Royal Delta Sails Through Personal Ensign Breeze

Partially shrouded by fog, two-time champion mare Royal Delta sailed through a half-mile work in 48.30 seconds over the Oklahoma training track on Monday for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. It was the third-quickest workout at the distance on Monday.

A five-time Grade 1 winner and earner of more than $4.2 million, Royal Delta had fired five consecutive bullet works, three of them at Belmont Park and the last two at Saratoga.

"She was doing pretty darn good at Belmont," Mott said. "Is she doing better? She was doing great then. She's [still] doing very well."

Royal Delta had lost back-to-back starts for only the second time in her 19-race career before bouncing back with a 10 ¾-length romp in the Grade 1 Delaware Handicap on July 20. She is being pointed to the Grade 1 Personal Ensign on Sunday.

"I'll tell you what I like about her here," Mott said. "We schooled her in the paddock yesterday, and she seemed pretty cool about it. She's an Empire Maker, and she can get a little keyed up when you start changing her routine around a little bit. But, she handled it real well."

Another Mott trainee, Flat Out, went five furlongs in 1:01.75 at Oklahoma on Monday, the fastest of eight horses at the distance, in preparation for the Grade 1, $750,000 Woodward on August 31.