Fighting Mad proves uncatchable in Clement Hirsch
DEL MAR, Calif. – Bob Baffert has built his career by training horses to utilize their best weapon, and Fighting Mad provided another front-running example Sunday at Del Mar.
Fighting Mad popped the gate in the Grade 1 Clement L. Hirsch Stakes, set the pace under Abel Cedillo, and never looked back to earn a Win and You’re In berth in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff on Nov. 7 at Keeneland.
“Her speed is her weapon,” Baffert said after Fighting Mad wired the 1 1/16-mile race for fillies and mares. “She basically ran them off their feet.”
Baffert has won 135 stakes at Del Mar; Fighting Mad was his first victory in the Hirsch with his ninth starter in the race.
Fighting Mad won by a half-length over Ollie’s Candy; Ce Ce finished third in a race with virtually no positional movement. Ollie’s Candy chased in second all the way, Ce Ce passed one horse and finished a distant third, followed by Hand a Star and Dogtag.
The biggest disappointment was Hard Not to Love, the quirky one-eyed filly who is often difficult to get to the starting gate. She finished last, and jockey Mike Smith sensed trouble in the post parade. Hard Not to Love sleepwalked to the gate and did not pick up her feet in the race.
“She was quiet, too quiet,” Smith said, referring to her pre-race behavior. “But what am I going to do? I can’t get her on her toes. Everything’s an experiment with her, every time.”
:: DRF's Del Mar headquarters – Stakes schedule, previews, recaps, past performances, and more
Not so for Fighting Mad, whose win was her third graded stakes victory and validated her upset victory in the Grade 2 Santa Maria on May 31 at Santa Anita. But in the paddock before the Hirsch, Baffert was concerned.
“I was a little bit worried because she was getting pretty warm in the paddock,” he said. “The way she acted in the paddock, she ran an incredible race. She was trembling and sweating, and I was worried, but once the race started, she was pretty serious.”
Cedillo, now 2 for 2 on Fighting Mad, said the strategy was simple. He said Baffert told him to “get her out of there and see if you can get to the front.” No problem.
Fighting Mad broke like a shot, set the pace while posting fractions of 46.55 seconds and 1:10.57, and wired the field in 1:43.46. She paid $5.60 as the favorite.
Gary and Mary West own and bred Fighting Mad, a 4-year-old filly by New Year’s Day whose influence on the Distaff division is clear. She runs on the lead and dares to be caught.
The win by Fighting Mad was the second straight winning weekend for the Wests, Baffert, and Cedillo. They teamed July 25 to win the San Diego with Maximum Security.
“Life is good,” Gary West said Sunday. “And we all know quickly that can change.”