Roy H

DAY 7

THREE FROM BREEDERS’ CUP SPRINT RETURN FOR BING CROSBY

The first, fourth and fifth-place finishers from the  $1.5 million Breeders’ Cup Sprint last November are back at Del Mar as part of a deeply talented field of 11 for Saturday’s $300,000 Bing Crosby Stakes, the first of six Grade I events during the summer season.

Peter Miller-trained Roy H, was the 2017 Crosby runner-up, but went on to win the BC Sprint. Phil D’Amato-trained Ransom the Moon won the six-furlong Crosby to earn top sprinter of the meeting honors before finishing fifth, beaten 4 ½ lengths, over the same course in the Breeders’ Cup. And American Pastime, trained by Bob Hess, Jr., an allowance level winner last summer at Del Mar, finished a quarter-length ahead of Ransom the Moon in the BC Sprint.

“It’s almost a mini Breeders’ Cup Sprint,” Hess said. “Just a super deep field. I think anyone could win although Roy H is the obvious favorite.”

Roy H is the 2-1 favorite over Bob Baffert’s American Anthem (5-2) on the morning line of oddsmaker Russ Hudak posted Thursday morning.

It will be the 2018 debut, and the first start since the Breeders’ Cup Sprint for American Pastime, a 4-year-old Tapizar colt who was a $135,000 purchase at the Keeneland September sale in 2015. American Pastime has three wins in seven career starts and earnings of $255,100.

“Came out of the Breeders’ Cup Sprint with bone bruising in the right front foot and some in the left as well,” Hess said. “It didn’t need surgery. We gave him four months off and let nature take its course.  He’s been training great since he came back.”

Two of American Pastime’s last three works, one at Santa Anita, one at Del Mar, were of the bullet variety. A five-furlong breeze on Sunday in :59.60 from the gate, was the fastest of 70 at the distance.”

“Obviously it’s a super tough race, not really where I wanted to run,” Hess said. “I actually thought about going in the Vanderbilt at Saratoga on the same day, which looks like not as deep of a race overall. But I couldn’t get him there and I decided I really didn’t want to ship.

“I think he is a bigger, better, faster version of what he was as a three-year-old and we’ll see what he can do.”

The field from the rail: Annie’s Candy (Evin Roman, 30-1), American Pastime (Corey Nakatani, 15-1), Roy H (Kent Desormeaux, 2-1), American Anthem (Mike Smith, 5-2), Ransom the Moon (Flavien Prat, 5-2), Tribal Storm (Irving Orozco, 30-1), Stone Hands (Mario  Gutierrez, 30-1), St. Joe Bay (Tyler Baze, 8-1), Edwards Going Left (Drayden Van Dyke, 10-1), Touching Rainbows (Gary Stevens, 10-1) and Stallwalkin’ Dude (Martin Pedroza, 15-1).

The Crosby is a “Win and You’re In” qualifier for the $1.5 million Twin Spires Breeders’ Cup Sprint in November at Churchill Downs.

SIX, TOPPED BY UNIQUE BELLA, ENTERED FOR CLEMENT L. HIRSCH

Eclipse Award and multiple Grade I stakes-winning Unique Bella heads a field of six entered in Sunday’s Grade I $300,000 Clement L. Hirsch Stakes at 1 1/16-miles on the dirt for older fillies and mares.

The gray 4-year-old daughter of Unrivalled Belle, owned by Don Alberto Stable and trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, won five of six starts in 2017 en route to the Eclipse in the Female Sprinter division and is two-for-three in 2018 with the most recent being a    2 ¼-length score in the Beholder Mile at Santa Anita on June 2.

The Hirsch has been won in the past by female stars such as Azeri (twice), Zenyatta (three times), Stellar Wind (the past two years) and Beholder (2015).

The draw for post positions was scheduled Thursday afternoon. The field in alphabetical order: Bernina Star (Kent Desormeaux), La Force (Drayden Van Dyke), Shenandoah Queen (Joe Talamo), Turkish Tabby (Mario Gutierrez), Unique Bella (Mike Smith) and Yuvetsi (Tyler Baze). Shenandoah Queen was a $3,000 supplemental entry.

