Up In Time picked up her second graded stakes win this year when she surged past Celestial Kitten in the final furlong to win the $100,000 Harold C. Ramser Sr. (gr. IIIT) at Santa Anita Oct. 16 (VIDEO).
Under a well-timed ride by Martin Garcia, Up in Time tallied at 5-1 odds by 1 1/4 lengths over Celestial Kitten, completing the one-mile distance in 1:34.25 over firm ground.
The 3-year-old daughter of Noverre rebounded from her seventh-place finish in the Del Mar Oaks (gr. IT) Aug. 20.
The Great Britain-bred filly won the one-mile San Clemente Handicap (gr. IIT) at Del Mar in July. Three Chimneys Racing purchased a large interest in her from English owner Anthony Ramsden following her San Clemente triumph.
“She had a good trip and she was traveling so easily through the race," said winning trainer Simon Callaghan, who also saddled fourth-place finisher Imperialist Diva. "She was a little handier on the pace than I expected she’d be, but she stayed on well and it was a good performance."
The winning chestnut filly, out of the Inchinor mare Up At Dawn, was bred by Larry Stratton.
Eleven sophomore fillies contested the Ramser, with Honeymoon Handicap (gr. IIT) winner Sarah's Secret, returning to action after a break of nearly three months, going off as the 9-5 favorite.
Tales in Excess went to the front and led Imperialistic Diva and Celestial Kitten through sharp fractions of :23.06, :46.77, and 1:10.75. Sarah's Secret, fourth early for Mike Smith, never quite reached her top gear while Up In Time chased the quick pace before moving up on the outside into third rounding the final turn.
Celestial Kitten, ridden by Patrick Valenzuela, took the lead into the stretch as the pacesetter gave way and battled gamely when challenged on the outside by Up In Time. The winner grabbed the lead past the eighth pole and inched away in deep stretch under urging from Garcia.
"I wanted to get the jump on the other horses, and that’s exactly what happened," said Garcia, who won on Up In Time for the first time in three tries. "When I asked her she just took off."
Celestial Queen held on for second by a neck over the late-running Bauble Queen, ridden by Joe Talamo. Imperialistic Diva was just a head back in fourth while finishing a neck better than Sarah's Secret. Then came Entrustment, Glowing Spirit, Cathy's Crunches, Tales in Excess, Going for a Spin, and Rosehill Dew.
Up In Time, who began her career in England last year, won for the third time in seven starts in 2011 while increasing her career earnings to $198,576. Her lifetime mark stands at 4-0-1 in 10 races.
She carried co-high weight of 122 pounds and paid $12.40, $6, $4.20 as the third choice. Triple B Farms' Celestial Kitten, fifth last time for trainer Ben Cecil in the Del Mar Oaks, returned $7 and $3.80 in a game effort. The exacta was worth $71. The show price on Class Racing Stable's Bauble Queen was $4 in her graded stakes debut for Eric Kruljac.
