Del Mar: Himika wins for Baffert, Hernández in Sorrento

Himika, the 1-5 favorite in a field of six 2-year-old fillies, overcame tight quarters on the backside and drew clear late to win by 4 1/4 lengths in the Grade 3 Sorrento Stakes on Sunday at Del Mar.

The bay daughter of Curlin got her second victory in her second start and earned a first prize of $90,000 from the purse of $150,500 for the six-furlong race. Himika sports earnings of $126,000 for owners Charles and Susan Chu in the name of their Baoma Corp.

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Winning trainer Bob Baffert, the Hall of Famer who has nine victories in the Sorrento, said he was concerned about Himika’s inside draw.

“You always worry about the 1 hole,” he said. “I think it was 0-for-18 going six until (race 1 winner) Balboa today.”

“She broke just a bit slow, and I saw that outside filly (My Kat) going fast, so I didn’t want to have to start chasing,” said jockey Juan Hernández, who won the Sorrento for the third time. “I sent my filly up between horses, and she was comfortable with it. There was space there, and it worked out fine. At the five-eighths she wanted to go, but I got her to wait. She took care of business in the stretch.”

“(Hernández) had a hold of her since she stumbled there, and she got behind a little bit,” Baffert said. “She’s young, second out and all, but Juan rode her with a lot of confidence. He put her in the right spot, and he had a lot of horse the whole way. When she got to the quarter pole, I felt pretty good about it.”

Mo’Em Down finished second, 3 1/4 lengths better than third-place Thank You India.

Himika paid $2.40 to her backers after covering the fast, main-track distance in 1:10.61. The early splits were 22.11, 45.40 and 57.64.