Lewis heads to Del Mar in quest for career win No. 1,000

A quintet of 3-year-olds, including two stakes winners, are the core of a stable that could give trainer Craig Lewis a career milestone at the Del Mar summer meeting that begins Friday.

Through Sunday, Lewis had 994 career wins, a figure that could need revision as soon as Friday when Margot’s Boy starts in the $100,000 Runhappy Oceanside Stakes for 3-year-olds at a mile on turf.

Lewis will have a 25-horse barn at Del Mar this summer, hoping to improve on a 2019 season in which he had four wins from 24 runners.

“Last summer was nice for us,” Lewis said.

To reach 1,000 wins, Lewis, 73, will need a Del Mar meeting similar to what his stable had at the beginning of this century, when he had seven wins in 2001 and eight in 2002.

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The group headed to Del Mar may be good enough to propel Lewis to the milestone.

Aside from Margot’s Boy, the multiple stakes winner Warren’s Showtime, the 2019 stakes winner Club Aspen, the improving Brickyard Ride, and the maiden El Diablo Rojo have excellent chances for wins in coming weeks. All are California-breds by the promising young stallion Clubhouse Ride, who Lewis trained.

Warren’s Showtime, a filly with 5 wins in 10 starts for owners and breeders Ben and Sally Warren, worked a half-mile in 49.60 seconds on Sunday at Santa Anita.

Warren’s Showtime, who won her fourth stakes in the Melair Stakes for statebred 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/16 miles on June 21 at Santa Anita, is candidate for the $125,000 Fleet Treat Stakes for statebred 3-year-old fillies at seven furlongs on July 24, or the Grade 2 San Clemente Stakes at a mile on turf the following day, Lewis said Sunday.

Brickyard Ride, who has won his last two starts in allowance races with claiming options, worked a half-mile in 47.40 on Sunday at Santa Anita for a potential start in the $100,000 Real Good Deal Stakes for statebred 3-year-olds at seven furlongs on July 31.

“I’m not sure where I’ll go with him,” he said.

Lewis said he is looking at other races for Brickyard Ride since Club Aspen also is a candidate for the Real Good Deal. Club Aspen won the King Glorious Stakes at Los Alamitos last December.

Margot’s Boy worked a half-mile in 47.80 on Sunday at Santa Anita. He was third in the Snow Chief Stakes for statebred 3-year-olds at 1 1/8 miles on turf on June 20 at Santa Anita.

While those horses are accomplished, there are high expectations for El Diablo Rojo, a gelding who is winless in six starts. El Diablo Rojo finished a troubled fifth in a maiden race June 20 at Santa Anita. He was bothered at the start and was later promoted to fourth when a rival was disqualified.

“He looks like he’s starting to come around,” Lewis said.

Lewis, who is best known as the trainer of Larry the Legend, winner of the 1995 Santa Anita Derby, has won nine stakes at Del Mar, including the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity with Music Merci in 1988. The stable has not had a stakes win at Del Mar since 2002, although Warren’s Veneda, dam of Warren’s Showtime, was third in the Grade 1 Clement Hirsch Stakes in 2015.

The 2020 stable could end that drought.

“You never know what could happen, but I’m hopeful,” Lewis said.