Iscreamuscream © Benoit Photo
Little Red Feather Racing, Hundley, Jr. or Naify et al’s Iscreamuscream made every pole a winner in the 57th edition of the Grade II San Clement Stakes for 3-year-old fillies on Opening Day Saturday as the 85th Del Mar summer meet got off to a rousing start in ideal weather at the shore oval.
Earlier on the card, William and Suanne Warren, Jr.’s Formidable Man shook loose on the far turn, then went on to register a length and a half triumph in the 79th edition of the $100,000 Caesars Sportsbook Oceanside Stakes for 3-year-olds at a mile on the lawn.
Iscreamuscream, a dark daughter of Twirling Candy, covered a mile on the Del Mar turf course in 1:35.87 and as the betting favorite returned $4.40 to her backers in the rollicking, frolicking crowd delighted with the return of the Thoroughbreds to the San Diego area. She was nicely handled by Hector Berrios for trainer Phil D’Amato.
Finishing second in the test was Benowitz Family Trust, CYBT and partners Zona Verde, a half length better than C R K Stable’s Medoro. Ten horses in all ran.
Iscreamuscream was winning her third race in her third start – her first beyond a sprint -- and earned $120,000 from the gross purse of $202,500. She increased her earnings to $189,600. It was D’Amato’s second triumph in the stakes and Berrios’ first.
The San Clemente is considered the major local prep for the meet’s top race for sophomore fillies – the $300,000, Grade I Del Mar Oaks, which will be contested at a mile and one eighth on the grass on Saturday, August 17.
The Oceanside winner is a colt by City of Light and he ran the distance in 1:34.76 to return $8.20 to win as the second betting choice in the 11-horse field.
He was ridden by Umberto Rispoli, who was winning the stakes for the third time, and is trained by Michael McCarthy, who won the traditional opening day feature for the initial time.
Finishing second was My Way Racing, West Coast Stables and partners’ Guy Named Joe, who was a half length better than SF Racing, Starlight Racing and partners’ Rothschild.
Formidable Man picked up a check for $60,000 for his tally. He now has earned $277, 425 with three victories in eight starts. It was the colt’s first stakes win.
Racing resumes at Del Mar Sunday with first post slated for 2 p.m.
HECTOR BERRIOS (Iscreamuscream, Winner) – “When I move she responds. When she felt the other fillies, her speed kicked in. In the first corner she went very comfortably. She is a nice filly.”
PHIL D’AMATO (Iscreamuscream, winner) – “I thought she might be stalking but she ended up being on the lead and showed her class. She’s a big scopey filly and I think she’ll even take another step forward off of this two-turn race.”
FRACTIONS: :22.76 :47.49 1:12.38 1:24.18 1:35.87
The stakes win was the first of the meet for rider Berrios and his first in the San Clemente. He now has 12 stakes wins at Del Mar.
The stakes win was the first of the meet for trainer D’Amato, but his second (Bellabel in 2022) in the San Clemente. He now has 55 stakes wins at Del Mar.
The winning owners are headed by a partnership (Little Red Feather Racing) headed by Bily Koch of Woodland Hills, CA.