Baffert's Desi Arnaz trio being given a chance to earn Starlet start

A shallow division gets help Saturday at Del Mar, where the Desi Arnaz Stakes may determine if any juvenile filly in California can warm up Princess Noor.

If so, she might be one of Princess Noor’s stablemates. Bob Baffert trains Princess Noor and three of the eight fillies in the $100,000 Desi Arnaz, a 6 1/2-furlong race to determine who faces Princess Noor in the Grade 1 Starlet at Los Alamitos next month.

Princess Noor, visually impressive winning her first three starts, all in California, sustained her first defeat in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, finishing fifth as the 1.90-1 favorite. Baffert did not offer a concrete alibi, nor has he lost faith in Princess Noor.

“We know she’s better than that, she just didn’t fire,” Baffert said this week. “She came out of it really well. We’ll run her in the Starlet.”

The mile and a sixteenth Starlet, Dec. 5 at Los Alamitos, will be easier for Princess Noor than the Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland. Perhaps she was simply outrun by rivals that were faster than the creampuffs she trounced in the Grade 1 Del Mar Debutante and Grade 2 Chandelier Stakes at Santa Anita.

“She had those easy races in California, but the Juvenile Fillies was a tough race,” Baffert said. “Those are really good fillies. She cut herself up in her hind legs a little bit. She’ll have enough time [to prepare] for the Starlet.”

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Princess Noor’s rivals will hinge on the Desi Arnaz, which Baffert said is a “setup for the Grade 1 Starlet.” His trio includes Private Mission, likely favorite off a stylish debut win, Grade 2-placed Varda, and maiden winner Heels Up. Their main rival is Astute, a Richard Mandella-trained speedster who won her debut in front-running fashion.

Baffert assessed his three entrants: “Varda’s more of a two-turn type, and High Heels, she has speed. They’re nice fillies, they’re developing. Private Mission, though, the way she won last time, I’d have to give her the edge.”

Private Mission made her debut Oct. 18 at Santa Anita, winning by nearly two lengths with a 76 Beyer. The figure was decent, not great, and continued the trend of lower figs that became evident in summer. This summer’s Del Mar meet was the first summer in which no juvenile filly earned a Beyer of at least 80. That covers nearly three decades; Beyer Figures were first published in the early 1990s.

In the Desi Arnaz, the challenge for Private Mission and jockey Drayden Van Dyke is to work out a trip from post 2. She won her debut pressing the pace in the clear, but circumstances change Saturday. She is drawn inside two fast rivals – Queengol in post 5, and Astute in post 7.

The post may or may not compromise Private Mission. “You can’t worry about that,” Baffert said, then poked fun at himself for worrying about that. “You know what? I was worried about Gamine being in post 2.” Gamine won the BC Filly and Mare Sprint despite her disadvantageous draw.

Private Mission’s chief rival has worlds of speed. Astute made her career debut in a turf sprint Oct. 12 at Santa Anita. She was not a secret. The Speightstown filly had dazzled in morning workouts on dirt, and started at 7-10 even though the race was on turf.

“She trained like she ran and like they bet her,” Mandella said, adding that running on turf was only due to scheduling. “The grass race came up, and I didn’t have any question that she’d turf. I didn’t want to take a chance on the [next] dirt race not going or something.”

Astute broke running, sped clear, and won by a neck under a confident ride from Mike Smith. The turf race was 5 1/2 furlongs, she stretches to six and a half on Saturday. “I don’t see it as a problem,” Mandella said.

The pace is intensified by Queengol, who won her debut pressing fast fractions, but was ridden with less urgency next out and finished second in the Anoakia Stakes. Jockey Juan Hernandez takes over Saturday and is likely to employ an aggressive strategy.

Queengol is trained by consistently reliable John Sadler, who hopes to snap out of an uncharacteristic autumn funk. Sadler entered the weekend 0 for 26 since Oct. 11.

A pace meltdown could benefit Plum Sexy, Canoodling, or Miss Costa Rica. Plum Sexy won her turf-sprint career debut rallying from next to last. Canoodling is a deep closer going turf to dirt. Miss Costa Rica cuts back to a sprint after she faded in the two-turn Chandelier Stakes.

The Desi Arnaz is race 8 on a nine-race Saturday card.