Prat, Baltas, D'Amato, Hronis brothers capture titles at Del Mar

Flavien Prat returned from a trip to his native France to win seven races in the last three days of the meeting to claim outright for 2017 the Del Mar riding title he shared with Rafael Bejarano in 2016.

The 25-year-old from Melun, France started the final six-day week of the season with a two-win lead on Bejarano and apprentice Evin Roman but with the final two days of a three-day suspension still to serve. The death of his girlfriend’s mother in France necessitated a trip to his homeland.

Prat returned to find himself in a three-way tie atop the standings but won four on Saturday, September 2 to assume control and kept it with a win on the penultimate win of the meeting and two more on closing day.

Prat finished with 35 wins. Bejarano and Roman, who won one on closing day, tied for second at 29. Kent Desormeaux (26) and Joe Talamo (23) completed the top five.

“To win the title was what he wanted to do,” Prat’s agent, Derek Lawson, said. “That was the goal he set after sharing it last year with Rafael. He’s really excited about racing here in the Breeders’ Cup. This is his track and he feels he knows every nuance of it.”

Prat also was the leading rider for stakes victories, recording nine in added-money events.

Richard Baltas and Phil D’Amato each saddled one winner on closing day and finished tied for the training title with 18 wins.

It was the first title anywhere for Baltas, the second in a row at the Del Mar summer meeting for D’Amato, who won his first Del Mar championship in 2016 recording 23 victories.

Tied at 17 going into the final day, Baltas took the lead when Talamo guided Kathy’s Song home in the seventh race. D’Amato got the equalizer in the final race of the season with Prat winning on Touching Rainbows.

Brothers Pete and Kosta Hronis were Del Mar champs – for the third time – for owners at the 2017 Del Mar summer meet which ended Monday.

During the 36-day session, the pair from Delano, CA, visited the winner’s circle on seven different occasions – most among any of the owners at the stand – and also rung up $854,055 in purses, also tops in that category.

The brothers had been the shore track’s leading owners in 2014 and 2013 and had been in the top five in both 2016 and 2015.

Their “big” horse during the 2017 session was their champion mare Stellar Wind, who captured this year’s running of the Grade I Clement L. Hirsh for the second year in a row. The chestnut speedster now shows earnings of $2,233,200. She is trained by John Sadler, who trains all the Hronis horses.