Hard Not to Love

Hard Not to Love, a daughter of Hard Spun, won her career debut early during her 3-year-old season by three lengths at Santa Anita on Feb. 16, 2019. She returned to that track and posted a half-length win in an allowance optional claiming race in April and then closed out the spring with a third-place effort in the listed Angels Flight Stakes at Santa Anita.

The John Shirreffs-trained filly returned in October and took another allowance optional claiming race at Santa Anita by three quarters of a length. Hard Not to Love then jumped up to Grade 1 company in the Dec. 28 LaBrea Stakes at Santa Anita, and rallied from off of the pace under Mike Smith to defeat multiple Grade 1 winner Bellafina in the seven-furlong race and score her fourth win in five career starts.

Hard Not to Love won her 4-year-old bow Feb. 15 at Santa Anita, where she won the Grade 2 Santa Monica Stakes by 3 ½ lengths as the 3-5 favorite. She set the pace and faded to finish second to Ce Ce in the Grade 1 Beholder Mile in her next start.

In May 2020, Hard Not to Love again posted a runner-up finish, running second to Fighting Mad in the Grade 2 Santa Maria Stakes. Following an unplaced finish in the Grade 1 Clemet L. Hirsch Stakes in August at Del Mar, Hard Not to Love closed out her 4-year-old season with a second-place finish in the Grade 2 Zenyatta Stakes.