Eres Tu to bring three-race win streak into Royal Delta Stakes

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – A 19-month layoff and a little change in scenery to a more quiet setting for her everyday training routine has turned Eres Tu into a win machine for trainer Arnaud Delacour. Delacour hopes Eres Tu can continue her winning ways when he brings her to Gulfstream Park for the first time for Saturday’s Grade 3 Royal Delta.

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Eres Tu, 5, was multiple stakes-placed early in her 3-year-old campaign before being sidelined for well over a year, ultimately joining Delacour’s stable last summer at the Fair Hill training facility in Maryland. She finally returned to action last Oct. 14, defeating entry-level allowance company in impressive fashion at Keeneland. She then captured a pair of stakes at Laurel to end her 2020 campaign, including the Grade 3 Allaire DuPont on Dec. 26.

“She’s a big filly, 17 hands, who just needed time to mature and, obviously, she did it very well,” Delacour said. “She came to me in great shape off the extended layoff and it was nice to have the allowance condition to start her off with, to bring her back gradually.”

Eres Tu shipped to Ocala, Fla., following her one-length victory over Wicked Awesome in the nine-furlong Dupont, and has had the bulk of her preparations for the Royal Delta at the Classic Mile training center.

“She’s used to training at Fair Hill with all the amenities they have there, and I wanted to keep her on the same kind of plan, at a place where she could train and be turned out every day,” said Delacour. “I entered her for the main track only in the stakes at Tampa Bay Downs last weekend, and when she didn’t get in, I breezed her there instead and she went very well. She has good momentum now.”

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The Royal Delta will be another gradual step up the class ladder for Eres Tu. Only 11 horses were nominated for the 1 1/16-mile fixture, including Eclipse Award winner Monomoy Girl, who is scheduled to start in the Bayakoa next Sunday at Oaklawn Park.

“One of the reasons we chose this spot is that we’re trying to ditch fillies like Monomoy Girl, at least for now,” said Delacour. “There’s always a concern running over that track for the first time. Gulfstream can be a little tricky. Some horses like it, some need a race over there, although our filly has handled the different tracks she’s run over very well up to this point.”

Entries for the Royal Delta will be drawn on Wednesday.