Philip D’Amato won’t run in Pacific Classic, but can still make history

DEL MAR – Philip D’Amato does not have a horse in Saturday’s Pacific Classic.

But the trainer has multiple entries in three of the four supporting stakes races and a total of five stakes through Monday’s Labor Day card – including at least three morning-line favorites.

D’Amato also has a shot at making history if Gold Phoenix becomes the first horse in Del Mar history to win the same race four straight years if he carries Flavien Prat to victory in the Grade II Del Mar Handicap – a 1 3/8-mile turf marathon.

D’Amato will have multiple entries in both of Saturday’s $300,000 Grade II stakes.

Balnikhov (Antonio Fresu) and City Exile (Paco Lopez) join Gold Phoenix from the D’Amato stable in field of 11 older horses running in the Del Mar Handicap, which has been designated a win-and-you’re-in race for the Breeders’ Cup Turf.

D’Amato’s Almenmdares (Fresu) and King of Gosford (Prat) will be among the six horses challenging Formidable Man (Umberto Rispoli) in the Del Mar Mile on the turf. Trainer Jogn Sadler announced Friday Full Serrano would scratch from the Del Mar Mile to run in a Monday allowance on the dirt.

Formidable Man is seeking a fourth straight Del Mar win after capturing the Grade II Eddie Read Stakes earlier this meeting and the Grade I Hollywood Derby and Grade II Del Mar Derby last year. On Monday, Full Serrano will be making his first start since winning the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Del Mar last Nov. 2. The 6-year-old also placed second in the 2024 Pacific Classic.

D’Amato’s other morning-line favorite today is Motorious in the five-furlong, Grade III Green Flash Sprint. Motorious (Fresu) is seeking a third straight win in the Green Flash and is the early 5-2 favorite in the field of 11.

The other Grade III stakes is the Torrey Pines, a one-mile run on the dirt for 3-year-old fillies. The 7-horse field is led by Tenma (Hernandez). The Bob Baffert-trained daughter of Nyquist has won five of seven career starts, including the Grade I Del Mar Debutante last year. Tenma will be making her first start since running fourth in the Grade I Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs on May 2.

D’Amato has three of the six entrants, led by narrow morning-line favorite Iron Man Cal (Fresu) in Sunday’s Grade II Del Mar Derby, a 1 1/8-mile turf test for 3-year-olds. D’Amato’s other horses in the race are second-favorite The Padre (Rispoli) and Mythical Reel (Armando Ayuso).

Notable

Fresu won both ends of the early daily double Friday with Corporal Violette ($13) in the first and longshot Magic Connection ($45.80) in the second. It marked the third time this meeting that one jockey has won both ends of the daily double. Fresu has done it twice.

• Fresu added a third win with Third Beer ($6.40) in the fifth to reduce Hernandez’s lead in the jockey standings to four. Hernandez had two wins with Hard to Figure ($4.20 in the fourth) and El Diablo Rojo ($18.40) in the sixth.

• Fourteen of Hernandez’s 34 wins this meeting have come aboard horses trained by Bob Baffert, who leads the trainers with 17 wins. Eight of the 14 Hernandez-Baffert wins have come with 2-year-olds.