Nysos © Benoit Photo
NYSOS OUT, LATE SCRATCH FROM PACIFIC CLASSIC WITH BRUISED FOOT
One of the big three in today’s Pacific Classic has been scratched from the race hours before post time. Nysos will not run after his trainer Bob Baffert detected bruising in a hind hoof.
“He was fine earlier,” Baffert noted, “but when we double-checked on him we found some bruising.”
Baffert says it’s minor. The son of Nyquist was a slight morning line favorite over Journalism in the Classic. He had won the G2 San Diego, the local prep for the Classic, last month and was working wonderfully up to the race. His final work was five furlongs in :58.8 handily at Del Mar last Saturday.
Nysos has been bothered by health-related issues during his career. He missed most of his 3-year-old season due to nagging setbacks and was coming off of a 15-month layoff when he returned on Derby Day earlier this year to run a close second in the G1 Churchill Downs Stakes.
Here’s the field from the rail out with the jockeys and the new morning line odds: Fierceness (John R. Velazquez, 8/5); Midnight Mammoth (Armando Ayuso, 8-1); Ultimate Gamble (Kazushi Kimura, 15-1); Nysos (SCRATCHED); Indispensable (Paco Lopez, 12-1); Journalism (Umberto Rispoli, even); Lure Him In (Hector I. Berrios, 20-1), and Tarantino (Edwin Maldonado, 15-1).
PACIFIC CLASSIC UPSETS: THE BIG PAYOFFS IN DEL MAR’S BIG RACE
The $1 million, G1 Pacific Classic is finally here. Not only is it the biggest race of the year at Del Mar, it’s arguably the biggest race of the day on a busy Saturday in racing. Two of the Top Ten horses in racing, according to the NTRA weekly poll, will contest the mile and a quarter Classic.
The Classic has had its share of favorites win the race over the years. Eleven of the 34 runnings, or about one-third, have been won by the favorite. Theoretically any race where a horse other than the favorite wins could be considered an upset but it’s the surprise winners, the ones that pay exorbitant prices, that people remember.
There have been five such outcomes in Pacific Classic history, none more shocking than the one trainer Richard Mandella pulled off in 1996 with Dare And Go. He was one of four contenders that day who presumably had no chance against the great Cigar, who was attempting to set a North American record by winning his 17th straight race.
“The horse was in his prime,” Mandella remembers about Dare And Go. “He was doing so good. I had two speed horses, Siphon and Dare And Go, and at the draw I said ‘I’m going to take Dare And Go back because no one should go with Siphon.’ But Billy Mott wasn’t there.”
Bill Mott was the trainer of Cigar.
“So he tried to hook Siphon,” Mandella continues. “Siphon had beat his (Mott’s) other horse in the Hollywood Gold Cup so he was more afraid of Siphon than anybody. We took Dare And Go back and he made a run. It was the best race he ever ran.”
Cigar put away Siphon around the eighth pole but when he was confronted by an oncoming Dare And Go the two-time Horse of the Year had no answer and the crowd of over 40,000 went from a roar to a numbed rumble. Dare And Go paid $81.20, the highest payoff in Pacific Classic history.
Missionary Ridge was the first big upset of the Pacific Classic when he won it in the second running in 1992. The 5-year-old English-bred paid $51 on a $2 win ticket.
There were two major upsets in the Pacific Classic two years apart. In 2007 Student Council rolled to a come-from-behind victory for trainer Vladimir Cerin and jockey Richard Migliore. He went off at 23-1 and paid $48.80. Then in 2009, Richard’s Kid tallied the first of two Pacific Classic wins. It was a 24-1 shocker that even surprised his trainer.
“The ones that you don’t expect to win are the most exciting,” Bob Baffert says.
Richard’s Kid would pay $50.80 to win.
So who might pull off the big upset in this year’s edition of the Pacific Classic.
In no particular order, there’s Midnight Mammoth, a past winner here at Del Mar. He won the mile and a half marathon G3 Cougar II two years ago and comes into the Classic off a runner-up finish to Skippylongstocking in the G2 Gold Cup at Santa Anita on Memorial Day.
“We are proven at the distance,” trainer Craig Dollase notes. “Some of those are not. Journalism is but Nysos has never run that far. We’re taking a different approach this year, training him up at Los Alamitos.”
Ultimate Gamble is taking the big step up from allowance company.
“Just decided to take a shot,” trainer Mark Glatt states. “We know he’s going to be a big longshot in the race but I think he’ll relish the mile and a quarter distance. We’ll give it our best shot and see if we can’t have an impact on the race.”
Lure Him In shipped in from Florida last month and ran a credible third in an allowance race with Ultimate Gamble last month.
“It’s just a pleasure to have him still running like he is,” trainer Sam Wilensky contends. “For him to go on and do the things that he’s done. He’s won a few stakes for us and to get your name with the big boys is a great opportunity.”
