The Future Is Bright for Saturday’s Stakes Winners at Del Mar

August 14, 2022

DEL MAR, Calif.— All four of the top two finishers in Saturday’s stakes races at Del Mar came back in good order and one of them is already being pointed to stakes action toward the end of the meet.

Dubb, Gevertz or Nentwig, et al’s Going Global dominated a field of six other fillies and mares in the 70th running of the G2 Yellow Ribbon Handicap at Del Mar, putting her tremendous turn of foot on full display in the stretch run and winning by three lengths.

“She came out of the race really good,” trainer Phil D’Amato said Sunday morning, “and I think we’ll just play it by ear but I would say the Mabee Stake and go from there.”

The G2 John C. Mabee will be run on September 10 at Del Mar. D’Amato likes the idea of giving Going Global another shot on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course.

“The Del Mar turf course is very different from the Santa Anita turf course,” D’Amato points out, “and with the many turf horses I’ve had over the years, you can tell some prefer one over the other.”

Going Global has run four times on the grass at Del Mar and won three of them, all graded stakes, the Del Mar Oaks, the Goldikova and now the Yellow Ribbon. Her only blemish was a runner-up finish to Madone in last year’s G2 San Clemente.

D’Amato’s plan to run Going Global back in the Mabee is influencing trainer Leonard Powell’s decision on where to run Yellow Ribbon runner-up Convergence Stable, et al’s Avenue de France. Even though she came out of the race fine, Powell doesn’t want any part of Going Global.

“The John Mabee would be the obvious spot,” Powell says, “but looking at yesterday’s race I don’t think we can beat the winner in any circumstances. I mean, the winner would have to be very unlucky for us to improve our position.”

Still, Powell was pleased with his mare’s performance.

“Good trip, no excuse. Second best,” he said.

Three races later, Aldabbagh, Cady or Leatherman’s Vegas Magic seized control of the 2-year-old fillies division at Del Mar, nailing a very unlucky Procrastination in the final strides to win the G2 Sorrento. Trainer Doug O’Neill couldn’t have been more pleased.

“She came out of it in great shape, looks phenomenal,” O’Neill said. “That was all horse and heart. Credit to the groom and exercise rider, they’ve done a brilliant job having her tight and ready. Abel did a great job of getting a perfect trip and ran down a quality filly. Just real excited about her performance and her future.”

That future could include the G1 Del Mar Debutante on September 10.

“To win like that on this track where the Debutante is, it’s obviously a goal of ours,” O’Neill says. “It’s far enough away to see but as long as she continues to do well, that’ll be the goal.”

O’Neill’s other two horses in the race, The Del Mar Group’s Satin Doll (fourth) and Reddam Racing’s Absolutely Zero (sixth) also came out of the race in good shape.

“We’re still scratching our heads that they didn’t run better,” O’Neill says, “but they’re not machines so we’ll go over them good, pull some blood and get ‘em right.”

Trainer Michael McCarthy says he’ll give Eclipse Thoroughbred Partner’s Procrastination a couple of days before deciding where and when her next race will be.

“I thought she ran very well,” McCarthy said. “She was drawn inside and she stumbled a little bit leaving there but ran well. Obviously, you’d like to win those things but it’s never easy.”


Notes: Eclipse Award winner Ce Ce worked Saturday morning at Del Mar. The Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint winner went five furlongs in :59.60, fourth best out of 76 works at the distance. Trainer Mike McCarthy says he is pointing the mare to the G1 Ballerina at Saratoga August 28…Notable works on Sunday: Dirt – American Theorem (4f, :49.40); Neige Blanche (4f, 47.60); C Z Rocket (5f, 1:01.00); Edgeway (5f, :58.80), and Country Grammer (6f, 1:12.20). Turf – Balnikhov (5f, 1:05.40); Bellabel (5f, 1:03.40); Cairo Memories (5f, 1:01.40); Count Again (5f, 1:02.20), and Going To Vegas (5f, 1:02.80). A total of 206 horses worked on the dirt, 44 worked on the turf.

DMTC Press Release

Photo: Going Global winning the Yellow Ribbon (Benoit Photo)

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