 Virginia Derby at Colonial Downs.