NOTES FROM DEL MAR

STAGE IS SET FOR POWERHOUSE TVG PACIFIC CLASSIC

California Chrome drew the No.  1 post position and was established as the 8-5 favorite on oddsmaker Russ Hudak’s morning line at the draw party Tuesday evening at the Brigantine restaurant for Saturday’s 26th running of the $1 million TVG Pacific Classic.

Dortmund will break from the No. 8 spot in a field of nine and was the 5-2 second choice on the morning line. Champion mare Beholder, the defending race champion, drew the No. 7 post and, in a testament to the quality of the field which many consider the best ever in Del Mar’s signature event, is the 3-1 third choice on the morning line.

Connections for all three of the marquee runners in a field of nine entrants expressed major concerns about the posts their horses were assigned. All three had high praise for the quality of the field assembled.

California Chrome, the 2014 Horse of the Year, became the all-time leading money winner in North America with a victory in the $10 million Dubai World Cup in March and edged Dortmund in the San Diego Handicap here on July 23, the comeback race from several months’ layoff for both runners.

Beholder is a three-time Eclipse Award winner, whose eight-race winning streak was snapped with a half-length defeat to Stellar Wind in the Clement L. Hirsch Stakes here on July 30.

Dortmund’s three losses in 11 career starts have all come at the hands of Kentucky Derby/Horse of the Year winners – to American Pharoah in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness last year and to California Chrome in the San Diego.

“He’s coming in with no excuses,” trainer Art Sherman said of California Chrome.  “Everybody gets outrun, we all know that, but I wouldn’t give up my chances for any other horse in the race. I think he’s coming into the race as good as I’ve ever seen him and I think he’s even better than he was in the Dubai race, which was awesome.

“The No. 1 post is never good at any track but being a former jockey, I know that if he (Victor Espinoza) rides the right race the No. 1 post isn’t going to be a problem. It depends on how the early fractions are and then you just go from there. It’s going to be a jockey’s race.

“It’s going to be a fan friendly race, I can tell you that.”

Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella and Hall of Fame rider Gary Stevens could both smile after Beholder was the first name pulled from the entry box and matched with the No. 7 post via the “pill pull.”

“It’s good to be outside, away from the action inside early,”  Mandella said. “Our intention is to get her back (off the pace) and go back to our game that works. We got a little creative last time and it wasn’t the best thing, but I don’t know if it made any difference.

“This is a world class race with one of the all-time great fields of horses, and if they all get to the gate at the same time, it’s going to be quite a race. And I expect they will.”

The Clement L. Hirsch loss now appears to be a small bump in a mostly smooth road that the 6-year-old daughter of Henny Hughes has traveled in a 23-race career

“I looked for a week to find a reason not to run in this race because it is a hell of an undertaking, and I couldn’t find any. She had a great work, came out of it great and you only live once.”

“I’m ecstatic,” Stevens said. “First name out of the box, I hear Beholder, then I hear No. 7 and I’m like ‘Yes!’ It gives me a lot of options. I’ve drawn the No. 1 hole several times with Beholder and I said a little prayer before coming over here that we wouldn’t draw the one hole and we didn’t.

“It’s like the heavyweight championship of the world. I think we’re all looking for a very competitive race that leads to a Breeders’ Cup Classic for all three of them. That’s what I’m hoping for anyway.”

The TVG Pacific Classic is a “Win and You’re In” qualifier for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on November 5 at Santa Anita.

Kaleem Shah, owner of Dortmund, observed the proceedings and offered “can’t complain” when asked for an assessment.

“I think it’s going to be good that we’re on the outside,” Shah said. “We were on the inside last time. Hopefully we can stalk and then get the job done. I think you’ll see beautiful horses coming down the stretch and it’s going to be one for the ages.”

The only surprise at the close of entries, and not exactly a shocking one, was Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert including Hoppertunity in with Dortmund. Hoppertunity, fourth in the Gold Cup at Santa Anita on June 25, was scratched from the Cougar II Handicap on July 24 after running a temperature a few days ahead of the race and Baffert indicated over the weekend that Dortmund would be his Pacific Classic representative and Rafael Bejarano would ride.

On Monday, Bejarano worked Hopportunity  five furlongs in :59.80 and when Hoppertunity rocked, Baffert hastened to open the Classic door for him, acquiring the services of meet-leading rider Flavien Prat.

Trainer John Sadler, who nominated Hard Aces for both the Classic and Saturday’s Del Mar Handicap, elected to stay in the Pacific Classic.

The field for the Pacific Classic from the rail out: California Chrome (Victor Espinoza, 8-5), Hoppertunity (Flavien Prat, 8-1), War Story (Ricardo Mejias, 30-1), Hard Aces (Santiago Gonzalez, 15-1), Win The Space (Joe Talamo, 15-1), Imperative (Norberto Arroyo, Jr., 20-1),  Beholder (Gary Stevens, 3-1),  Dortmund (Rafael Bejarano, 5-2) and Dalmore (Kent Desormeaux, 20-1)


ROBUST FIELDS IN OFFING FOR DEL MAR HANDICAP AND DEL MAR OAKS

The Grade I $300,000 Del Mar Oaks drew a field of 11 and the Grade II Del Mar Handicap lured 12, further strengthening – as if it was needed – Saturday’s TVG Pacific Classic day card.

