Shirreffs sticking to same pattern with Del Mar Handicap upsetter Astronaut

ARCADIA, Calif. - Astronaut, the lightly raced Shirreffs trainee who earned a fees-paid berth to the BC Turf by winning the Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap on Aug. 21 at Del Mar, will train into the Breeders’ Cup rather than shorten to a mile and one-quarter in the Grade 2 John Henry Turf Championship on Oct. 2 at Santa Anita.

“If it was a mile and a half, I might consider it,” Shirreffs said. “A horse has to be a little speedier at a mile and one-quarter, and that’s not his thing. And the timing of running here at Santa Anita, and then back in the Breeders’ Cup, might be a little much.”

Astronaut emerged from anonymity this season. He won a maiden race in his fifth career start in March, followed by runner-up finishes in a pair of entry-level allowance races and the Grade 3 San Juan Capistrano in June. His 24-1 upset in the Del Mar Handicap was his first start in two months. He will enter the BC Turf off a similar layoff.

South American Blue Stripe targeting BC Distaff

Blue Stripe, who earned a fees-paid berth to the Breeders’ Cup Distaff by winning a Group 1 on May 1 in Argentina, will make her first start in more than six months when she runs Nov. 6 in the Distaff.

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Blue Stripe won the Gran Premio Criadores at Palermo Racecourse, and shipped to North America in late May. Trained in South America by Nicolas Ferro, Blue Stripe is a sibling to 2019 BC Distaff winner Blue Prize. Blue Stripe, stabled in California with trainer Marcelo Polanco since spring, has won four of six starts.