Hoping for fresh start, Pavlovian faces statebreds in Real Good Deal
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DEL MAR, Calif. – Stakes winners are starting over Friday at Del Mar, none with more to prove than Pavlovian in the seven-furlong, $150,000 Real Good Deal Stakes for California-bred 3-year-olds on dirt.
Pavlovian returns from an early season campaign that began with top efforts at Sunland Park and Fair Grounds and ended with disappointing finishes at Churchill Downs. Friday at Del Mar, Pavlovian drops in class and takes on stakes winners who also face uncertainty.
Start the Ride is sprinting for the first time in his career, Ocean Bear is racing for the first time since last year, and Fionello will try to prove his April stakes upset was not a fluke. The Real Good Deal field also includes impressive debut winner Lit, 2-for-2 Courtside Action, turf colt He’s a Knockout, and King’s Ride.
Earlier this year, Pavlovian seemed overqualified for a statebred stakes. That is no longer the case. After he won the $500,000 Sunland Derby and ran second in the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds, Pavlovian finished last in the Kentucky Derby before getting crushed again, finishing next to last in the Grade 3 Matt Winn on June 7 at Churchill.
“That was weird. We loved him that day,” trainer Doug O’Neill said.
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Pavlovian set the pace and surrendered. O’Neill hopes Pavlovian rebounds Friday facing easier company and shortening to a sprint.
“I think going back to Cal-breds is the main focus,” O’Neill said. “This is a pretty battle-tested, fit horse, so we figured seven-eighths should be okay for him.”
Edwin Maldonado worked Pavlovian Sunday and rides him Friday. The colt is by the hot sire Pavel and running for a hot stable. O’Neill entered the week as the meet-leading trainer with nine wins from 34 starters.
Start the Ride won the California Cup Derby in January, defeating third-place Pavlovian by more than three lengths. They traveled separate paths afterward. Start the Ride was unplaced in graded stakes at Santa Anita, then improved versus lesser company. He finished second last out in the Los Alamitos Derby.
Trainer Dan Blacker acknowledged the distance issue facing Start the Ride, who has never sprinted.
“I think he’s probably better going two turns, so ideally he’s going to need a fast pace to run at,” Blacker said. “It looks like he might get that.”
Front-runners and pace-pressers in the Real Good Deal include Courtside Action, King’s Ride, Lit, and He’s a Knockout. The pace should be legitimate for Start the Ride and jockey Armando Ayuso.
Lit is the least-seasoned runner in the Real Good Deal, but he’s among the most appealing from a risk/odds perspective. His five-length debut victory at Los Alamitos earned a mere 73 Beyer, but he won the 5 1/2-furlong race geared down. The win was more impressive visually than the figure, and trainer Richard Baltas believes Lit will improve off the run.
“We loved him. We thought five and a half might be a little short,” Baltas said. “He did everything we wanted and then some. He doesn’t have a lot of seasoning, but he has really figured it out. He’s become professional. He’s not hard to train anymore. He’s getting better.”
Lit was ridden by Ayuso first time out. Hector Berrios worked him last weekend and will ride him Friday. Lit is an Ontario-bred, Cal-sired gelding by Straight Fire, and he would be worth backing Friday at 8-1 odds or higher.
Although two runaway wins by Courtside Action command attention, the Andy Mathis-trained speedster drew the rail Friday and will be under pressure. Courtside Action began his career in April at Santa Anita, where he was 13.40-1 in a maiden-claiming sprint for Cal-breds.
“We liked him going in, and then we kind of loved him after,” Mathis said.
Courtside Action won by more than five lengths.
“He started getting more competitive, his works got better. His race got better, too,” said Mathis.
Courtside Action followed his debut with a Cal-bred allowance win by more than four lengths, good for an 80 Beyer.
“The first time, he sat the trip and he [rallied from behind], and the second time, he won in front,” Mathis noted.
It will be up to jockey Ricky Gonzalez to orchestrate a trip. That will be tough to do from the inside post.
Ocean Bear is making his first start since he won the Golden State Juvenile at Del Mar on Oct. 31. George Papaprodromou trains the ridgling, who is trying to follow the pattern of the 2025 Real Good Deal winner. Speedy Wilson won the 2024 Golden State Juvenile, did not start for nine months, and won the Real Good Deal in his first start back.
Speedy Wilson, coincidentally, is entered Friday in an allowance, race 4, where he’ll face Grade 1-placed comebacker Hejazi, Simple Song, Captivator, and three others.
Real Good Deal entrant King’s Ride, runner-up to Start the Ride in an allowance race in May, is improving and cutting back from a mile to seven furlongs. Craig Lewis trains King’s Ride, a full brother to eight-time stakes winner Brickyard Ride. Juan Hernandez has the mount.
He’s a Knockout won his first two starts in turf sprints, then tired to fifth in a turf route stakes last out. He’s a Knockout returns Friday to a sprint, but his ability on dirt is unknown.
Real Good Deal favorites are 5 for 11 since Del Mar reinstalled dirt in 2015.
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