Cordiality © Benoit Photo
Cordiality, consistent and classy, performed to her 6-5 favoritism Friday with an easy victory under jockey Tyler Baze in the featured $150,000 Solana Beach Stakes for California-bred fillies and mares.
Perfectly positioned by Baze in the early stages of the one-mile race over the infield Jimmy Durante Turf Course, Cordiality pounced on pacesetting Princess Roi turning into the stretch and drew off to score by two and one-quarter lengths in 1:34.14 for the distance.
Longshot Queen Bee to You rallied well through the stretch to be runner-up, a length in front of Cheekaboo, with Princess Roi fading to fourth place in the field of nine.
Cordiality, owned by Drummond, Xitco and trainer Mark Glatt, returned $4.60, $3 and $2.80 after her ninth triumph in 23 career efforts. First money of $85,500 increased the five-year-old Papa Clem mare’s earnings to $413,595. Queen Bee to You paid $10 and $6.20, while Cheekaboo returned $5.20 to show.
Del Mar’s leading trainer this summer, Peter Miller, had a perfect afternoon at the races Friday, sending out three horses to win three races. His triple began in the second race with Stop the Violence, continued in the third with Wild Wild Kingdom and was completed in the fifth by Angel Alessandra. Apprentice Heriberto Figueroa rode both Stop the Violence and Wild Wild Kingdom.
Miller’s three winners increased his total for the meeting to 17, six more than Jerry Hollendorfer and Doug O’Neill.
TYLER BAZE (Cordiality, winner) – “We (he and trainer Mark Glatt) talked before some, but not much. I know her, and he knows it. She just gives you confidence getting on her. She’s relaxed, but she’s serious. The older she’s gotten, the better she’s gotten. She’s a sweetheart.”
FLAVIEN PRAT (Queen Bee to You, second) – “I had a good trip. I was trailing the winner and I was in a good spot. Coming for home I had hopes. But she (Cordiality) just outran us.”
GARY STEVENS (Cheekaboo, third) – “She tries hard every time. I think it (distance) was a little short for her.”
MARK GLATT (Cordiality, winner) – “It was a great trip and she’s just getting good. She ran a respectable finish in a Grade III (third in the Wilshire Stakes) last time against open company. She’s a diamond and they don’t come around very often. It’s hard to claim a horse (for $32,000) that ends up being a stakes horse. We all know it doesn’t happen very often, but it happens. We were just the fortunate ones to have gotten her.”
FRACTIONS: :23.57 :47.01 1:10.76 1:22.34 1:34.14
The stakes win was the third of the meet for rider Baze, but his first in the Solana Beach. He now has 33 stakes wins at Del Mar.
The stakes win was the first of the meet for trainer Glatt, as well as his first in the Solana Beach. He now has seven stakes wins at Del Mar.
Her ownership group consists of trainer Glatt, Lee Drummond of Indio, CA and John Xitco of Tacoma, WA.