Arklow ships in to face hometown hero United in Del Mar Handicap
DEL MAR, Calif. – Arklow is trying to get to the Breeders’ Cup Turf for the fourth straight year. United is looking for his third straight berth. If either prevails Saturday in the Grade 2, $300,000 Del Mar Handicap, his path will be made easier. The Del Mar Handicap is a Win and You’re In for the Breeders’ Cup Turf, held over the same course Nov. 6.
The Del Mar Handicap is at 1 3/8 miles, a furlong shorter than the Breeders’ Cup Turf. It drew a field of 11, and as the last of 11 races makes for a compelling finale to both the card and a jackpot pick six sequence that has a mandatory payout.
The well-traveled 7-year-old Arklow, who has raced at 12 different tracks in his 33-race career, won his only start at Del Mar, which came last fall in the Grade 2 Hollywood Turf Cup at 1 1/2 miles. The Del Mar Handicap was not originally on his schedule, trainer Brad Cox said Thursday, but after an unsatisfying United Nations last month, it was decided this would be an ideal bridge to next month’s Kentucky Turf Cup at Kentucky Downs, in which Arklow owns two wins and a second in the last three editions.
“He never got to make a run last time,” Cox said of the United Nations, in which Arklow was sawed off heading to the far turn. He clipped heels, losing all chance.
“He had a couple of superficial scratches on his left front, but he went back to training a few days later, on a normal schedule, and he’s had three good works at Saratoga since then. If all goes well, he’ll head to Kentucky Downs next.”
Florent Geroux rides Arklow for the 19th time Saturday.
United, 6, is the best of the locals. Best known for giving a scare to Horse of the Year Bricks and Mortar in the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Turf, United comes off a sharp win here in the 1 1/8-mile Eddie Read, giving him three wins and two seconds on this course. He was upset as the odds-on favorite in this race last year.
The ceiling of both those veterans is known. An intriguing upset candidate is Masteroffoxhounds, a 4-year-old who has made just 12 starts. He was a good third behind United and Say the Word in March in the San Luis Rey at Santa Anita, and his form is dirtied up a bit owing to recent starts in Kentucky and New York against divisional leaders like Domestic Spending and Colonel Liam.
Say the Word, second in the San Luis Rey, returns to three turns after shortening up for his last two starts, including a seventh-place finish in the Eddie Read. A dawdling pace and the abbreviated distance of the Eddie Read were hurdles too high for him to scale.
Say the Word is one of three entrants for trainer Phil D’Amato, who also sends out defending race winner Red King and front-running Acclimate, the 2019 winner, in a bid for his fifth straight win in this race and seventh in the last eight runnings.
Red King is winless in six starts since beating United last year and seems off his career-best form. Acclimate is always a threat on the front end, though the course profile this summer has been against pacesetters on turf. Acclimate was purposely brought into this race fresh. He has not raced since capturing the Grade 3 San Juan Capistrano on June 19.
Award Winner, the Grade 2 Whittingham winner two starts back over Red King, Acclimate, and United, also should be forwardly placed.
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Astronaut, second in the Capistrano, has never finished worse than second in five starts since moving to trainer John Shirreffs.
Shirreffs said Astronaut is a hard horse to gauge because “he barely gallops.”
“He looks around at everything,” Shirreffs said. “He doesn’t put much into it.”
Master Piece, like Masteroffoxhounds, should appreciate getting away from the stalwarts of the East. A new arrival in Michael McCarthy’s barn, Master Piece was no factor in the Manhattan and United Nations in his last two starts, but he worked well over the local course Aug. 12 in his final tune-up.
McCarthy also sends out Crossfirehurricane, who needs more gas, gas, gas if he is to be a factor with these. The Irish import was last of six in the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile in his lone start in this country, though in fairness that distance is far short of optimum for him.
Media Blitz makes his stakes debut after winning a second-level allowance over this course on July 31, his second win in his last three starts.