ARCADIA, Calif. - Lonesome Stew is more than a sprinter with a preference for racing on the lead. In Sunday’s $101,000 Sensational Star Stakes for California-bred sprinters on turf at Santa Anita, Lonesome Stew ($11.80) closed from last of seven to catch 8-5 favorite Tom Horn in the final sixteenth. Lonesome Stew won by three-quarters of a length. In his four previous wins, Lonesome Stew led or disputed the pace. The style of Sunday’s win was not intentional, according to winning jockey Antonio Fresu. “The horse didn’t leave the gate very well,” Fresu said. “I tried to bide my time and I tried to improvise a little bit.” Lonesome Stew rallied in the middle of the track when the field crossed from the hillside turf course to the main turf course. With a furlong remaining, Lonesome Stew trailed by slightly more than a length, but had momentum. :: Playing Santa Anita? Get the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances, Picks, and Clocker Reports available now. “I tried to get him outside and not in trouble,” Fresu said. “He flew home.” Lonesome Stew ran about 6 1/2 furlongs on the hillside course in 1:11.55 and earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 94. Tom Horn finished a neck in front of 10-1 Lovesick Blues. On the Whim finished fourth, followed by Fast Buck, Kings River Knight and Clovisconnection. Kings River Knight, the 2-1 second choice, is a six-time stakes winner in the last two years who raced on Sunday for the first time since a win in the Crystal Water Stakes for statebred turf milers last May. In Sunday’s race, Fast Buck set a quick pace of 21.36 seconds for the opening quarter-mile, and 43.38 for a half-mile, closely tracked at the bottom of the hill by Kings River Knight and Lovesick Blues. The three were side by side crossing onto the main turf course. The first three finishers were bred by Nick Alexander, who owns Tom Horn. Lovesick Blues was acquired privately by trainer Librado Barocio’s Mia Familila Racing Stable earlier this year, Barocio said last month. Lonesome Stew was claimed by current owner Linear Brannasch and current trainer Mark Glatt from Alexander after the now 5-year-old gelding finished last of nine in a $32,000 claimer for maiden 2-year-olds at Del Mar in September 2022 in his debut. By Grazen, Lonesome Stew did not race after his debut loss until January 2023, finishing seventh of 11 in a maiden race for turf sprinters. He won his third start in a $50,000 claimer for maidens on dirt at Santa Anita in October 2023. In the last five months, after returning from a layoff of more than 10 months, Lonesome Stew has been in career-best form, winning three of four starts. In 10 career starts, Lonesome Stew has won five times and earned $189,480. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.