Mandella confident Beholder belongs in Pacific Classic
DEL MAR, Calif. – Trainer Richard Mandella got into the Hall of Fame back in 2001, and he has spent the years since reminding everybody of why he got there in the first place. There has been no decline in his ability, no diminution in his passion to excel, and every decision he makes is done with plenty of forethought.
Which brings us to the matter of Mandella running the mare Beholder, a two-time Eclipse Award winner, against males for the first time in her 19th start in the Grade 1, $1 million Pacific Classic on Saturday at Del Mar. Mandella publicly announced this race as a goal for Beholder on Aug. 1 after she crushed females in the Grade 1 Clement L. Hirsch, but it’s a plan he had in the back of his mind preceding that race.
He has seen nothing in the three weeks since to dissuade him from the belief that Beholder belongs in this race, her first at 1 1/4 miles. She has trained as well as ever, with effortless workouts similar to how she came into the Breeders’ Cup Distaff in 2013. Sure, it’s a gamble, as four females have tried and failed to win the Pacific Classic, none even finishing in the money. But the West Coast older male division is not nearly as robust as what lined up for the Whitney at Saratoga two weeks ago, so ...
“It’s interesting to try something different,” Mandella said. “We do the same thing over and over most of the time. I do believe in the saying that you should keep yourself in the best of company and your horses in the worst, but sometimes you have to try something exciting, and this is exciting.”
To be sure, the presence of Beholder has made this race far more interesting than it would have been otherwise. Catch a Flight – also trained by Mandella – and Hard Aces have traded decisions in recent starts, and Bayern has yet to return to his 2014 form. But these horses are certainly a cut above what Beholder has faced in her three starts this year.
“I’ll have a broken heart if she doesn’t do well, but it’ll just be the reoccurrence of an old injury,” Mandella said. “It wouldn’t be the first time. She’s controlled her races. I’ve put the pedal to the metal for this. I think we’re good enough. We’ll find out.”
As a mare facing males, Beholder gets a five-pound weight break, so she carries 119 pounds. The other nine horses in the race carry 124.
The Pacific Classic offers a fees-paid berth to the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Oct. 31 at Keeneland through the Win and You’re In program. It is the ninth race on an 11-race card that begins at 2:05 p.m. Pacific. There are two other stakes on the card, both Grade 2, $250,000 races – the Pat O’Brien, featuring sprinters Wild Dude and Kobe’s Back, and the Del Mar Handicap, for long-distance grass runners like Finnegans Wake and Ashleyluvssugar.
Pacific Classic, Race 9
KEY CONTENDERS
Beholder (Last 3 Beyers: 97-98-98)
◗ She should sit a good trip behind Bayern and Midnight Storm, both of whom figure to set off for the lead.
Catch a Flight (Last 3 Beyers: 102-97-106)
◗ Although he failed in his two prior tries this year going 1 1/4 miles, he owns a win over this track in the San Diego and has won three of his last four starts.
Hard Aces (Last 3 Beyers: 99-99-88)
◗ He skipped the San Diego by design, so this will be his first start since nosing out Hoppertunity, with Catch a Flight third, in the Gold Cup at Santa Anita, a race in which a scalding early pace helped set up his late run.
Bayern (Last 3 Beyers: 100-57-74)
◗ He has lost all three of his starts since the Breeders’ Cup Classic, and though his third in the San Diego was a forward step, it’s troubling that he couldn’t shake off Appealing Tale, who is best sprinting.
◗ Rafael Bejarano tries his luck for the first time, and trainer Bob Baffert said Bayern will be let roll. “He needs to go fast,” Baffert said.
Red Vine (Last 3 Beyers: 105-106-98)
◗ He has won three of four since moving to dirt, his lone loss when facing Monmouth specialist Bradester at a distance short of optimum. He should relish 1 1/4 miles and looms a major player and perhaps the best gamble in the race.