Strub S. (gr. II)
(gr. II , 9f ,)
MONTEREY JAZZ
(DK B/ h,
121
lb) $180,000
Thunderello —Reefside , by
Dynaformer
B—Danzel Brendemuehl,
KY.;
O—A and R Stables LLC and Class Racing Stable;
T—Craig Dollase
Tiago
(B h,
123
lb) $60,000
Pleasant Tap —Set Them Free , by
Stop the Music
B—Mr. & Mrs. Jerome S. Moss,
KY.;
O—Moss, Mr. and Mrs. Jerome S.;
T—John A. Shirreffs
Monzante
(GR/RO g,
117
lb) $36,000
Maria's Mon —Danzante , by
Danzig
B—Juddmonte Farms Inc,
KY.;
O—Anastasi, Scott and Manoogian, Jay and Gretchen;
T—Mike R. Mitchell
Margins: 4½, ½, 1¾. Others: Great Hunter 119($18,000) , Warning Zone 117($6,000) , Giant Gizmo 117 , Slew's Tizzy 119 , Sahara Heat 117 . Winning Jockey, David Romero Flores.
Although his seven rivals in the 11¼8-mile Strub Stakes (gr. II) were heavily laden with black type, they never got close to Monterey Jazz in the $300,000 event at Santa Anita Feb. 2. The freshly-minted 4-year-old led the field on a merry chase before crossing the wire 41¼2 lengths the best. The Strub marked his third straight win after stretching out to a mile and beyond. It was also his second consecutive graded score after a victory in the Sir Beaufort Stakes (gr. IIIT) at Santa Anita Dec. 26.
Danzel Brendemuehl bred the Strub winner in Kentucky, but changed her mind regarding his dam’s mating plans and moved the mare and foal to Florida soon after his birth. Due to the change, Monterey Jazz was one of three foals that year who literally grew up in the Florida-based horsewoman’s backyard.
“I have pictures of him galloping across my yard,” said the owner of Classic Bloodstock, whose primary focus is consigning horses to auction. “He was just such a beautiful horse, very leggy, very kind. He loved his Guinness and his carrots. He was like Cary Grant, the most beautiful thing you’d ever seen.”
Brendemuehl consigned the colt to the 2006 Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co.’s April 2-year-olds in training sale where agent Jeff Metz purchased him for $85,000 on behalf of Class Racing Stable.
“He had a little OCD in a stifle, which put off Class Racing and his group,” remembered Brendemuehl. “Jeff, to his credit, knows when I’m high on one, I mean it. Jeff really persevered in buying this horse.”
Monterey Jazz, who is trained by Craig Dollase, now races in the colors of Tom Arndt’s A and R Stables and the Joe Masino-managed Class Racing Stable. The partnership has also raced stakes winners Ten a Penny, Jammin Gears, and Part Timer in the last year.
Brendemuehl still owns Monterey Jazz’s dam, Reefside. Monterey Jazz is her first stakes winner. She slipped to Exchange Rate for 2008 and will be bred to Master Command this spring. Brendemuehl had purchased the mare privately in 2001 from Colorado-based agent Gail Butler.
Although Monterey Jazz is the first stakes winner bred by Brendemuehl, she’s no stranger to a top-flight horse. Among her pinhooking scores are grade/group I winners Roses in May, Fleetstreet Dancer, and Wonder Lady Anne L. A Massachusetts native, Brendemuehl spent her formative years in California, where she made the transition from hunter-jumpers to racehorses, before moving to Ocala.
Monterey Jazz is a member of the first crop by NAPA Breeders’ Cup Sprint (gr. I) runner-up Thunderello and is his first stakes winner. Previously at Walmac Farm near Lexington, Thunderello will stand in 2008 at Dave Ferguson’s Diamond F Ranch near Grass Valley, Calif., for $5,000.—J.W.