Ashleyluvssugar eyes repeat win in Del Mar Handicap
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ARCADIA, Calif. – Ashleyluvssugar will have a familiar race schedule this year after winning the sixth stakes of his career in Sunday’s Grade 2 Charles Whittingham Stakes at Santa Anita. Trainer Peter Eurton hopes to run Ashleyluvssugar in the Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap at 1 3/8 miles on turf Aug. 19, a race the gelding won in 2016.
The stakes are much higher than the first-place purse of $150,000. The winner receives a fees-paid berth in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Del Mar on Nov. 4. Last year, Ashleyluvssugar was fifth in the BC Turf at Santa Anita, the best finish among the California-based runners.
The desire to run in the BC Turf puts more emphasis on the outcome of the Del Mar Handicap. Entry and starting fees for the BC Turf are $100,000.
“We have to win it to think about going,” Eurton said. “Running in the Breeders’ Cup is kind of crazy. They’re not going to spend to run in it.”
Eurton said there is a chance Ashleyluvssugar could run earlier in the summer, perhaps in the Grade 2 Eddie Read Stakes at 1 1/8 miles on turf at Del Mar on July 22, even though the distance is shorter than preferred.
“We want to run him sparingly,” Eurton said. “It’s a shorter race, but he’ll try his buns off. We’ll have to play it by ear.”
Owned by Sharon Alesia, Bran Jam Stable, and Joe Ciaglia, Ashleyluvssugar, 6, has won 10 of 22 starts and earned $1,289,004.
Sunday’s race was Ashleyluvssugar’s second win in the Whittingham. The California-bred gelding prevailed in 2015 as a 1-2 favorite when the race was run at 1 1/2 miles on turf.
