Adare Manor © Benoit Photo
ADARE MANOR “SUPER GOOD” AFTER HER CLEMENT HIRSCH WIN
The fact Adare Manor defended her crown for a second straight year in the G1 Clement Hirsch at Del Mar Saturday came as no surprise, but the manner (no pun intended) in which she did it was not expected.
After two dominating, wire-to-wire scores in the G1 Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park in April and the G2 Santa Margarita at Santa Anita in May, the daughter of Uncle Mo found herself boxed in behind the leaders on the backstretch of the Clement Hirsch. At one point she dropped back to fifth place before jockey Juan Hernandez began working her out into the clear
“She broke good and relaxed so I was happy,” Hernandez said. “This wasn’t the perfect trip for her but we made our way through a bit of trouble and she was off and running. She is one of the best fillies I’ve ever ridden.”
Scylla, the talented shipper from the Bill Mott barn, set a perfect target for Adare Manor who ran her down at the sixteenth pole, punching her ticket to the Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Del Mar in November.
“I was a little worried at the three-eighths pole,” Pasqual Rivera, longtime barn foreman with trainer Bob Baffert, said after the race. “She was still inside but past the quarter pole, when they straightened out into the stretch, she came outside and started running.”
Scylla finished second, 2 ¾ lengths back of Adare Manor and two lengths better than Flying Connection, who nosed out Desert Dawn for third. Pretty Mischievous, the Eclipse Award winner as top 3-year-old filly last year, was fifth.
All horses appear to have come out of the race in good order. Rivera says Adare Manor was “super good” Sunday morning. With Bob Baffert on his way back from New York, where he saddled National Treasure in Saturday’s G1 Whitney at Saratoga, there have been no discussions on where the prized mare will go next.
“She came out of the race fine,” Pretty Mischievous’ trainer Brendan Walsh said of his filly. A visit to Scylla’s stall on Sunday showed a sprite filly who didn’t appear any worse for wear. Both of the invaders will return to their home bases in Kentucky this week.
COUNTDOWN BEGINS FOR PACIFIC CLASSIC, FIELD TAKES SHAPE
It is less than a month away from the 34th running of the G1 FanDuel Racing Pacific Classic at Del Mar so it’s time to begin our countdown to the big race on August 31.
So far there are eight possible participants in this year’s million-dollar test, which will be run at the classic distance of a mile and a quarter on the main track. The race could include the top four finishers in the G2 San Diego Handicap, the winner of the G3 Cougar II, a promising 3-year old colt and a couple of South American imports.
Dr. Venkman had been running in sprint races until trainer Mark Glatt decided to try him at two turns and he won the G2 San Diego, the local prep for the Pacific Classic.
“He bounced back good from the race,” Glatt says. “He’ll probably breeze a bit over next weekend and we’ll see where he’s at off of that and take a look at our options.” He affirmed that the Pacific Classic is one of those ‘options’.
Katonah had not raced in over a year until trainer Doug O’Neill brought him back in the San Diego and he ran a good closing second.
“He’s doing great,” O’Neill says. “He came out of it (the San Diego) in great shape and we’re pointing him to the Pacific Classic. Let’s go.”
Express Train, a multiple graded stakes winner from the John Shirreffs barn, ran third in the San Diego as he continues his comeback from a 19-month layoff. He’s hoping to recapture the form that led to three consecutive graded stakes wins, including the G1 Santa Anita Handicap in 2022.
The Pacific Classic has always been in the plans for last year’s winner, Arabian Knight, though a fourth-place finish in the San Diego was not. That being said, it was his first race since his run in the Breeders’ Cup last November.
In addition to Arabian Knight, trainer Bob Baffert has also nominated Parenting, a 3-year old colt by Justify, who was being considered for the G1 Haskell at Monmouth Park last month until he spiked a fever and had to be withdrawn. He’s better now, evident by his tenacious victory in a second-level allowance race at Del Mar on July 28.
A couple of Argentine imports are being considered for the Pacific Classic. Richard Mandella is thinking of bringing Subsanador who is oh-for-three in the states, including a runner-up finish to Newgate in this year’s edition of the G1 Santa Anita Handicap.
John Sadler has Full Serrano preparing in the wings. He ran his first race in the U.S. Saturday, an entry level allowance at Del Mar, and wired the field, setting blazing fractions of :21.58, :44.94 and 1:10.31, and still finishing in front in the one mile on the main track and winning by 2 ¼ lengths.
“We were really thrilled,” Sadler says. “Kind of surprised he showed so much speed. He’s been running a mile and a quarter in South America so we had no idea he could go that quick early. He drew the one (inside post) so he had to get out and he got rolling and kept going.”
When asked about the Classic, Sadler said “it’s too early.”
Finally, Craig Dollase is considering running G3 Cougar II winner Midnight Mammoth, winner of three races in a row, in the big race.
With the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar in November, there’s always the possibility of a shipper or two coming to the seaside oval for the Pacific Classic. The connections for both of the invaders in Saturday’s G1 Clement Hirsch indicated one of the reasons and benefits of coming to Del Mar was that their horses got a race over the track before November.
Nominations for the Pacific Classic close on Thursday, August 22 and entries will be drawn on August 27, the Tuesday before the race.
