Grand Slam Smile © Benoit Photo
GRAND SLAM SMILE SEEKS BACK-TO-BACK WINS IN BETTY GRABLE
The last of the stakes races on opening weekend of the Bing Crosby Season promises to be a good one for no other reason than it has fan favorite, Grand Slam Smile, back to defend her crown. She’s the morning line favorite in the $100,000 Betty Grable Stakes, a seven-furlong test for Cal-bred fillies and mares on the main track.
Grand Slam Smile is one of racing’s newest millionaires, eclipsing the milestone last month with her victory in the $100,000 California Distaff down the hillside turf course at Santa Anita.
“It means a lot,” trainer Sean McCarthy says of surpassing the $1 million mark. “It’s a credit to Steve Specht,” McCarthy continues. “He had her as a 3-year-old and probably knocked out half of it with her. We were lucky enough to receive her from Steve. He recommended that we take her on when he retired and we just appreciate the heck out that.”
The daughter of Smiling Tiger has won 13 races and finished in the money in 22 of her 24 career starts. She has spent much of her eight race 2026 campaign on the turf but, as she proved in last year’s Betty Grable, she can handle the dirt just fine. She did draw the inside post which can be a cause for concern.
“I don’t like it but it is what it is,” McCarthy notes. “Horses with the talent of her level overcome obstacles that other horses can’t so we’re hoping that’s the case on Sunday.”
Grand Slam Smile showed a new dimension last time out when she came from off the pace. She also carried 128 pounds, four more than she’ll carry in the Betty Grable.
“She’s a little bit older now and she’s settling down a little bit more,” McCarthy states. “By the same token it doesn’t take much to light that candle. You pull the trigger on her and she’ll jump.”
The Betty Grable will probably be the end of Grand Slam Smile’s 5-year-old campaign but not necessarily the end of her racing career.
“She’ll run (next year), that’s the plan,” McCarthy says. “Everything’s fine with her and as long as she’s in good shape and wants to keep doing it, we’ll continue with a 2027 campaign.”
First they have to deal with eight other rivals with designs of upsetting the two-time Cal-bred champion. Fibonaccis Ride has already defeated Grand Slam Smile when she won last summer’s $150,000 Solana Beach at Del Mar.
“I think she’s a pretty live Cal-bred filly,” trainer Antonio Garcia says. “The question is going to be the distance and the dirt again. And tactical-wise we may have to change up her style a little bit. She doesn’t really like dirt in her face. That’s going to be the tricky part.”
Fibonaccis Ride has run her last nine races on the grass, all from off the pace.
“I think now that she’s more mature she can handle things a little more,” Garcia claims. “She trains lights out on the dirt especially when she’s in company. Behind horses or in front of horses she’s a super tough filly to beat in the mornings. So, I’m just hoping she gives a good effort.”
Hall of Fame jockey Victor Espinoza has been Fibonaccis Ride’s regular rider since the spring.
“Victor’s done a helluva job with her,” Garcia contends. “Not a lot of people get along with her. He’s done a great job so let’s hope they both continue their friendship.”
She’s No Quant was also a Cal-bred stakes winner during the Del Mar summer meet, capturing the $150,000 Fleet Treat Stakes. She’s been tangling with graded stakes company since, finishing second to Bob Baffert’s Rabeeba in the G3 Torrey Pines at Del Mar and then a distant fifth in the G2 Zenyatta at Santa Anita.
“We took a monster swing in the Zenyatta,” trainer Edward Freeman admits. “Actually, I don’t think she was disgraced. It was probably a sixteenth too far for her. She got the seven eighths pretty comfortably in the summer so we’re here.“
She’s No Quant is a daughter of Pavel and is owned (and was bred) by Reddam Racing.
“I was pretty easy on her after the Zenyatta,” Freeman says, “and she’s bounced back. I’m happy with the way she’s going. From the moment we started training here she’s acted well on the track but she’s as tough as an old boot. She’ll run wherever you want. Just point her in the right direction. She has never slanked out ever.”
The Betty Grable is Race 8 on the nine-race Sunday card. Probable post time is 4 p.m.
Here’s the field from the rail with the jockeys and the morning line: Grand Slam Smile (Juan Hernandez, 1-1); Christel Clean (Joel Rosario, 5-1); Lino’s Angel (Jose Valdivia, Jr. 30-1); Clubhouse Cutie (Tyler Baze, 8-1); Fibonaccis Ride (15-1); Big Hug (Tiago Pereira, 8-1); She’s No Quant (Hector I. Berrios, 6-1); Issa Court (Armando Ayuso, 12-1), and Lady Mendelssohn (Emisael Jaramillo, 15-1).
DEL MAR THE NEW SHIP-IN DESTINATION IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
It’s been a trend developing at Del Mar for years but it has never been more prominent than in the fall of 2026. Most Southern California trainers are employing the ship-in method for the Bing Crosby Season. Instead of bringing the horses they plan to run at Del Mar for the month, they’re bringing them the day before they race or in some cases, the day of. Then after the race they pack them back on the van and return them to Santa Anita.
This seems to be the best way to defray the costs of hauling 30-or-40 horses the 100 miles south on Freeway 5, boarding them for a month and then shipping them back up to Arcadia. The bottom line is training horses is a business and cutting costs is always the objective.
So, when one takes a stroll on the backside at Del Mar you’ll find about 300 horses at any given time this month. A far cry from the around 2,000 that show up and stay the eight weeks of the summer meet. Why do trainers employ the shipping method? There are many reasons.
“During the summer we’re down there for eight to nine weeks and we race four days a week,” trainer Leonard Powell points out. “So, it’s worth the investment to come down. During the fall meet we race only three and a half weeks and we only race three days a week.”
