Miller trio ‘has them surrounded' in Graduation Stakes

DEL MAR, Calif. – Trainer Peter Miller likes his position in the $100,000 Graduation Stakes for California-bred 2-year-olds Friday at Del Mar. He trains three of the nine entrants.

“We’ve got a good group,” Miller said. “As Charlie [Whittingham] used to say, ‘we’ve got them surrounded.’ ”

Miller’s trio is led by stakes-placed R Heisman and speedy debut winner Case Hit. His third runner is the first-time gelding Last Call Zondlo. R Heisman is a potential favorite in the Graduation, a race that favorites have won seven of the last 10 years. But Miller noted, “It’s a salty little race.”

The field includes Bodacious, a flashy debut winner for trainer Jorge Periban before he was foiled second out in a stakes against open company at Churchill Downs. I’m a Bad Boy is a fast two-start maiden, whose trainer Luis Mendez has won three of the last five runnings of the Graduation.

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Others include stakes-placed Timty, maiden winner Infamous Angel, and maidens Nap and The Gypsy Cowboy. To win the 5 1/2-furlong Graduation, they all have to beat Miller.

R Heisman, initially trained by Mendez, has a score to settle with Bodacious. He defeated R Heisman by five lengths May 3 at Santa Anita in the season’s first 2-year-old race in Southern California. The margin is misleading due to R Heisman’s brutal trip. Days later, he was sold privately to owner Gary Barber and transferred to Miller.

Both of R Heisman’s starts since have been outstanding – a maiden win by nearly five lengths and a runner-up finish July 7 in the Everett Nevin Stakes at Pleasanton. “The race up north, he checked pretty good about 100 yards out,” Miller noted.

The incident may have cost R Heisman the victory. He missed by one length, and finished more than nine clear of third. Since then, R Heisman has worked well over the Del Mar racetrack. Meet-leading rider Juan Hernandez is back aboard.

Case Hit won his only start June 16 at Santa Anita, where he smoked the opening quarter-mile of a five-furlong race in 21.75 and won by 1 3/4 lengths. Case Hit paid $16.40, but the win did not surprise Miller.

“He was training very well,” Miller said. “The works weren’t fast, it was the way he was doing it.” The colt’s half-mile gate work Aug. 4 was similar. He went in only 49.60, but was under a hold throughout, and will use his speed Friday under Reylu Gutierrez. The challenge for Case Hit is coping with pace rivals Bodacious and I’m a Bad Boy.

“Case Hit’s very fast, he’s very quick, he’ll be on the lead or close to it,” Miller said. “And then R Heisman and ‘Zondlo’ I think can rate.”

Last Call Zondlo, a modest maiden winner June 23 at Los Alamitos, is the least preferred of Miller’s trio. He may improve Friday as a first-time gelding.

“He was messing around quite a bit, so we cut him after the race,” Miller said. “He has settled down and is more focused,” Miller said. Diego Herrera rides Last Call Zondlo.

With 47 stakes wins at Del Mar, Miller is seventh all time. His 0-for-10 record in the Graduation (three seconds, two thirds) is likely to be remedied Friday. After all, Miller has them surrounded.

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