Gary Broad's Buzzards Bay, unable to make the Breeders' Cup Classic due to an illness incurred during the recent Del Mar meet, demonstrated his class at Santa Anita Oct. 19 when he bested Siren Lure in Oak Tree's $54,000 allowance feature.
According to trainer Ron Ellis, the Florida-bred millionaire was scratched from a scheduled start in the Sept. 3 Windy Sands Handicap at Del Mar following a poor blood test. The Windy Sands would have been Buzzards Bay's prep for the Breeders' Cup. Ellis said success in the allowance race at Santa Anita would have the 5-year-old pointing toward the $500,000 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs Nov. 23, and Buzzards Bay proved up to the challenge, drawing off to win the 1 1/16-mile event by just over one length while running the distance in 1:41.13 on Santa Anita's Cushion Track.
Buzzards Bay, a son of Marco Bay who carried high weight of 124 pounds, was bet down to odds of 2-5 and paid $2.80, $2.10 and $2.10. Siren Lure, weighted at 118, returned $2.60 and $2.10.
The winning purse of $32,400 raised Buzzards Bay's earnings to $1,357,907 from a career record of 7-1-4 in 20 starts. He had faded badly as the 3-2 favorite in his previous start, the July 21 San Diego Handicap (gr. II), but Ellis said the chestnut horse did not seem to care for Del Mar’s Polytrack surface.