From Los Alamitos Publicity
CYPRESS, Calif. (July 1, 2018) — Defending champion and California-bred Skye Diamonds and Marley’s Freedom, who was dominant in the Grade III Desert Stormer May 27, are among the 11 fillies and mares nominated to the $200,000-guaranteed Great Lady M. Stakes.
The Grade II, which is scheduled for 6 ½ furlongs, will be run for the fifth time at Los Alamitos Saturday, July 7.
Owned by a partnership that includes Allen Racing LLC and Bloom Racing Stables and trained by Bill Spawr, Skye Diamonds is 2-for-2 at Los Alamitos.
Before her win in the 2017 Great Lady M., a race in which she defeated, among others, Finest City, winner of the race in 2016 and the Eclipse Award winner that year as the champion female sprinter, the California bred broke her maiden in her second career start Dec. 5, 2015 when trained by Mike Machowsky.
Claimed for $40,000 by her current connections Aug. 27, 2016, the daughter of First Dude and the Johannesburg mare Exonerated has since won six of 12 starts. Her other graded success came in the Grade III Rancho Bernardo last Aug. 13 at Del Mar. She’s 9-for-20 lifetime with earnings of $578,150.
A Blame filly out of the Formal Gold mare Relaxing Green owned by Cicero Farms LLC, Marley’s Freedom won the Desert Stormer by 7 ¼ lengths in her first start for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert.
The win was the fourth in 10 races for the 4-year-old and pushed her earnings to $233,435.
Baffert will be trying for his second victory in the Great Lady M., having scored previously with Fantastic Style in 2015.
The other nominees, in alphabetic order, are B C Z Middleton, Bernina Star, Best of Me, Life of Illusion, Phantom Proton, Shenandoah Queen, Show It N Moe It, Time for Ebby and Turkish Tabby.
Entries for the Great Lady M. will be taken Wednesday, July 4.