Test Score © Benoit Photo
The invader – Test Score, trained by – who else – H. Graham Motion – took down honors after a fierce battle through the stretch in Saturday’s $303,000 Del Mar Handicap Presented by the Japan Racing Association. The race before that one saw Iron Man Cal make the lead early, then hang tough late to come away a winner in the $252,500 Pat O’Brien Stakes.
All in all, it was an exciting afternoon of racing at Del Mar.
The two Grade II stakes gave both their winners a free ride to the Breeders’ Cup scheduled this year at Keeneland. Test Score is now eligible to run in the $5-million Breeders’ Cup Turf and Iron Man Cal has his ticket punched for a go in the $1-million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. Both will be run on October 31 at the classy Kentucky oval.
Test Score, a 4-year-old colt by Lookin At Lucky owned by Californians John and Jerry Ammerman, fought the good fight in a field of 11 and came away a neck best under top rider Juan Hernandez, who was winning his eighth stakes of the session. Iron Man Cal, who had to spend 10 minutes in the paddock prior to the race getting reshod, showed speed throughout under Joel Rosario to prove best by a half length at the finish. The speedster is owned by the large group of owners known as Little Red Feather Racing, along with partner Madaket Stables.
Test Score was the 15th stakes horse Motion has shipped west to Del Mar and come away a winner. He ran the 11 furlongs on turf in 2:14.76 and paid $7.20 to his pari-mutuel backers. Iron Man Cal was the fifth horse trainer Phil D’Amato has saddled for a stakes score at the shore oval this summer. The 4-year-old by Collected covered his seven-furlong challenge in 1:22.02 and rewarded his backers with a payoff of $18.40.
The track’s popular Pick Six caused a stir when longshots paved the way for a carryover of $192,078 that will be in the pool to start the Sunday wagering.
First post for the Sunday card is the usual 2 p.m.
JUAN HERNANDEZ (Test Score, winner) – “This is a very professional horse. He knows how to run; he knows how to win. I’ve ridden him before and that helped. He just runs his race. He doesn’t pull; he just stays calm and goes about his business. He’s a pleasure.”
ALICE CLAPHAM asst. to Graham Motion (Test Score, winner) – “He’s a little horse that will not give up. He’ll fight. He’s a true racehorse. I was a little worried around the bend when he had a lot of horses around him because when he gets going you don’t want him to get stopped; but once he got clear and changed his lead he just kept going.”
PHIL D’AMATO (Gold Phoenix, fourth) – “He could have gotten a little bit cleaner trip, but that’s grass racing. They really walked the dog early and when that happens everybody’s charging late and he (jockey Hector I. Berrios) took a chance to go up in there. It got a little tight but once he got through he battled and we just got outrun.”
FRACTIONS: :24.18 :48.26 1:13.31 1:38.16 2:03.32 2:14.76
The stakes win was the eighth of the meet for rider Hernandez and his second in the Handicap (Gold Phoenix, 2023). He now has 73 stakes wins at Del Mar.
The stakes win was the third of the meet for trainer Motion, but his first in the Handicap. He now has 15 stakes wins at Del Mar.
The winning owner is Amerman Racing of John and Jerry Amerman of Palos Verdes Estates, CA.