Published Friday, September 4th, 2020   ( 3 years ago )

Princess Noor One to Beat in Sunday's Del Mar Debutante

Princess Noor | Benoit Photo

Princess Noor © Benoit Photo

Zedan Racing Stables’ Princess Noor, a $1.35 million purchase at auction earlier this year, appears a solid choice at Del Mar Sunday when she heads a lineup of six juvenile fillies in the 70th edition of the Grade I, $250,000 Del Mar Debutante.

Princess Noor “won for fun” in her straight maiden debut at the shore oval on August 22 under Victor Espinoza and is wheeled back 15 days later in quest of her first chunk of black type. The rider put his charge on the lead out of the gate, then never asked her late in her bow and she just cruised away from six rivals that day to tally by two and a half lengths. She’s worked twice since for conditioner Bob Baffert and the daughter of the Giant’s Causeway sire Not This Time could take a lot of catching on Sunday.

Here’s the full field for the seven furlong headliner from the rail out with riders and morning line odds:  Reddam Racing’s Get On the Bus (Mario Gutierrez, 8-1); Dale F Taylor Racing, Taylor, et al’s Roll Up Mo Money (Drayden Van Dyke, 12-1); Erich G. Brehm’s My Girl Red (Flavien Prat, 3-1); Princess Noor (8/5); Bolton, Leidel or Lipman, et al’s Illumination (Abel Cedillo, 4-1), and Phoenix Thoroughbred’s Forest Caraway (Ricky Gonzalez, 7/2).

Princess Noor’s chief rival appears to be the Texas Red filly My Girl Red, who trains out of the barn of J. Keith Desormeaux. The bay miss has raced twice and won both, most recently in the Grade II Sorrento Stakes at Del Mar on August 7. Desormeaux and owner/breeder Brehm raced My Girl Red’s daddy, winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile with him, several other major stakes and more than $1.6 million.

Get On the Bus began her career in the Sorrento and was a good second to My Girl Red that day. The Uncle Mo filly, a $340,000 purchase at a 2-year-old in training sale in March, has trained well for Doug O’Neill since that start and should move forward from her racing experience.

Forest Caraway was a winner of her lone outing, a straight maiden sprint at Del Mar on August 15. The bay daughter of Bodemeister races out of the Peter Miller barn.

Roll Up Mo Money, also an Uncle Mo offspring, won her debut at Del Mar on August 2, capturing a five-furlong dash by a length and a quarter. She’s put in four solid works for trainer Jeff Mullins since.

Illumination chased home Forest Caraway in her first attempt at afternoon racing. The Medaglia d’Oro miss was a $900,000 yearling purchase and she also is under the training care of Hall of Fame conditioner Baffert.

The Del Mar Debutante, one of three stakes Sunday, goes as the 9th Race on an 11-race card. First post on Sunday is 1 p.m.