Indispensable ran in the Shared Belief at Del Mar last year and ran second to Muth. He tried the Oklahoma Derby (third) and the Zia Park Derby (second) before returning to allowance company and winning an entry level allowance at Del Mar last out.
“He has a proclivity for this track,” trainer John Sadler says. “He’s doing very well and we think the distance will be good for him.”
Trainer Peter Eurton brings Tarantino to the dance. He was considering the son of Pioneerof the Nile for the G2 Charles Town Classic, then got an invitation to run him in the Korea Cup, but he landed in the Classic.
“We just figured we’d get in there with the toughest race we could find,” Eurton jokes. “Didn’t realize how tough it was going to be. Didn’t expect Fierceness to be in there. Didn’t know where Journalism was going. But I couldn’t be happier with the way he’s coming into the race. I’m hoping he’ll be left alone (on the lead). It could be two 30-1 won shots out there on the lead waiting for the monsters to come.”
Last year Mixto was the longshot attending the lead before running down a very game Full Serrano to win at 22-1.
“The race unfolded beautifully,” trainer Doug O’Neill remembers. “Kyle Frey rode a perfect race. It’s something I will never forget. A real amazing feat by a cool horse who had been knocking on the door and finally pushed on through.”
Mixto rewarded his faithful with a $46.60 payoff. He’s currently back in Kentucky at Calumet Farm recouping from his trip to Dubai and awaiting a decision as to whether he will return to racing.
The G1 Pacific Classic is Race 10 on today’s 11-race card. Probable post time is 6 p.m.
DEL MAR PACIFIC CLASSIC MEDIA SURVEY 2025
The experts have spoken. Here’s our annual random survey of Media members and their choices and comments for this year’s G1 Pacific Classic.
Steve Andersen – Daily Racing Form – Journalism – “Adores 1 ¼ miles.”
Brad Free – Daily Racing Form – Journalism
Ernie Belmonte – Horse Photos – Journalism – “He loves it out here.”
Jon Lindo – Thoroughbred LA Radio – Journalism
Bob Ike – KLAA AM830 – Journalism –“He had Nysos to beat but now that’s a moot point!”
Curtis Treese – Equibase – Journalism – “Should get another good stalking trip.”
Ken Davis – Equibase – Journalism
Brigitte Becko – Del Mar Thoroughbred Club – Midnight Mammoth - “Because he has the stamina and he’s a beauty.”
SIX PACK OF COLTS AND GELDINGS LINE UP FOR G2 DEL MAR DERBY
Iron Man Cal has had some shining moments at Del Mar, even if they were in losing efforts. The son of Pacific Classic winner Collected broke his maiden at second asking at Del Mar last summer but it was his return to the seaside oval in the fall that people remember.
He came back in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf a 29-1 longshot and nearly won, coming up a half a length short of catching the winner Henri Mattisse. So when Iron Man Cal returned to Del Mar this summer he brought with him the ‘Horse For the Course’ tag and was made the 3-5 favorite in the opening day feature, the Oceanside Stakes.
He promptly went to his nose at the start, stumbling out of the gate dead last and presumably losing all chance in the one mile turf race. Or had he? Iron Man Cal and jockey Antonio Fresu saved all the ground and rallied up the rail through the lane. Fresu got the colt rolling late and he nearly pulled off a miraculous comeback, running out of room and finishing second, a half a length behind the winner, Game Warrior.
Iron Man Cal is back for another try on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course and he is once again, albeit lukewarm, the favorite in the Caesar’s Sportsbook G2 Del Mar Derby on Sunday.
“I think he’s still angry that he fell down coming out of the starting gate in the Oceanside,” says the managing partner of Little Red Feather Racing, Billy Koch. “I think he’s mad, the barn’s mad, everybody’s mad, so he’s coming in with a vengeance.
“He was primed and ready to run,“ Koch continues. “It was just unfortunate that he had such a bad stumble. Antonio did a really good job of just not trying to rush and put him into the race and getting a chance to even win was a miracle.”
The connections are hoping no miracles are necessary this time as they tee-it-up against five other rivals including stablemate The Padre, winner of the La Jolla Handicap earlier in the meet.
“I thought it was awesome,” Koch says of The Padre’s win. “The second Rispoli gave him daylight at the top of the lane he just accelerated and the race was over.”
Koch says his two horses are so different but they are both ‘so cool.’
“The Padre sleeps all day long,” Koch notes, “while ‘Cal’ is up looking at everything. The distance should be no problem. I think at the end of the day, like most races, it’ll come down to pace and trip.”
That leaves the big question, who will be on the front end? Freedom’s Not Free has shown early speed in his races but trainer Mark Glatt has indicated that the son of Omaha Beach needs a target to do his best running.
“He looks like he’s likely to be on the lead, so hopefully he doesn’t need a target,” Glatt says. “Maybe Geometry could assert himself and try and make the lead. We’ll just have to play it as it comes.”
