Next stop Breeders’ Cup for Iron Man Cal, Test Score

DEL MAR, Calif. – Iron Man Cal and Test Score earned fees-paid berths to Breeders’ Cup races on Oct. 31 at Keeneland with wins in Grade 2 stakes Saturday at Del Mar.

They will not race in the interim, their trainers said Sunday.

Iron Man Cal led throughout the $252,500 Pat O’Brien Stakes at seven furlongs, winning by a half-length over Moonlight. Iron Man Cal secured a berth to the BC Dirt Mile on Saturday.

“I think we’ll wait for the Breeders’ Cup and give it his best shot,” trainer Phil D’Amato said.

The BC Dirt Mile will be Iron Man Cal’s first start in a Grade 1 race on dirt. He was second by a neck at 29-1 in the Grade 1 BC Juvenile Turf at Del Mar in November 2024.

Iron Man Cal was third by three lengths to the now-retired Journalism in the Grade 2 San Diego Handicap at 1 1/16 miles on July 18 at Del Mar. D’Amato said Sunday that Iron Man Cal will need a sharper performance to be effective in what is typically a tough field in the BC Dirt Mile.

“I think anything at the Breeders’ Cup is going to be at the highest level,” D’Amato said. “He’ll have to improve. I like a horse coming into it off a win.”

Iron Man Cal ($18.40) finished a half-length in front of 5-1 Moonlight who had a wide trip.

Moonlight may return Sept. 26 in the Grade 1 Goodwood Stakes at 1 1/8 miles at Santa Anita or the Grade 3 Ack Ack Stakes at a mile at Churchill Downs, trainer Peter Miller said.

Big City Lights, the 7-2 favorite, closed from sixth to finish third, beaten a length.

“He was a little flat,” trainer Richard Mandella said. “It wasn’t his best race.”

The D’Amato-trained Stronghold finished fourth in the Pat O’Brien, 1 1/2 lengths behind Iron Man Cal. Stronghold, best known for winning the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby in 2024, raced on the inside for most of the race. Ridden by Antonio Fresu, Stronghold was as close to the front as second place with a furlong remaining.

“He doesn’t like the inside,” D’Amato said. Fresu “said he was intimidated the whole way. He ran okay.”

Stronghold will be considered for the $300,000 Goodwood Stakes. The winner of the Goodwood receives a fees-paid berth to the BC Classic at 1 1/4 miles.

:: Play to Win at Del Mar! Get DRF Past Performances, Expert Picks and Clocker Reports

Test Score won the fifth stakes of his career, and second of 2026, in the $303,000 Del Mar Handicap to secure a berth in the BC Turf at 1 1/2 miles.

The BC Turf, which annually draws a strong international field, will be Test Score’s first start at 1 1/2 miles. The Del Mar Handicap at 1 3/8 miles was his longest race.

Trainer Graham Motion said Sunday that he is confident Test Score can run 1 1/2 miles.

“He answered that question” Sunday, he said. “I had the dilemma of what was his best distance. I don’t know why he wouldn’t handle the mile and a half.”

Test Score closed from sixth of 11 to win the Del Mar Handicap as the 5-2 second choice. He will not race again until the BC Turf, Motion said.

“I would not” run back before the Breeders’ Cup, Motion said.

Aside from Atitlan, who won the Grade 2 Charles Whittingham Stakes at Santa Anita in 2025, Test Score beat Gold Phoenix, who had won the last four runnings of the Del Mar Handicap. Gold Phoenix, the 11-10 favorite Saturday, closed from 10th to finish fourth, beaten three-quarters of a length.

“He beat a couple of legit horses,” Motion said. “I wish the Breeders’ Cup was out there. I’d feel braver about it. He handles the turf.”

Test Score won the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational at Gulfstream Park in January and ended a three-race losing streak in the Del Mar Handicap.

The Del Mar Handicap was Motion’s eighth consecutive stakes win at a Del Mar summer meeting, a streak that began in 2022. This year, Motion has won three stakes at Del Mar, including the CTT-TOC Stakes with Vronti and the Grade 2 Yellow Ribbon Stakes with Warming.

Both are nominated to the Grade 2 John Mabee Stakes at 1 1/8 miles on turf on Sept. 7 at Del Mar but will not start there. Warming is under consideration for the Grade 2 Dance Smartly Stakes on Oct. 3 at Woodbine, while Vronti may start at Santa Anita in the Grade 2 Rodeo Drive Stakes the same day, Motion said.

:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.