Breeders' Cup: D'Amato's runners net $1 million in purses

DEL MAR, Calif. – There were no Breeders’ Cup trophies for trainer Phil D’Amato at Del Mar last weekend, only a haul of $1 million in earnings. From eight starters, the best D’Amato’s team could do was finish second in three races.

D’Amato, a perennial leading trainer in Southern California, watched Vodka With a Twist (Juvenile Fillies), Iron Man Cal (Juvenile Turf), and Motorious (Turf Sprint) finish second. Gold Phoenix was fourth in the Turf for the second consecutive year.

Che Evasora (Distaff), One Magic Philly (Filly and Mare Sprint), Thought Process (Juvenile Fillies Turf), and Hang the Moon (Filly and Mare Turf) finished sixth or worse.

In his career, D’Amato has had 40 Breeders’ Cup starters, with Obviously in the 2016 Turf Sprint his lone winner. Despite the lack of a victory on Friday or Saturday, D’Amato sought a positive spin on the results, hopeful that some of the runners will be prominent in coming months.

“Overall, I was excited,” he said. “Most of them ran really good races in defeat and proved they can compete at the Grade 1 level. I was excited and optimistic for the future for many of the horses.”

Understandably, there is a buzz surrounding Vodka With a Twist, who was 4 1/2 lengths behind the convincing winner, and 2-1 favorite, Immersive. Vodka With a Twist started at 1 1/16 miles for the first time in the Juvenile Fillies. She was second by a nose in the Grade 1 Del Mar Debutante at seven furlongs on Sept. 7 in her preceding start.

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“Vodka showed she can be a force against top-quality fillies around two turns,” D’Amato said. “She’ll be a nice 3-year-old filly for us next year.”

Vodka With a Twist, who earned $340,000 for finishing second, will be considered for the Grade 2 Starlet Stakes at Los Alamitos on Dec. 7.

Iron Man Cal was a surprise second at 29-1, finishing a neck behind 7-2 favorite Henri Matisse, who rallied from off the pace. Iron Man Cal has won 2 of 4 starts while racing only on turf, but may be tried on dirt in coming months to test how the colt handles the surface.

“We’ll give him a break with most, if not all, of my Breeders’ Cup horses,” D’Amato said. “Most will have 30 days and we’ll bring them back in and revisit those questions.”

Iron Man Cal is by Collected, who was a multiple stakes winner on dirt. Collected won the Grade 1 Pacific Classic at 1 1/4 miles on dirt at Del Mar in 2017 and was second on the same track in the BC Classic later that year.

Motorious, a 12-1 outsider, closed from 10th to finish second by a neck to 33-1 Starlust, who was also at the back of the field early. For the second-place finish, Motorious earned $170,000.

“Motorious ran too good to lose, he said. “We’ll give him time off. We’ll try to win the Breeders’ Cup next year.”

The 2025 Breeders’ Cup will be run at Del Mar on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.

One Magic Philly was beaten 2 3/4 lengths by Soul of an Angel in the Filly and Mare Sprint. D’Amato said the Grade 1 La Brea Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at seven furlongs at Santa Anita on Dec. 26 is a ace goal for One Magic Philly.

Gold Phoenix, fourth in the BC Turf, could return in the Grade 2 Hollywood Turf Cup, a $200,000 race at 1 1/2 miles on Nov. 29. His fourth-place finish on Saturday was worth $250,000.

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