Originally published Sunday, March 2, 2008 at 12:00 AM

Horse Racing | Heatseeker finds success in Big 'Cap

Monterey Jazz played a come-and-catch-me game in the $1 million Santa Anita Handicap — and faded from first to 12th place in the final...

By BETH HARRIS

The Associated Press

ARCADIA, Calif. — Monterey Jazz played a come-and-catch-me game in the $1 million Santa Anita Handicap — and faded from first to 12th place in the final furlong Saturday.

Meanwhile, 5-year-old Heatseeker had plenty of energy in the stretch and beat runner-up Go Between by three-quarters of a length in the Grade I race.

Heatseeker, trained by Jerry Hollendorfer and ridden by Rafael Bejarano, ran 1-¼ miles in 2 minutes, 2/5 seconds. The Irish-bred Heatseeker paid $16 to win in the 71st running of the race known as the Big 'Cap.

Monterey Jazz, the 7-2 wagering favorite in a field of 14, sped to the lead under Russell Baze and built a 12-length advantage with a half-mile to run on the synthetic surface.

Baze, who didn't want to go so fast early, said, "They told me the harder you pull on him, the faster he is going to go. So I was trying to talk him out of it, but he wouldn't take no for an answer. He just went."

Heatseeker was in fourth for much of the race.

Bejarano said, "I heard the other horse [Go Between] coming at the end. That's why I just kept riding as hard as I could. But I was confident we were going to hold on because my horse was still running. He was still giving me a lot of power."

Heatseeker had been trained by Hall of Famer Bobby Frankel until being switched to Hollendorfer last year.

"It's a big thrill to win this race," Hollendorfer said. "We've won some big races, but this is a real big one. I'm very proud of it."

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