Capped by Saturday’s Grade 3 triumph aboard Laura’s Light for Peter Miller in the Honeymoon Stakes, Abel Cedillo has been winning races in bunches recently in an attempt to overtake double digit leader Flavien Prat for the Winter Meet riding title at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.
Towards that pursuit, Cedillo had mounts in all eight races Sunday.
With 10 racing days remaining, Prat holds a 65-54 lead, and is ahead by $233,954 in purse earnings, $3,421,804 to $3,187,850.
“We’re taking it day by day,” said Cedillo’s agent, Tom Knust. “We’re also doing well in purse money won. Winning the title would be fine, but it’s important that we’re riding live horses for a lot of different trainers.
“Prat’s a great rider, and this being Cedillo’s first Winter Meet here, he’s done very, very well. He’s shown he can not only compete but win on a consistent basis and in big races.
“We hope to stay safe and keep it going.”
Going into Sunday’s card, three were in a flat-footed tie for the training title at 24 victories each: Bob Baffert, Richard Baltas and Peter Miller.
Baffert, a 12-time king at Santa Anita including seven straight campaigns from 1996-97 through 2002-03, has shown remarkable consistency across the board with 24 wins, 22 seconds and 20 thirds from 104 starters, a 23 percent winning average.
He leads in purse earnings with $2,016,512.
Baltas has a 24-20-13 mark from 139 starters with earnings of $1,720,742, while Miller stands at 24-14-9 from 101 starters and earnings of $1,378,794.
Miller’s leading win percentage of 24 is shared by Richard Mandella, who has achieved his number by winning 14 races from 59 starters.
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