C.T.B.A LAUNCHES TWO-YEAR-OLD STAKES SEASON AT DEL MAR
It’s time to bring on the best of the babies. The first of 10 stakes races for 2-year-olds takes place today as part of a stakes doubleheader at Del Mar. Eight are expected to go in the gate for the $100,000 California Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association Stakes, a 5 ½-furlong test on the main track for Cal-bred juvenile fillies.
Trainer Doug O’Neill brings a pair of his fillies to the dance. Coralgableskaylin broke her maiden last out at Los Alamitos in just her second start.
“She’s by I’ll Have Another,” O’Neill notes. “She’s got a good gate work here at Del Mar so for $100,000 against Cal-breds we like our spot.”
O’Neill’s other entrant is Knightwithlouis, a shipper in from Northern California.
“We debuted her at Santa Anita and she got well beaten,” O’Neill says. “So we sent her up north to kind of build her confidence and it looks like it’s working. It’s a pretty wide open race in my mind so I think she fits right in there.”
Building a horse’s confidence can go a long way to making a consistent winner.
“It’s all individual stuff,” O’Neill says. “In the case of these two fillies they’re both diving into the feed tub and full of themselves. Winning’s been good for them. I think with most young horses the less adversity that they have to face the more they’re going to thrive.”
Trainer Steve Knapp is also bringing a live pair of fillies into the C.T.B.A.
“We got two big shots in here,” Knapp predicts, “Thirsty in Vegas is going to break on top and will have to hold off In the Air Tonight. They’re both doing really well coming in.”
Thirsty in Vegas is coming off a five-length victory to break her maiden in June, wiring the field that included Coralgableskaylin. In the Air Tonight broke her maiden at first asking at Santa Anita over the Memorial Day weekend.
“In the Air Tonight was 2 ½ lengths behind at the sixteenth pole,” Knapp remembers. “She switched leads and exploded to catch the other horse and win by a nose. She’s very athletic.”
Trainer Steve Miyadi will take a couple of shots at the C.T.B.A. with Lil’ Bit Bossy and Thirsty Mama, both coming out of maiden scores at Santa Anita. Another filly garnering a look is Broadway Venus out of the Ryan Hanson barn, another last out maiden winner.
“She showed she’s very professional,” Hanson says. “She did everything correctly. Perfect attendance at school.”
The C.T.B.A. is the 10th race on Sunday’s 11-race card. Probable post time is 6:30 p.m.
Here’s the field from the rail with the jockeys and morning line odds: Nostri Vires (Joe Talamo, 12-1); Coralgableskaylin (Edwin Maldonado, 8-1); Lil’ Bit Bossy (Armando Aguilar, 6-1); Knightwithlouis (Abdul Alsagoor, 12-1); Broadway Venus (Adrian Escobedo, 4-1); Thirsty in Vegas (Antonio Fresu, 2-1); Thirsty Mama (Kyle Frey, 10-1), and In the Air Tonight (Tiago Pereira, 7/2).
DEL MAR STAKES HIGHLIGHT TWO-YEAR-OLDS NEXT WEEK
Two-year-olds step into the spotlight next week at Del Mar with three quality Juvenile stakes races on tap.
It starts Friday with the $100,000 Graduation Stakes for Cal-breds. Thirteen colts and geldings have been nominated for the race with two having just broken their maidens at Del Mar at the beginning of the summer meet. They’ll go 5 ½ furlongs on the main track.
On Saturday, the 2-year-old fillies get their turn in the 56th running of the G3 Sorrento Stakes, the local prep for the G1 Del Mar Debutante. Eight fillies were nominated for the six-furlong test including Nooni, a $1.8 million purchase by Zedan Racing in March. Trained by Bob Baffert, she won her debut at Santa Anita by 9 ½ lengths in June.
The Sorrento is part of a stakes twin bill on Saturday along with the 72nd running of the G2 Yellow Ribbon. Fifteen fillies and mares have been nominated for the mile and a sixteenth event on the Jimmy Durante turf course. Seven are from the Philip D’Amato barn. It could mark the return to Del Mar of last year’s G1 Del Mar Oaks winner Anisette, who comes into the race off back-to-back Grade I victories.
The stakes action continues Sunday with the G3 Best Pal. Ten budding 2-year-olds have been nominated for the six-furlong sprint, the local prep for the G1 Del Mar Futurity
Entries for Saturday’s races will be drawn Wednesday and Sunday’s races will be drawn Thursday.
COOLING OUT: Four trainers notched their first victories of the 2024 summer meet at Del Mar Saturday. O.J. Jauregui won the first race with Jack’s Magic Girl; Mick Ruis tallied his first win with Talklessworkmore in the third race; Tim McCanna won with 40-1 longshot Top Harbor in the fifth race, and Brian Koriner scored his first with Ferrariano in the seventh race…Trainer Dean Pederson notched his second win of the meet at Del Mar on Saturday. On the Whim rolled home much the best in the $150,000 California Dreamin’. He was non-committal about where he would go next with his Cal-bred. Pederson has won four stakes races at Del Mar over the years, three of them have been the California Dreamin’…A busy morning for clockers at Del Mar Sunday. Nearly 300 horses put in official works on both of the dirt and turf courses. 266 on the main track and another 33 on the grass. Notable works Sunday: Dirt – Endlessly (4f, :48.20); Tarantino (4f, :46.40); Ms Bo J (5f, :58.60), and Muth (6f, 1:12.00). Turf – Ag Bullet (4f, 48.20); Iscreamuscream (4f, :50.20); Zona Verde (4f, :50.80), and Planetario (6f, 1:14.60).