2023 Rancho Bernardo Handicap Preview | Eda The One To Catch, Beat At Del Mar Sunday

The fast filly Eda gets an ideal distance on a track she likes and only six rivals Sunday in the 52nd edition of the Rancho Bernardo Handicap at Del Mar.

You’ve got to beat her first if you want honors and the big money in this $125,000 Grade III feature that goes as Race 9 on the 10-race card.

Eda, who is conditioned by Bob Baffert and will be ridden Sunday by Juan Hernandez, is owned by the Baoma Corp, which is the nom du course of Charles Chu of North Andover, MA. She’s been to the post nine times so far and come away a winner in seven of them, including her last six straight.

Though sprinting has proven to be her best game, the 4-year-old daughter of the fast horse Munnings has twice stretched out to a mile and one-sixteenth and come away a winner, including the Grade I Starlet Stakes at Los Alamitos in December of 2021. She’s run and won sprinting twice this year, most recently in the Great Lady M Stakes at Los Al on July 4.

Lady T, a 4-year-old daughter of Into Mischief, came back running July 27 at Del Mar under Smith in her first start in nearly six months. She bested an allowance field sprinting and has trained well since for conditioner John Shirreffs.  

Kirstenbosch comes out of a two-turn try against Grade I company in the Clement L. Hirsch at Del Mar on August 5. The 4-year-old by sprint champ Midnight Lute is trained by John Sadler, who has won the Rancho Bernardo seven times, including the last two runnings with the now-retired Edgeway.

Here’s the full field for the filly/mare dash from the rail out with riders and morning line odds:

1. Keith Abrahams’ Kirstenbosch (Hector Berrios, 4-1)
2. Pegram, Watson and Weitman’s Home Cooking (Joe Bravo, 6-1)
3. The Estate of Jerome S. Moss or Tina Moss’ Lady T (Mike Smith, 4-1)
4. Glen Hill Farm’s Muted (Drayden Van Dyke, 5-1)
5. Cerin or Cady, et al’s Princess Adaleigh (Ramon Vazquez, 8-1)
6. Les Blake’s Violent Runner (Mario Gutierrez, 10-1)
7. Baoma Corp’s Eda (Juan Hernandez, 8/5)

First post for the Sunday program is at 2 p.m.