Post positions were to be drawn later Wednesday for the two graded stakes in addition to the Pacific Classic on an 11-race card. The Oaks, which determines the 3-year-old filly championship of the meeting, is 1 1/8 miles on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course. The Del Mar Handicap, a “Win and You’re In” qualifier for the $4 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf on November 5 at Santa Anita, is run at 1 3/8 miles.

Among the Oaks entrants are two shippers from the east. Hall of Fame Trainer William Mott sends Harmonize, a daughter of Scat Daddy who was a graded stakes winner as a 2-year-old with Junior Alvarado coming in to ride. H. Graham Motion dispatches Tin Type Gal, a daughter of Tapit and winner of a Grade III event at Monmouth Park in her last start.

The Oaks entries in alphabetical order with trainer/jockey: Barleysugar (Edward Freeman/Gary Stevens), Cheekaboo (Peter Eurton/Santiago Gonzalez), Decked Out (J. Keith Desormeaux/Kent Desormeaux), Harmonize (William Mott/Junior Alvarado), Lady Valeur (Patrick Gallagher/Rafael Bejarano), Lynne’s Legacy (James Cassidy/Victor Espinoza), Mines and Magic (Victoria Oliver/Drayden Van Dyke), Mokat (Richard Baltas/Norberto Arroyo, Jr.),  Mrs. Norris (Eoin Harty/Tyler Baze), Stays in Vegas (Jerry Hollendorfer/Flavien Prat) and Tin Type Gal (H. Graham Motion/Joe Talamo).

Mott has also sent Belisarius for the Del Mar Handicap. The 5-year-old Irish-bred son of Montjeu will also be ridden by Alvarado.

The Del Mar Handicap entries in alphabetical order with trainer/jockey: Ashleyluvssugar (Peter Eurton/Gary Stevens), Belisarius (William Mott/Junior Alvarado), El Huerfano (Peter Miller/Brice Blanc), Express Himself (John Sadler/Victor Espinoza), Finnegans Wake (Peter Miller/Kent Desormeaux), Flamboyant (Patrick Gallagher/Flavien Prat), Metaboss (Phil D’Amato/Rafael Bejarano), Patentar (Simon Callaghan/Drayden Van Dyke), Power Foot (Neil Drysdale/Norberto Arroyo, Jr.), Quick Casablanca (Ron McAnally/Tyler Baze), Texas Ryano (Carla Gaines/Joe Talamo) and Wanstead Gardens (Neil French/Santiago Gonzalez).


 CONTENTION RUNS DEEP IN JOCKEY AND TRAINER RACES

Flavien Prat won two races on Sunday,  as did Rafael Bejarano, while Santiago Gonzalez notched one to keep things tight at the top of the rider standings for the start of the fifth full week of the meeting.

With 23 wins through the first 23 days of the meeting, Prat is two ahead of Gonzalez and three ahead of four-time defending champion Bejarano with 16 racing days remaining.

In the trainer race, seven-time meet champion (1997-2003) Bob Baffert gave Bejarano a leg up  on American Gal ($4.80) to win Sunday’s seventh race and move within one (11-10) of Phil D’Amato.

Five others are within four wins of D’Amato, who is seeking his first Del Mar training title after sweeping the Santa Anita winter-spring and spring-summer meets.


FANTICOLA FAVORED AMONG SEVEN IN FRIDAY’S CTT 7 TOC

Graded stakes winning and Grade I placed Fanticola is the 3-1 favorite in a field of seven on oddsmaker Russ Hudak’s morning line for the $75,000 CTT & TOC Stakes, feature event on Friday’s card.

Fanticola, a 6-year-old daughter of Silent Name bred in Ontario, Canada, is trained by Phil D’Amato and ridden by Joe Talamo. She won the Grade II Royal Heroine at Santa Anita in June of 2015 after being second to Hard Not To Like in the Grade I Gamely a month earlier.

The CTT & TOC is a 1 3/8-mile turf marathon for older fillies and mares.

The field from the rail: Generosidade (Tiago Pereira, 7-2), Hiking (Flavien Prat, 5-1), Annulment (Drayden Van Dyke, 5-1), Dressed To A T (Mario  Gutuerrez, 6-1), Frenzified (Santiago Gonzalez, 4-1), Fanticola (Joe Talamo, 3-1) and Energia Fribby (Norberto Arroyo, Jr., 6-1).  


CLOSERS –  The Pacific Classic’s “Big Three” of California Chrome, Beholder and Dortmund occupy the Nos. 1, 7 and 10 spots in this week’s National Thoroughbred Racing Association poll … California Chrome schooled in the paddock and galloped  1 ¾ miles Wednesday morning and is “right on schedule,” trainer Art Sherman said … One day after breezing four furlongs in :47.00, Beholder was back at the track, galloping a mile … Selected workouts from 272 officially timed over the last three days: Monday – Lord Nelson (3f, :34.80), Lynne’s Legacy (4f, :47.40), Hoppertunity (5f, :59.80), Papacoolpapacool (5f, 1:00.20), Raised a Secret (5f, :59.00); Tuesday – Beholder (4f, :47.00), Monster Bea (4f, :48.60), Enola Gray (6f, 1:13.00), Vyjack (6f, 1:10.80); Wednesday – Om (4f, :47.80), American Cleopatra (5f, 1:03.40), American Freedom (5f, :58.60), Cupid (5f, 1:00.20), Firing Line (5f, :59.00) and Prize Exhibit (5f, 1:03.00).