Del Mar notes: Sunday maiden race filled with potential
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DEL MAR, Calif. - Bardstown, a ridgling by Stormy Atlantic who had two quick workouts in early August, makes his career debut in what could be a productive maiden special weight for 2-year-olds in Sunday’s sixth race.
Trained by Bob Hess Jr., Bardstown may go favored. He was purchased for $400,000 at the Keeneland April sale of 2-year-olds in training.
“He’s a good horse,” Hess said on Friday. “He likes this surface.
“It’s not our Derby, but we expect him to run well. He’s very fit and he’s good out of the gate.”
[PACIFIC CLASSIC: Get PPs, watch Sunday's Del Mar card live]
Hess said he was encouraged when Bardstown worked five furlongs in 1:00.60 on Aug. 6 and six furlongs from the gate in 1:12 on Aug. 16. Both works were the fastest of the morning.
The maiden race, run as the sixth on an 11-race program, will have a full field of 10. Also in the field are the Giant’s Causeway colts Primal Instinct, a $300,000 yearling purchase trained by Bob Baffert, and Van Fraasen, a $300,000 2-year-old purchase trained by Doug O’Neill.
Baffert expects a strong race from Primal Instinct.
“He’s bred to go long, but he has some speed,” he said. “I think he should run well.”
John Sadler starts Kristo, a Distorted Humor colt bought for $500,000 as a yearling. Earlier on the program, Sadler starts Antiquity in a maiden special weight race over six furlongs for 2-year-old fillies. Antiquity races for CRK Stables and was purchased for $450,000 as a yearling at Keeneland last September.
“Both maidens that we run on Sunday are very good,” he said. “The colt’s race is supposed to be super strong.”
Apprentice Orozco gets three days
Apprentice jockey Irving Orozco has been suspended three days for causing interference in Wednesday’s fourth race.
Orozco rode Trelawny, who finished first in a one-mile turf race for $32,000 claimers but was disqualified and placed fourth for failing to maintain a straight course. The suspension runs from Wednesday through Friday.
Through Thursday, Orozco had 8 wins from 97 mounts at this meeting.
◗ First post time for Sunday’s program is 1:05 p.m.