By Hank Wesch
STELLAR WIND FOLLOWS BEHOLDER’S PATH IN TORREY PINES
In 2013, Beholder, trained by Richard Mandella and ridden by Gary Stevens, ended a four-month layoff with a victory in the Torrey Pines Stakes. That was followed by triumphs in the Zenyatta and Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Santa Anita and an Eclipse Award as the top 3-year-old filly of the year.
Fast forward two years, change the names, and today’s edition of the $100,000 Grade III Torrey Pines has a very similar look.
Stellar Wind, trained by John Sadler and ridden by Victor Espinoza, returns to racing after a 2 ½ month layoff to embark on a path which, if all goes well, would lead to the same end of the year award that went to Beholder in 2013.
A Virginia-bred daughter of Curlin owned by the Hronis Racing LLC of brothers Kosta and Pete Hronis, Stellar Wind won the Santa Anita Oaks in April and the Summer Oaks at Los Alamitos in June. Sandwiched between the victories was her only loss in four 2015 starts, a troubled fourth in the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs in May.
Sadler thought about extending the “Oaks” string for Stellar Wind in the Del Mar Oaks on August 15. But that 1 1/8-mile Grade I $300,000 event is contested over the Jimmy Durante Turf Course and Sadler was not enamored of Stellar Wind’s workouts there.
“She didn’t like the grass,” Sadler said Sunday morning.
So it’s the one mile Torrey Pines, the meeting’s major stakes for 3-year-old fillies on dirt. Stellar Wind is the 6-5 morning line favorite in a field of six.
“She’s ready to go,” Sadler said Sunday morning. “She’s got a couple of big races after this, probably the Zenyatta and then the Breeders’ Cup, we’ll see how it goes. But she’s doing wonderfully and we expect a very good race today.”
WHAT’S IN A NAME – TORREY PINES STAKES
The Torrey Pines Stakes is named for the Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve south of Del Mar. The race was inaugurated in 1976 and will have its 38th running today.
ALL QUIET ON BAFFERT’S WESTERN FRONT; GIMME DA LUTE FINE
Where there had been a flurry of activity a week earlier, with American Pharoah being put through his final work for the Travers, there was a quiet scene Sunday morning at Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert’s barn in the Del Mar stable area.
Baffert assistant Pascual Rivera said that Gimme Da Lute and Fame and Power, the 1-2 finishers in Saturday’s $100,000 El Cajon Stakes, both came out of the race well. Gimme Da Lute recorded his fourth straight stakes victory, holding off stablemate Fame and Power by a half-length while running the mile in 1:35.79. The $60,000 winner’s share of the purse increased the son of Midnight Lute’s career earnings to $627,560 for owners-breeders Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman.
Baffert, top assistant Jim Barnes and American Pharoah all stayed in Saratoga overnight after the 3-year-old colt’s three-quarter length loss to Keen Ice in the Travers.
A twitter post by owner Ahmed Zayat and his son Justin Sunday morning said that American Pharoah came out of the race sound but tired and the colt would be shipping back to Del Mar on Monday.
As for the Del Mar crew, Rivera said the loss of American Pharoah was taken without a great outpouring of emotion.
“We’ve been in the business a long time and we know that even great horses can get beat,” Rivera said.
IRISH FILLY ARRIVES FOR JUVENILE FILLIES TURF
Optimism and Hope, a 2-year-old Irish-bred filly trained by Tommy Stack, arrived here Saturday, Cindy Niemetz of the International Racing Bureau reports.
Optimism and Hope, a nose winner in a field of five in her racing debut at Bellewstown, Ireland on July 3, is being pointed for the $100,000 Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf on Closing Day, September 7.
FIELD OF 10 ENTERED FOR WEDNESDAY’S TRANQUILITY LAKE STAKES
Gas Total and My Monet, the 1-2 finishers in the July 18 Osunitas Stakes that was moved from the grass to the main track by rains, will stay on the dirt in a field of 10 for Wednesday’s $80,000 one-mile Tranquility Lake Stakes for fillies and mares.
Gas Total, a Brazilian-bred import to the Richard Mandella barn this year, closed from fourth to prevail over front-running My Monet by a neck in the Osunitas.
The field from the rail: Savings Account (Mike Smith), Our Pure Creation (Fernando Perez), Sky Mega (Joe Talamo), Oscar Party (James Graham), Harlington’s Rose (Alonso Quinonez), Wild in the Saddle (Mario Gutierrez), My Monet (Santiago Gonzalez), Gas Total (Flavien Prat), Sam’s Sister (Martin Garcia) and Honey Ride (Tyler Baze).
