Zazu stepped it up in the Grade 1 Las Virgenes S. Feb. 5 at Santa Anita, rolling home to a 1 1/4-length victory to defeat heavily favored Turbulent Descent. The 3-year-old daughter of Tapit was winning her first lifetime stakes, having previously run second in the Grade 2 Santa Ynez at the same track on Jan. 15.

With the gleaming, chalky-white coat reminiscent of her sire's progeny, Zazu is easy to spot on the track. Breaking from the outside in the field of six, Zazu was last going into the first turn. Entering the backstretch, she was about 10 lengths off the lead, but jockey Joel Rosario deftly moved her up the inside and was in third going into the far turn, with Turbulent Descent just to her outside. Those two moved in tandem to dispute the top spot until the furlong marker, when Zazu proved too tough and pulled away late. The final time for the one mile event was an excellent 1:34.86.

Perhaps the most impressive part of the Las Virgenes was the gallop out. Zazu seemed to rebreak and pulled well clear of the rest of the field and came back to the winner's circle looking like the race had taken little out of her.

Zazu becomes the sixth G1 winner from the first three crops by Tapit, following Champion Stardom Bound, Careless Jewel, Laragh, Panavino, and Tell a Kelly. Tapit, in fact, has sired at least one G1 winner from every crop to race.

Summerhill Equine LLC and Michael Hernon bred Zazu in Kentucky, and Gainesway consigned her to the 2009 Keeneland September yearling sale, where David Ingordo bought her for $285,000 for owners Jerry and Ann Moss. Gainesway also consigned the filly as a weanling in the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November sale for $100,000. Zazu's dam, Rhumb Line, is currently in foal to Gainesway stallion Birdstone, sire of  Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Mine That Bird and 3-year-old champion and multiple Grade 1 winner Summer Bird.

Zazu is 2-3-0 in 6 starts and has earned $240,985. She is trained by John Sadler.

Sadler said the race set up well for his filly, "It looked like there were three or four that wanted the front, and when I saw we had a lot of pace in front of her, I thought that would really help her today. She has a short run and she wants to close, and some of the other races, it hasn’t played that way for her. So there was a fast pace in front and that’s what we were hoping for.”

Added Joel Rosario, “I saw I was going to have a clean trip inside, and I took it," Rosario said. "She’s a nice filly. Last time I rode her she finished second to another nice filly (California Nectar) at seven furlongs. Today she showed me a little more and we took it from there.”

Zazu's next start is probably the $250,000 Santa Anita Oaks (G1) on  March 5, Sadler said.