Prat sweeps Del Mar's Sorrento Stakes, La Jolla Handicap

Kaleem Shah’s Bellafina, an $800,000 purchase last March, completed a sweep of Del Mar’s Sunday stakes doubleheader for jockey Flavien Prat as she led from wire-to-wire to win the Grade 2, $200,000 Sorrento Stakes for 2-year-old fillies. Earlier in the program, Prat won the Grade 3, $150,000 La Jolla Handicap for 3-year-olds.

Bellafina, a daughter of Quality Road bought out of the Fasig-Tipton two-year-olds in training auction in Florida, stepped to the front out of the gate and never appeared threatened as she breezed to the wire four and one-quarter lengths on top. The filly was upset at 1-2 odds in her debut July 4 at Los Alamitos, finishing second. Trainer Simon Callaghan equipped his filly with blinkers for the Sorrento Stakes. Final time for the six furlongs was 1:10.61.

Del Mar May, like Bellafina a maiden in the Sorrento Stakes, went postward the favorite at 5-2 and ran second in a game outing, nosing out Boujie Girl, with Dragic another length back in fourth in the field of ten fillies.

Bellafina, second choice in the betting at 3-1, returned $8.40, $4.40 and $3.40 while earning first money of $120,000. Del Mar May, second to the talented Brill in her only race on opening day, July 18, paid $4 and $3.40, while Boujie Girl returned $5.60 to show.

In the La Jolla Handicap earlier on the program, Irish-bred River Boyne, the odds-on favorite under Prat, came through as expected with a decisive victory. Rallying in the stretch, River Boyne scored by a comfortable length and one-quarter over the fast-closing Arawak, with early pacemaker Calexman third and Inscom fourth in the field of six three-year-olds.

Restrainedvengence, winner of the Oceanside Stakes, was fifth in front of last-place Move Over.

River Boyne, a son of Dandy Man, is owned by Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal and trained by Jeff Mullins. The victory was the colt’s fifth in ten starts and first prize of $90,000 increased his earnings to $361,718.

The winner, sent off at 1-2, paid $3, $2.40 and $2.10. Arawak, a 10-1 outsider in the mutuels, returned $5 and $3.40, while Calexman paid $2.80 to show.