Baffert to Send Out Promising Pair in Del Mar Futurity

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Baffert to Send Out Promising Pair in Del Mar Futurity
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Photo: Benoit Photo
Eight Rings breaks his maiden at Del Mar

With 14 wins in the race, all eyes figure to be on Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who sends out Eight Rings and Garth in this year's edition of the $300,000 Runhappy Del Mar Futurity (G1) Sept. 2 at Del Mar.

A few of Baffert's winners are eventual Triple Crown winner American Pharoah , eventual classic winners Lookin At Lucky  and Silver Charm, and last year's champion 2-year-old male, Game Winner. Looking to join those ranks Monday will be high-priced debut winner Eight Rings and Godolphin homebred Garth, who finished second in his first start.

Purchased for $520,000 by SF Bloodstock and Starlight West from the Taylor Made Sales Agency consignment at the 2018 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Eight Rings wasted no time delivering on that promise when the son of Empire Maker  drew off through the stretch to win a 5 1/2-furlong maiden race by 6 1/4 lengths under Drayden Van Dyke, who will be aboard Monday.

Bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm, Eight Rings is out of grade 3-winning Pure Prize mare Purely Hot. He is campaigned by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Fred Hertrich III, John Fielding, and Golconda Stables. 

Though Garth failed to reach the winner's circle in his Aug. 10 debut, a 5 1/2-furlong race at Del Mar, he did manage to gain the lead late after bobbling a bit at the start and settled for second behind Exline-Border Racing, Dan Hudock, and Susanna Wilson's Storm the Court, who is also entered in the Del Mar Futurity.

A son of Into Mischief , Kentucky-bred Garth is out of the Empire Maker mare Country Star, who at 2 captured a pair of grade 1 stakes. Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith will be aboard for the first time.

Trainer Doug O'Neill, who has won the Del Mar Futurity with eventual champion 2-year-old male Stevie Wonderboy and Nyquist —the latter a Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) winner—also will send out a talented pair in stakes winner Fore Left and Defense Wins.

Reddam Racing's Fore Left will be making his fourth start and already boasts a 4 1/2-length victory in the Tremont Stakes at Belmont Park in June. Since that effort, the son of Twirling Candy  picked up a graded stakes placing when he finished third in the Best Pal Stakes (G2) Aug. 10 at Del Mar.

Defense Wins, who was named by co-owner Rick Pitino, enters off a runner-up finish in a five-furlong maiden race July 21. The son of Flatter  finished a half-length behind eventual Best Pal winner Collusion Illusion in that race.

Hunch players may go for a basketball exacta of Defense Wins and Ginobili, a son of Munnings  who enters off a frontrunning score in an Aug. 17 maiden race at Del Mar.

Trainer Peter Miller will send out the other two expected starters in Nucky, a runaway winner of a maiden claiming race last out Aug. 21 at Del Mar, and Best Pal runner-up Wrecking Crew.

Monday's holiday and closing day card also features the $100,000 Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf Stakes, where 13 are entered. The one-mile test over the Jimmy Durante course can be a steppingstone to the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1T), as O'Neill has done after winning three of the race's past seven editions. This year, O'Neill will saddle A Thousand Dreams, Acai., and Text Dont Call.

"A Thousand Dreams has a two-turn turf win over the course, and they've both been training really well," O'Neill said. 


Entries: Runhappy Del Mar Futurity (G1)

Del Mar, Monday, September 02, 2019, Race 9

  • Grade I
  • 7f
  • Dirt
  • $300,000
  • 2 yo
  • 6:08 PM (local)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L
1 1Storm the Court (KY) Flavien Prat 120 Peter Eurton 5/1
2 2Eight Rings (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Drayden Van Dyke 120 Bob Baffert 5/2
3 3Defense Wins (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Rafael Bejarano 118 Doug F. O'Neill 12/1
4 4Ginobili (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Florent Geroux 120 Richard Baltas 6/1
5 5Garth (KY) Mike E. Smith 118 Bob Baffert 5/1
6 6Fore Left (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Mario Gutierrez 123 Doug F. O'Neill 8/1
7 7Nucky (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Norberto Arroyo, Jr. 118 Peter Miller 8/1
8 8Wrecking Crew (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Abel Cedillo 120 Peter Miller 7/2




Entries: Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf S.

Del Mar, Monday, September 02, 2019, Race 6

  • STK
  • 1m
  • Turf
  • $100,000
  • 2 yo Fillies
  • 4:38 PM (local)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L
1 1Convoluted (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Geovanni Franco 118 Peter Miller 8/1
2 2Awesome Drive (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Ruben Fuentes 118 Andrew Lerner 20/1
3 3Applecross (IRE) Florent Geroux 118 Richard Baltas 10/1
4 4A Thousand Dreams (IL)Keeneland Sales Graduate Rafael Bejarano 120 Doug F. O'Neill 15/1
5 5Croughavouke (IRE) Drayden Van Dyke 118 Jeff Mullins 4/1
6 6Flamigo Bay (IRE) Joseph Talamo 118 Anna Meah 30/1
7 7Acai (CA) Mario Gutierrez 123 Doug F. O'Neill 20/1
8 8Warren's Showtime (CA) Jorge I. Velez 120 Craig Anthony Lewis 8/1
9 9Yesterdayoncemore (IRE) Victor Espinoza 118 James A. Stack 12/1
10 10Shedaresthedevil (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Flavien Prat 123 Simon Callaghan 9/5
11 11Overjoyed (KY) Mike E. Smith 118 Neil D. Drysdale 10/1
98 12Mean Sophia (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate SCRATCHED 0 UNKNOWN -
12 13Text Dont Call (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Abel Cedillo 118 Doug F. O'Neill 20/1