Desormeaux confident Dalmore can continue to improve
ARCADIA, Calif.- Trainer Keith Desormeaux had a quick summary of his 2016 season after he left the winner’s circle following Dalmore’s win in the $100,000 Affirmed Stakes at Santa Anita on Saturday.
“It’s been an amazing year,” Desormeaux said.
This year, Desormeaux has won two seven-figure races, and his first classic, with Exaggerator, who won the $1,000,690 Santa Anita Derby in April and the $1.5 million Preakness Stakes on May 21.
Dalmore’s victory in the Grade 3 Affirmed Stakes was miniscule in comparison, but had a meaning of its own. Dalmore has developed at a slower pace than Exaggerator but has a future that leaves Desormeaux optimistic the colt can accomplish more.
Dalmore won his first stakes in the Affirmed, beating Danzing Candy, who finished 15th in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 7. Dalmore, ridden by Keith’s brother, Kent, stalked the longshot Beaumarchais and Danzing Candy to the turn before taking the lead in the final furlong.
Dalmore ($9.20) won by a half-length over Danzing Candy, the 1-5 favorite.
The win left Desormeaux wishing the race was more valuable.
“That’s not enough money for that kind of performance,” he said.
Desormeaux’s stable has earned $2,627,859 through Saturday, and is well on its way to surpassing his personal best of $3,834,257 set in 2015.
The stable has chances for big prizes in coming days, with Decked Out pointed for the $1 million Belmont Oaks and Swipe considered a candidate for the $500,000 Dwyer Stakes. Both races are Saturday at Belmont Park.
Dalmore races for the partnership of Big Chief Racing, Rocker O Ranch, and Keith Desormeaux. By Colonel John, Dalmore has won 3 of 11 starts and earned $187,302. The colt was purchased for $47,000 at the 2014 Keeneland September yearling sale, and caught Desormeaux’s eye at the marathon sale.
“He’s very intelligent and handsome,” Desormeaux said. “He had good conformation through his front legs.”
Desormeaux bought four other stakes winners at the 2014 Keeneland yearling sale – Decked Out, Exaggerator, Right There, and Swipe.
Desormeaux did not have an immediate goal for Dalmore, but the $1.25 million Travers Stakes at Saratoga on Aug. 27 is a long-term possibility. Desormeaux will have a stable there this summer, run by his girlfriend, Julie Clark.
That could be key for Dalmore. He performs best when he races at the track where he is stabled. The Affirmed was Dalmore’s third consecutive win at Santa Anita. He was eighth in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct and fifth in the California Chrome Stakes at Los Alamitos in April. In both cases, Desormeaux said Dalmore did not ship well.