Becca Taylor’s Great Lady M Stakes

CLIMBING THE LADDER

CAL-BRED FILLY KEEPS MAKING GOOD GRADES

BY TRACY GANTZ

With the $201,000 Great Lady M Stakes (G2) safely in her pocket, Becca Taylor has only one more step to go in her conditions—a grade 1 stakes. Perhaps the only reason she hasn’t gotten that yet is that owner/breeder Nick Alexander and trainer Steve Miyadi have brought her up the ladder steadily.

Each time Becca Taylor has come through for them. It helps that Becca Taylor is also about as versatile as a horse could be.

She broke her maiden on dirt at Los Alamitos and switched to turf at Santa Anita for her second condition. Alexander and Miyadi were able to take advantage of the California-bred rule allowing a Calbred to run back at the same condition on the opposite surface, and she won again on dirt. Te Tapeta surface at Golden Gate Fields didn’t faze her either.

Te Golden State Series gave Becca Taylor her frst stakes wins: the 2021 Evening Jewel Stakes and 2022 Spring Fever Stakes. But the series also featured her only loss, when Eddie’s New Dream caught her by a nose in the 2022 Irish O’Brien Stakes down Santa Anita’s hillside turf course.

“Tat nose is going to haunt me for the rest of my life,” said Miyadi.

Te loss was an anomaly, as Becca Taylor proved by stepping up to graded company. She hasn’t lost in two graded attempts, frst in the $98,000 Desert Stormer Stakes (G3) at Santa Anita June 4 and then in the July 4 Great Lady M at Los Alamitos.

In the 61⁄2-furlong Great Lady M,

Cal-bred Becca Taylor adds Los Alamitos’ grade 2 Great Lady M to her stakes accomplishments Becca Taylor, the 7-10 favorite, faced six from Brandon’smylawyer in the turn, Elm rivals. Even taking turns, they couldn’t de- Drive and Samurai Charm challenged feat her. First Brandon’smylawyer, break- her. Tey sandwiched Becca Taylor, Elm ing inside of Becca Taylor, vied with her Drive on the outside and Samurai Charm on the front end. Becca Taylor and jockey on the rail. Juan Hernandez broke ffth and quickly Becca Taylor refused to quit. After a moved into the lead, recording the frst half-mile in :44.61, she turned back Elm quarter-mile in :21.68. Drive and Samurai Charm, scoring by two “It’s funny,” said Miyadi. “Her form lengths and completing the distance in doesn’t look like she is real speed, but she 1:15.25. Samurai Charm fnished second, is. One day she is going to break running 11⁄4 lengths ahead of Elm Drive, who had and wow everyone—I hope.” six lengths on fourth-place Cover Version. Once Becca Taylor began to pull away Unlike most of Alexander’s other homebreds, Becca Taylor is by Old Topper, rather than Grazen. California lost Old Topper a year ago, when he died at age 26. Te stallion stood his entire career at Tom and Debi Stull’s Tommy Town Toroughbreds and had been pensioned in 2019, with 4-year-old Becca Taylor one of his © BENOIT PHOTOS last runners. Alexander bred Becca Taylor out of the winning General Meeting mare Lady Sax whom the late trainer Trainer Steve Miyadi, third right, and jockey Juan Mike Mitchell claimed for AlexanHernandez lead Becca Taylor’s winner’s circle celebration der for $32,000.