The Clement L. Hirsch is a “Win and You’re In” qualifier for the $2 million Longines Distaff in November at Churchill Downs.

OLD WARRIOR SOI PHET ’50-50’ FOR SATURDAY’S CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’

Ten-year-old Soi Phet, winner of the $100,000 Crystal Water at Santa Anita and Bertrando at Los Alamitos by narrow margins in his last two starts, is entered in Saturday’s $150,000 California Dreamin’ Stakes, a 1 1/16-mile test over the Jimmy Durante Turf Course for Cal-breds.

But trainer Leonard Powell has not decided whether the race, in which Soi Phet finished third last year, will be the 60^th in the career for the son of Tizbud who recently topped the $1 million mark in career earnings.

“I’m not sure he’s going to run. I’m going to take a look at the (field) over the next couple of days and make a last minute decision,” Powell said. “It’s 50-50. He’s been an incredible horse for us for a long time, and we’re always looking to do what’s best for him.”

The field from the rail: What a View (Kent Desormeaux, 5-1), Grecian Fire (Mike Smith, 8-1), Ashleyluvssugar (Gary Stevens, 9-2), Pee Wee Reese (Joe Talamo, 7-2), Alsatian (Geovanni Franco, 20-1), Camino Del Paraiso (Rafael Bejarano, 20-1), Fly to Mars (Flavien Prat, 5-1), B Squared (Mario Gutierrez, 8-1), Well Developed (Drayden Van Dyke, 6-1), Soi Phet (Alonso Quinonez, 12-1), Accountability (Tyler Baze, 20-1) and Ward’n Jerry (Stewart Elliott, 20-1).

 THE SPECIFICS ON PLANS FOR JUSTIFY’S FINAL PARADE

Here are the plans for the final public appearance by Triple Crown Champion Justify, whose retirement was announced on Wednesday, following Saturday’s fourth race.

The paddock and tunnel will be cleared of people after the fourth race (approximate post 3:37 p.m.) and Justify will enter the paddock at 3:45. Trainer Bob Baffert, jockey Mike Smith and representatives of the ownership group headed by Elliott Walden of WinStar Farm will be in the paddock.

Justify will be led a few times around the paddock and then down the tunnel. As he approaches the track a 45-second video will be played. Baffert, Smith and the owners will proceed to the winner’s circle while Justify will be led west to a point midway between the sixteenth and eighth pole then turned around and brought back to the winner’s circle.

After about 15 seconds standing in front of the winner’s circle, Justify will be led east around the clubhouse turn to the seven-furlong gap and off the track.

The escort group with Justify, designated by Baffert Thursday, consists of groom Eduardo “Lalo” Luna, hot walker Polo Silva Luna, exercise rider Umberto Gomez, Baffert’s son Bode and assistants Jim Barnes and Pasqual Rivera.

CLOSERS – True Valour, the Irish import who finished seventh in Sunday’s Eddie Read Stakes under Jamie Spencer in the first U.S. start for Irish trainer John Murtagh, is staying with trainer Simon Callaghan for further campaigning. “The (1 1/8-mile) distance was a little too far for him, and we’re probably going to bring him back at a mile,” Callaghan said Thursday. “Considering he had been in the country only a short time after shipping from Ireland it was a good effort and we think he’ll be a nice horse for us. I don’t know if he’ll run again here this meeting. We’ll wait and see.”…Selected works from 156 officially timed Thursday: Battle of Midway (4f, :49.40), Shivermetimbers (4f, :48.60), Jeweled (5f, :59.60), Owning (5f, 1:01.80).

DEL MAR STATISTICS

Jockey Standings

(Current Through Wednesday, July 25, 2018 Inclusive)

Trainer Standings

(Current Through Wednesday, July 25, 2018 Inclusive)

Winning Favorites Report

(Current Through Wednesday, July 25, 2018 Inclusive)

Winning favorites -- 24 out of 53 -- 45.28%

Winning favorites on dirt -- 19 out of 33 -- 57.58%

Winning favorites on turf -- 5 out of 20 -- 25.00%

Winning odds-on favorites -- 5 out of 7 -- 71.43%

In-the-Money favorites -- 33 out of 53 -- 62.26%

In-the-Money odds-on favorites -- 7 out of 7 -- 100.00%