There is also consideration given to the families of the employees and the jockeys.
“During the summer the families are not in school,” Powell adds, “so we can bring the staff down. But in the fall people who have families need to take their kids to school so it’s harder to ask them to move down for a month.”
Then there’s the amount of hard work and man hours that goes into preparing and shipping dozens of horses.
“Yeah, it’s not just one suitcase,” Powell concludes.
There are a few exceptions to the rule. Kentucky-based trainer Jonathan Thomas has his string of 25 horses on the grounds this month but most of Del Mar’s regulars share Powell’s view of the situation.
“Normally, we would bring the entire barn,” trainer Bob Hess, Jr. says, “but we’re only bringing 15 this year for no real reason other than the employees.”
Richard Baltas has 12 horses at Del Mar, while in the summer he fills two or three rows of stalls. Doug O’Neill and Richard Mandella pack the large ‘X’ and ‘Y’ barns on the east side of the Fairgrounds but this month they brought a fraction of what they bring in the summer. Phil D’Amato has about 10 horses at the seaside oval at any one time this month.
“I love Del Mar as much as any trainer,” D’Amato insists. “I’d love to be down there year-round if possible. But it’s one week less of racing at the meet this year as opposed to the last two years and with the super El Nino prospects I just thought it would be safer to keep them at Santa Anita. Economically, it’s the most viable for most trainers and that’s why we do it.”
UMBERTO RISPOLI FOCUSES ON WINNING BIG RACES, NOT RIDING TITLES
Jockey Umberto Rispoli had a year to remember in 2025. He rode the Kentucky Derby favorite, Journalism, to a runner-up finish and followed two weeks later with a win in the second jewel of the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes. They also won the $1 million Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park in July. Rispoli went on to his best year ever in regard to earnings collecting $13,420,345.
He also captured his first riding title since landing in Southern California when he came out on top during the Bing Crosby Season. Rispoli made 17 trips to the winners' circle last fall, two of them following graded stakes races. He won the G1 Hollywood Derby for the second year in a row, this time aboard Salamis for trainer Chad Brown, and the G3 Red Carpet with Mrs. Astor for trainer Jonathan Thomas.
But the racing gods can be downright cruel at times and in January Rispoli suffered a spill at Gulfstream Park that laid him up for six months. He suffered a fractured ankle, a broken fibula in his left leg and a small fracture of his tibia, all of which led to multiple surgeries to repair and months of rehab in Spain and France. Yet by June, he was back up working horses and he was riding races by opening day at Del Mar.
“It hasn’t really been the kind of year you want to have in this part of your career,” Rispoli says. “The injury compromised many things. It was during the time of the year when they have preps for the Kentucky Derby. I missed chances to ride in Dubai and Saudi and those important meetings.
“It’s hard because when you get hurt people forget about you,” Rispoli continues. “I find that a little bit silly. You’re the same jockey you were when you got hurt six months before.”
Rispoli has notched seven graded stakes victories since his return, three of them during the Del Mar summer meet. He was fortunate to get back and ride Journalism in his final race, a win in the G2 San Diego Handicap. He also won the G2 Green Flash with Sorrento Sky and the G2 Del Mar Mile with King of Gosford, both on the Pacific Classic undercard.
“I was proud to be back in good shape,” Rispoli recalls. “Once you focus on the second half of the season you focus on horses you can ride in the Breeders’ Cup. Unfortunately, I could only get three horses. You expect trainers to put you back on horses you had won with and it didn’t happen. You hope people who you work with year-round will give you support on the big day but they get excited and put someone else on it.”
As to defending his title this fall at Del Mar, Rispoli says that takes a backseat to other priorities he brings to the races.
“I’m not a guy running for the titles,” Rispoli contends. “Of course, it’s a reward for yourself but I’m more focused on winning the good races. Sixteen years from now if you ask someone who won the riding title in 2025 at Del Mar they’ll need to Google it. It’s a good professional reward but it doesn’t make you a better jockey. Just because you lose the title doesn’t make you a bad jockey. I’m looking at the quality instead of the quantity.”
Speaking of quality, the Del Mar jockey colony is full of talented riders like Umberto, something he’s very proud to be a part of.
“I think when we got Joel (Rosario) and Emisael (Jaramillo) we raised the bar,” Rispoli says. “The previous riders are competitive with each other and when we go to the east coast we can compete with everybody. We have a lot of good riders, a lot who have top achievements.
“At the end of the day, it’s always the horses that you ride,” Rispoli concludes. “The horse makes the difference. We are not magicians. It’s true that the better rider is the one who makes the less mistakes. I’m looking forward to winning as many good races as I can.”
COOLING OUT: Green Carrera, winner of Friday’s $100,000 Let It Ride Stakes, came out of the race “very well” according to trainer Leonard Powell. He indicated after the race that she might go up against the boys again in the G1 Hollywood Derby at the end of the month but the end of the year goal is a run in the G1 American Oaks at Santa Anita…Eight races and seven different conditioners and seven different jockeys were winners on Friday’s Opening Day card. Trainer John Sadler bagged two races including the first race of the meet with Sunny Creed. Armando Ayuso also made two trips to the winners' circle…Jockey Flavien Prat, who is known to ride at Del Mar during the Fall Meet, won three Breeders’ Cup races last week boosting his yearly earnings over $42 million dollars. No rider has ever made over $42 million in a calendar year…A couple of workouts of note this morning from the Jonathan Thomas barn: Tirupati, winner of the $80,000 Swingtime Stakes at Santa Anita last month, breezed four furlongs in :47.20 (2/9) and Rashmi, winner of the G3 Wilshire at Santa Anita in March, worked four furlongs in :50.40 (8/9).