Sunday maiden winners target Best Pal at Del Mar
CYPRESS, Calif. – The Grade 3 Best Pal Stakes at Del Mar on Aug. 14 may have gained three runners after maiden race wins at Los Alamitos on Sunday by Man Child and President Z and Wizard of Westwood, who finished in a dead heat.
Man Child, a first-time starter trained by Ryan Hanson, led throughout a five-furlong maiden special weight to win by a half-length over Abeliefinthislivin, finishing in 58.17. Ridden by Ramon Vasquez, Man Child earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 62.
Hanson was left impressed by the way Man Child fought off two challengers in the final furlong.
“He was forward and aggressive,” he said. “He didn’t waver. He kind of got surrounded and he stayed right there.”
Purchased for $45,000 at the 2021 Keeneland September yearling sale, Man Child is a colt by Creative Cause who races for California Racing Partners, Joe Ciaglia, Richard Pearson, and Hanson’s wife, Michelle.
“We’re cautiously optimistic about his future,” Hanson said.
President Z, a colt by Kantharos, and Wizard of Westwood, a colt by the Scat Daddy stallion Tu Brutus, were three lengths clear of third-place finisher Odonata. The winners were timed in 57.93 seconds, and earned Beyer Speed Figures of 66.
President Z was sixth of eight in a maiden special weight race at five furlongs on turf at Santa Anita on June 10 and had his second start on Sunday.
The colt was purchased for $45,000 at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co. auction of 2-year-olds in training earlier this year and races for Equilete Stable.
“I didn’t pay a lot for him, and it looks like a value now,” trainer Eoin Harty said.
Wizard of Westwood races for Andrew and Rania Warren and was bought for $20,000 at the Keeneland September yearling sale.
Wizard of Westwood was overdue for a start. Trainer Michael McCarthy said he wanted to run him in a race at Santa Anita last month, but it did not draw sufficient entries.
“The original plan was a mile maiden on turf at Santa Anita,” McCarthy said. “This was the next-best option. He’ll appreciate going a bit further.”
The $200,000 Best Pal Stakes at six furlongs is the first of two graded stakes for 2-year-old males at Del Mar, followed by the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity at seven furlongs on Sept. 11.