The Tranquility Lake will go as the eighth on an extended (for a weekday) nine race card.
TEN STAKES REMAIN FOR FINAL SIX DAYS OF THE MEETING
After today’s Torrey Pines it will be 33 down and 10 to go on the Del Mar stakes schedule entering the final six racing days (Wednesday, September 2-Labor Day, September 7) of the meeting.
Unlike most previous years, the 76th summer season will not end on the Wednesday following Labor Day but will end on the Monday holiday itself.
The remaining stakes lineup: Wednesday, Sept. 2 -- $80,000 Tranquility Lake Stakes; Friday, Sept. 4 -- $150,000 I’m Smokin Stakes; Saturday, Sept. 5 – $300,000 Grade I Del Mar Debutante, $100,000 Del Mar Juvenile Turf; Sunday, Sept. 6 -- $200,000 Grade II Yellow Ribbon Handicap, Grade II $250,000 Del Mar Derby, $80,000 C.E.R.F. Stakes; Monday, Sept. 7 -- $80,000 Pirates Bounty Stakes, $100,000 Juvenile Fillies Turf, $300,000 Grade I Del Mar Futurity.
CLOSERS – Selected works from 196 officially timed Sunday morning, 159 on dirt and 37 on turf: Dirt – Iron Fist (6f, 1:12.40), Nyquist (5f, 1:00.40), Wild Dude (4f, :50.00), Mrazek (4f, :48.40), Golden Atlantic (4f, :46.20), Big Macher (4f, :48.40); Turf – Soul Driver (5f, 1:02.20), Queen of The Sand (5f, 1:03.80), Prospect Park (4f, :49.60), Obviously (4f, :48.60), Istanford (4f, :50.00).
DEL MAR STATISTICS
| Jockey Standings | ||||||
| (Current Through Saturday, August 29, 2015 Inclusive) | ||||||
| Jockey | Mts | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Win% | Money Won |
| Rafael Bejarano | 179 | 32 | 37 | 24 | 18% | $2,154,954 |
| Joseph Talamo | 157 | 25 | 13 | 14 | 16% | $1,437,128 |
| Tyler Baze | 178 | 23 | 24 | 28 | 13% | $1,417,790 |
| Flavien Prat | 152 | 20 | 24 | 23 | 13% | $1,725,444 |
| Santiago Gonzalez | 143 | 19 | 13 | 18 | 13% | $1,111,396 |
| Mario Gutierrez | 111 | 19 | 12 | 10 | 17% | $1,086,636 |
| Martin Garcia | 120 | 18 | 12 | 14 | 15% | $1,160,700 |
| Corey Nakatani | 77 | 16 | 9 | 4 | 21% | $729,476 |
| Kent Desormeaux | 81 | 14 | 10 | 11 | 17% | $733,874 |
| Fernando Perez | 128 | 11 | 16 | 20 | 9% | $641,748 |
| Trainer Standings | ||||||
| (Current Through Saturday, August 29, 2015 Inclusive) | ||||||
| Trainer | Sts | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Win% | Money Won |
| Jerry Hollendorfer | 77 | 19 | 9 | 10 | 25% | $1,190,272 |
| Peter Miller | 111 | 15 | 19 | 14 | 14% | $1,117,130 |
| Doug F. O'Neill | 90 | 13 | 17 | 11 | 14% | $1,056,290 |
| Philip D'Amato | 71 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 17% | $878,392 |
| Richard Baltas | 59 | 12 | 6 | 12 | 20% | $608,388 |
| Bob Baffert | 56 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 20% | $884,820 |
| Mike Puype | 65 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 15% | $568,160 |
| John W. Sadler | 44 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 23% | $521,084 |
| Robert B. Hess, Jr. | 49 | 10 | 1 | 7 | 20% | $305,932 |
| Mark Glatt | 53 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 15% | $399,040 |
| Winning Favorites Report | |||
| (Current Through Saturday, August 29, 2015 Inclusive) | |||
| Winning favorites | 85 | 289 | 29.41% |
| Winning favorites on dirt | 63 | 199 | 31.66% |
| Winning favorites on turf | 22 | 90 | 24.44% |
| Winning odds-on favorites | 17 | 35 | 48.57% |
| In-the-Money favorites | 169 | 289 | 58.48% |
| In-the-Money odds-on favorites | 31 | 35 | 88.57% |
Contact: Dan Smith 858-792-4226/Hank Wesch 858-755-1141 ext. 3793