Del Mar news: Catalina Cruiser stays home for Pat O'Brien
Catalina Cruiser worked six furlongs under assistant trainer Juan Leyva in 1:12.60 on Saturday morning to the delight of trainer John Sadler.
“It was a really good work,” Sadler said of an exercise that was the best of four at the distance by more than half a second. “You go 1:12 over this track, you’ve got a fast horse. He’ll go next in the Pat O’Brien.”
Sadler had been contemplating a race at Saratoga as well as the Pat O’Brien for Catalina Cruiser. In opting for the Grade 2, $200,000 Pat O’Brien, Sadler sets a course for Catalina Cruiser to repeat his 2018 feat of winning both the San Diego Handicap and the Pat O’Brien in the summer meeting.
The Pat O’Brien runs next Saturday and could set Catalina Cruiser up for another try at the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile as a "Win and You're In" qualifier toward the Nov. 2 race at Santa Anita Park.
PLAYING THE ‘WHAT IF’ GAME FOR THE PACIFIC CLASSIC
We read through the press kit for the 29th running of the $1 million TVG Pacific Classic (G1) and skimmed the record book and came up with the following tidbits in post position order:
If War Story Wins – A 7-year-old, he would be the oldest winner ever, displacing 6-year-old Pleasantly Perfect and Game On Dude … Would be the 19th Kentucky-bred, 12th chestnut (most by color) and fifth gelding to win … Trainer Jorge Navarro would join Art Sherman and the late Don Warren as 1-for-1 in the TVG Pacific Classic.
If Quip Wins – He would become the ninth 4-year-old, 19th Kentucky-bred and ninth bay horse to be victorious … Florent Geroux would join Julie Krone and Richard Migliore as 1-for-1 in the race… Rodolphe Brisset would join Sherman and Warren as 1-for-1 and the partnership of WinStar Farm and China Horse Club would join five others as first-try winning owners.
If Pavel Wins – He would become the second gray/roan, 19th Kentucky bred and 13th 5-year-old to wind up in the winners circle …Doug O’Neill would become the fifth trainer to win more than one Classic … The win would be a first for owner J. Paul Reddam with his fifth starter.
If For the Top Wins – He would become the third Argentine-bred, ninth 4-year-old and 10th bay champion … Hall of Famer Bob Baffert would move into a tie with Hall of Famer Bobby Frankel for training wins with six … It would be the third win for jockey Martin Garcia from seven starts … RRR Racing would join five other owners in the 1-for-1 club.
If Seeking the Soul Wins – He would tie with Pleasantly Perfect and Game On Dude as the oldest winners, age 6 …Would become the 10th bay and and 19th Kentucky-bred to score … Connections of jockey John Velazquez, trainer Dallas Stewart and owner Charles E. Fipke all claim 1-for-1 status.
If Higher Power Wins – Back-to-back titles for owner/trainer combination of Hronis Racing and John Sadler put them in the company of Juddmonte Farms/Bobby Frankel who did it in 1994-95 and again in 2000-2001 … Hronis/Sadler would be first to win consecutively with different horses… First win with second mount for Drayden Van Dyke … Would be 10th bay, ninth 4-year-old and 19thKentucky-bred.
If Tenfold Wins – He would be the eighth dark bay or brown, 19th Kentucky-bred and ninth 4-year-old … Hall of Famer Mike Smith takes his fifth and breaks a tie with Garrett Gomez for most wins by a jockey … Trainer Steve Asmussen adds a TVG Pacific Classic to his stakes-win list in his second try.
If Campaign Wins – Back-to-back victories for trainer John Sadler put him with Bob Baffert (2009-10), Bobby Frankel (2000-01) and Richard Mandella (1996-97) in the consecutives club … Sadler joins Mandella in winning two in a row with different horses … NOTE: Frankel won four in a row from 1992-95 … Would give Rafael Bejarano a win in his 10th try and take him off the spot as the active jockey with the most chances without a win … Woodford Racing joins the 1-for-1 owners club.
If Mongolian Groom Wins – He becomes the eighth dark bay or brown victor, 19th Kentucky-bred and ninth 4-year-old … Trainer Enebish Ganbat notches a second win in a race with a $1 million purse to go with Mongolian Saturday’s in the 2015 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint…Ganbat and Mongolian Stables owner Ganbaater Dagvadoj become one-for-one club members.
If Draft Pick Wins – He becomes the second progeny of 2003 champion Candy Ride to duplicate the sire’s feat, joining Shared Belief in 2014 … He becomes the 19th Kentucky-bred, ninth 4-year-old and 10th bay champion … Trainer Peter Eurton is a first-try winner and owner CRK Stable tastes victory with its second starter.