Geometry, out of the Jonathan Thomas stable, has only run three times and he’s won two of them, his maiden at Keeneland and an entry-level allowance race at Del Mar three weeks ago.
The other two horses in the race have both come from off the pace. Game Warrior was eighth of 10 horses at the half-mile pole in the Oceanside.
“With the short field it’s going to be a riders’ race,” trainer Peter Miller contends. “They’re very equally matched on numbers. It’s wide open and we drew the rail, I like that.”
Mythical Reel ran second to Geometry in the allowance race. He –like The Padre and Iron Man Cal -- is trained by Phil D’Amato.
The Caesar’s Sportsbook G2 Del Mar Derby is the ninth race on the 11-race Sunday card. Probable post time is 5:30 p.m.
Here’s the field from the rail out with the jockeys and morning line odds: Game Warrior (Hector I. Berrios, 6-1); Freedom’s Not Free (Juan Hernandez, 3-1); Geometry (Kazushi Kimura, 8-1); Iron Man Cal (Antonio Fresu, 2-1); The Padre (Umberto Rispoli, 5/2), and Mythical Reel (Armando Ayuso, 8-1).
CITIZEN BULL, GAMING RETURN IN $125,000 SHARED BELIEF SUNDAY
It’s that time of year again when trainers of top flight horses are thinking about the Breeders’ Cup and how they’re going to get to the big event this fall at Del Mar. Not that he has indicated publically where he’s going with Citizen Bull, but trainer Bob Baffert will run his Eclipse Award champion in the $125,000 Shared Belief Sunday at the seaside oval.
Citizen Bull will be making his first start since running fourth in the G1 Woody Stephens in the mud at Saratoga on Belmont Stakes Day. That race came one month after the son of Into Mischief ran a distant 15th in the Kentucky Derby, which came one month after he ran a disappointing fourth in the Santa Anita Derby behind Preakness and Haskell winner Journalism.
All of which were a turn around in form from Citizen Bull’s victories in the G1 American Pharoah, G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and G3 Robert B. Lewis. All three were wire-to-wire victories.
“We’re trying to get his form back,” Baffert says. “He’s training really well down here, he likes it down here. I think the distance is going to be good for Citizen Bull.”
The Shared Belief is one mile on the main track.
Baffert also brings Gaming to the dance, last year’s Del Mar Futurity winner who also ran through a bit of a rough patch before wiring the field in the $100,000 Affirmed at Santa Anita last out in June.
“It’s amazing that you get a win and they come back into form,” Baffert notes.
Gaming seemed destined for big things after his runner-up finish to Citizen Bull in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. But he ran a distant third six weeks later in the Los Alamitos Futurity and then finished eighth of nine horses in the G3 Southwest at Oaklawn Park to start his 3-year-old campaign. He posted a game second in the $200,000 Hot Springs at Oaklawn in March, then a third in the G2 Pat Day Mile at Churchill Downs on Derby Day.
Returning to the West Coast seemed to rejuvenate the son of Game Winner as he was back in the winner’s circle in the Affirmed.
Baffert will also start Privman, a late bloomer who has won his last two races and has finished no worse than second in his five lifetime starts.
Brother Brother from the Doug O’Neill barn has yet to break his maiden and Smooth Cruisein, a son of Girvin, round out the field.
The 51st running of the Shared Belief, run as the El Cajon Stakes until 2015, will be run as Race 2 on the 11-race Sunday card. Probable post time is 2 p.m.
Here’s the field from the rail out with the jockeys and the morning line odds: Privman (Kazushi Kimura, 2-1); Brother Brother (Antonio Fresu, 20-1); Gaming (Hector Berrios, 9/5); Smooth Cruisen (Kyle Frey, 10-1), and Citizen Bull (Juan Hernandez, 7/5).
COOLING OUT: Several top riders from across the country have made the trek West for Pacific Classic Day. Flavien Prat was in town to ride Nysos. He has four other mounts on the card. John Velezquez is at Del Mar to ride Fierceness. He has five mounts total on the day. And Paco Lopez, the leading rider at Monmouth Park this summer, has six mounts including Indispensable in the Classic…A reminder that post time has been moved up a half hour to 1:30 p.m. for the remainder of the meet except for next Friday when post time is at 3 p.m…Virat, one of the runners in the Green Flash, is named after one of the world’s most famous cricketers Virat Kohli, sort of the Shohei Otani of international cricket. He plays for the Indian National Team…Antonio Fresu pulled off the hat trick Friday. He won the early double with victories in Races 1 and 2 and then won again aboard Third Beer in Race 5. But he only picked up one win on leading jockey Juan Hernandez who notched two victories on Friday…Notable works for Saturday: Straight No Chaser (4f, :47.20); Cavalieri (5f, :58.40); Johannes (5f, 1:02.40); Richi (5f, 1:00.40); Speedy Wilson (5f, :59.40), and Brant (6f, 1:11.40). A total of 164 horse put in official works at Del Mar on Saturday.