Del Mar notes: Eden's Moon, Lady of Shamrock to clash in Del Mar Oaks

DEL MAR, Calif. – Eden’s Moon, winner of the San Clemente Handicap here earlier in the meet, and Lady of Shamrock, who captured the American Oaks at Betfair Hollywood Park in her last start, are set for a showdown on Saturday in the Grade 1, $300,000 Del Mar Oaks, the championship race of the meet for 3-year-old fillies and the highlight of the weekend’s stakes action at Del Mar.

Eden’s Moon was racing on turf for the first time in the San Clemente, and she ran back to a brilliant drill she had over the surface just days earlier. But she will have to stretch her speed an extra furlong in the 1 1/8-mile Oaks and hold off Lady of Shamrock, who has won three of her last four starts and is a nose away from having a four-race winning streak.

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Others expected for the Oaks include Indigo River, Long Face, Mary Fildes, My Gi Gi, Open Water, and Stormy Lucy. Best Present Ever is possible, but she could instead go on Sunday in the $100,000 Solana Beach Handicap, which is against older females but is restricted to California-breds.

Home Sweet Aspen high weighted

Home Sweet Aspen, off since an eighth-place finish in the Vinery Madison at Keeneland in April, has been assigned top weight of 120 pounds for the Grade 3, $150,000 Rancho Bernardo Handicap at 6 1/2 furlongs for older female sprinters on Sunday.

Rumor, winner of the California Equine Retirement Foundation Stakes here last summer, is next at 119 pounds, followed at 118 by Sugarinthemorning, who finished second in the A Gleam at Hollywood Park last month.

The Rancho Bernardo field is also expected to include American Lady, Glamorista, Moonstruck Maya, and perhaps the unbeaten Winding Way, who crushed a first-level allowance field here July 21 in her second start.

Smart and Single to stretch out

Smart and Single, who ran her record to 2 for 2 when easily defeating allowance runners going six furlongs on Saturday, will be sent long when she makes her next start, according to trainer Bob Baffert.

“I want to stretch her out,” Baffert said. “She wants two turns.”

Smart and Single, 3, is a daughter of Smart Strike whom owner Kaleem Shah acquired at auction for $400,000 as a yearling at Saratoga in August 2010.

“She ran like we thought she would,” Baffert said. “Kaleem had a smile so big, I didn’t know he had that many teeth. That was good for him after that uppercut he got from Take Control.”

Take Control, 5, the regally bred son of two Horses of the Year, A.P. Indy and Azeri, was taken out of consideration last weekend for the Aug. 26 Pacific Classic and will be given 60 days of rest.

◗ Corey Nakatani is scheduled to travel to Saratoga on Saturday to ride Via Villaggio in the Alabama Stakes for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer.

◗ Champion Japanese jockey Yuichi Fukunaga is heading to his native country for racing this weekend, but will be back after that to ride the rest of the summer at Del Mar, agent Brian Beach reports.