by Bruce Chandler Makena spirit made a lot of people in Hawaii happy when he scored on May 27 in the $201,000 Triple Bend Stakes (G2) at Santa Anita . Park.
“We have all Makena watching right now,” Kris Chandler said from the winners’ circle. “Makena, Maui is my favorite place in the world.”
Spirit of Makena, the lightest of the seven sprinters in the seven-way Triple Bend, became the favorite 9-10 on just the third bet. second and fifth departure. He won the San Carlos Stakes (G3) on March 11, and he cleverly summed up the wins by a margin.
Forbidden Kingdom soon took the lead, completing the first quarter of a mile with a time of: 22.86, but jockey Joe Bravo kept Spirit of Makena up to speed, just a short distance behind. midnight mammoth from the railroad raced pretty close to third place, with the 9-year-old millionaire Missile CZ in fourth place.
Bravo asked Spirit of Makena about his move in the first leg and the 5-year-old produced. He’s gone beyond the Forbidden Kingdom, even drawing runners as they enter the ramp.
Bravo said after the race: “On the bend, he was breathing, he was walking comfortably. “You can’t despise a horse inside.”
The Spirit of Makena leaves the Forbidden Kingdom with the mastery of a much more seasoned opponent. CZ Rocket is finishing in fourth, but Spirit of Makena edged that competitor 3 1/4 in length, stopping the clock at 1:23.07. Desmond Doss finished one shot behind CZ Rocket in third place, with Forbidden Kingdom weakening to fourth.
Bravo said: “Makena was just below me going home, and you saw what happened. “Good horses only make you look good.”
Jockey wins Triple Bend Stakes (GII) for the second year in a row as Joe Bravo.@bravoace is with @andie_biancone and always a classic interview. Check this out!
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An emotional Chandler accepted the trophy in the winners’ circle alongside coach George Papaprodromou. This sprinter is special to Chandler, who lives on Makena Road in Makena. She and her late husband, Bruce, named some of their horses “Makena”. They also breed his dam, con gilded time mare Victory for M’Lau and Kris named the mare after her mother.
Bruce Chandler is the owner and creator of the Spirit of Makena record.
“My husband gave me the title, breeding director, saying, ‘Krissy, you’re breeding all the horses.’ So I convinced him to breed to Ghostzapper ” said Chandler. “I like breeding because it’s like magician . And Makena is where we’ve lived for the past 25 years.”
Bred in Kentucky, Spirit of Makena was founded in 2018, but he didn’t start his first game until August 5, 2022, at Del Mar.
Papaprodromou explained: “He had some problems with the quadrant crack. “We’ve dealt with that.”
Bravo added, “He’s been through a lot in his youth and in giving him a break, he’s really grown.”
Papaprodromou’s patience paid off. Spirit of Makena won its first match by 2 1/2 lengths. In his second race, September 11 at Del Mar, he lost to the much more experienced by just one head. Holding the piano currently a earner of $323,700.
After another five months out of competition, Spirit of Makena is back in Santa Anita, winning an optional claimant on February 11 before launching his stake in San Carlos. In that seven-mile race, he beat the two-time ranked winner Forbidden Kingdom by 1 1/2.
Videotapes: Three bends S. (G2)
