Del Mar to return Sunday with compelling stakes race

DEL MAR — Weather permitting, racing will resume at Del Mar on Sunday with an interesting rematch in the $100,000 Betty Grable Stakes for 2-year-old fillies.

There will be no racing Saturday, The track will be closed with heavy rain in the forecast. But the wet weather should clear in time for Sunday’s first post of 12:30 p.m.

The 7-furlong Grable feature, which was originally scheduled to be run Saturday, will go off as the eighth of nine races. The companion Bob Hope Stakes for 2-year-olds has been moved from Sunday to next Friday.

Himika, the Bob Baffert-trained daughter of Curlin, is the 3-5 morning-line favorite in the Betty Grable over two horses she defeated in the Oct. 19 Anoakia Stakes at Santa Anita.

Revera, the second choice at 2-1, finished second 4¼ lengths behind Himika in the Anoakia. Stuffy Mist, who is also entered in Sunday’s race, was third.

Himika, a $900,000 purchase last spring, has three wins in five career starts, including the six-furlong, Grade III Sorrento Stakes at Del Mar last Aug. 25. But in the seven-furlong Del Mar Debutante on Sept. 6, Himika finished fourth, 9¼ lengths behind winner Bottle of Rouge. Both her losses thus far have come in races longer than six furlongs.

Juan Hernandez, who has been aboard Himika for all three of her wins, will be back up.

Revera, who is trained by John Sadler, will be seeking her first stakes win in her fourth start under Antonio Fresu. Revera finished two lengths ahead of Stuffy Mist (Tyler Baze) in the Anoakia.

The third favorite at 8-1 is Heaven’s Bolt (Kazushi Kimura). The Richard Baltas-trained daughter of Bolt d’Oro won her debut at Del Mar on Aug. 30 but ran a distant sixth in the Grade II Oak Leaf Stakes at Santa Anita on Oct. 4.

Notable

Mirco Demuro won Friday’s second race aboard Cecilia Street ($6.40) to retain his lead in the jockey standings as the fall meet passed the halfway point. Demuro has nine wins to seven for Umberto Rispoli. Meanwhile, George Papaprodromou had one winner Friday — Ryan’s Girl ($7.60) in the third — to break a three-way tie with Doug O’Neill and Sadler and take the lead in the trainer standings with six wins.

• The only double winner Friday was jockey Armando Ayuso, who rode long shots Cameron Slough ($19.60) in the fifth and Dramaticattraction ($17) in the seventh.

• The main track was sealed after Friday’s final race. There will be no turf racing Sunday.