Del Mar Report #2

3 Stars of the Week

– 1st Star: Amazombie (CA) – Much like last week, this weeks first star was an easy choice.  Amazombie is one of the most classy and likable horses in training, and after Sunday’s performance he now has to be the favorite to repeat in the Breeders Cup Sprint.  The Factor and Comma to the Top set it up for him by providing a hot pace, and Amazombie and Mike Smith wasted little time when flying right by them all like they were standing still.  The win was Amazombie’s twelfth overall, with three of them being Grade 1 victories.  Look for one or two more races before he rounds out the year at Santa Anita in the Breeders Cup.

– 2nd Star: Rail Trip (KY) – Talk about a feel good story!  Sure Rail Trip’s final time in the San Diego Handicap wasn’t all that fast, but WHO CARES?  Seeing this horse in the winners circle Saturday was fantastic.  Rail Trip has been through so much over the last year and a half.  His move to the east coast was nothing short or horrendous, and there were many that thought this horse might be done.  Now, he’s a Grade 2 winner again and could be heading towards the Grade 1 Pacific Classic next.  Much like Amazombie, he’s a hard horse not to root for.

– 3rd Star: Richard’s Kid (MD) – Friday nights Cougar II Handicap was nothing more than a paid workout for Richard’s Kid.  He trailed the field for much of the race, but cruised by them late to win by almost two lengths.  This veteran has seen it all, and has won Del Mar’s premier event two times.  You’d have to think he’ll be pointed to that race once again.  It’s kind of cool that all three of our stars this week are older horses that have been through a lot of battles throughout their careers, but they continue to keep producing great races for us.

Flop of the Week

– Power Broker (KY) – I’m not going to knock a two-year making his first start all that much, but Power Broker was disappointing considering he was bet down below even money and failed to hit the board Saturday.  He will probably improve off this effort and run much better next time out.  Still, on a week where there weren’t many flops, Power Broker had to fall in this spot.

Trainer Standings

Rank	Trainer Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $		Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Doug F. O’Neill	39	10	6	4	$376,490		26%	20	51%
2	Peter Miller	22	7	2	4	$267,560		32%	13	59%
3	Bob Baffert	24	6	5	2	$534,122		25%	13	54%
4	Barry Abrams	22	5	1	0	$244,324		23%	6	27%
5	Donald Warren	8	4	0	0	$303,000		50%	4	50%
5	John W. Sadler	36	4	6	4	$291,884		11%	14	39%
5	Jeff Mullins	14	4	2	2	$200,970		29%	8	57%
8	Richard E. Mandella	6	3	0	0	$128,250		50%	3	50%
8	A. C. Avila	11	3	1	2	$123,914		27%	6	55%
10	William Spawr	8	2	0	3	$212,380		25%	5	63%
10	Ronald W. Ellis	8	2	0	1	$188,170		25%	3	38%
10	Thomas F. Proctor	7	2	1	2	$134,318		29%	5	71%
10	Julio C. Canani	6	2	0	1	$122,990		33%	3	50%
10	Mike Puype	13	2	3	0	$106,850		15%	5	38%
10	Patrick L. Biancone	12	2	0	3	$99,550		17%	5	42%
10	Martin F. Jones	8	2	0	2	$98,646		25%	4	50%
10	Tim Yakteen	6	2	0	1	$95,460		33%	3	50%
10	Michael Machowsky	12	2	2	0	$83,230		17%	4	33%
10	Robert B. Hess, Jr.	13	2	2	0	$69,710		15%	4	31%

Jockey Standings

Rank	Jockey Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $		Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Rafael Bejarano	58	16	11	7	$986,018		28%	34	59%
1	Garrett K. Gomez	62	16	8	14	$853,580		26%	38	61%
3	Joseph Talamo	67	12	10	3	$645,760		18%	25	37%
4	Martin Garcia	52	8	5	6	$401,250		15%	19	37%
5	Victor Espinoza	43	5	12	5	$385,140		12%	22	51%
6	Edwin A. Maldonado	40	4	8	2	$283,334		10%	14	35%
6	Martin A. Pedroza	43	4	3	5	$194,520		9%	12	28%
8	Patrick A. Valenzuela	15	3	0	1	$266,928		20%	4	27%
8	Corey S. Nakatani	37	3	4	4	$221,460		8%	11	30%
8	Chantal Sutherland	20	3	1	2	$128,850		15%	6	30%
11	David Romero Flores	39	2	2	8	$209,057		5%	12	31%
11	Kevin Krigger	26	2	1	6	$146,248		8%	9	35%
11	Eswan Flores	37	2	6	6	$108,150		5%	14	38%
11	Juan J. Hernandez	28	2	4	1	$105,630		7%	7	25%
11	Aaron T. Gryder	11	2	0	0	$36,360		18%	2	18%

Preview to Next Week

– The Graduation Stakes – Wednesday – 2 Year old CA breds – five and one half furlongs – $100,000

– The Real Good Deal Stakes – Friday – 3-year-old CA breds – seven furlongs – $200,000

– Clement L. Hirsch Stakes (Grade 1) – Saturday – Fillies and Mares 3 year olds and upward – 1 1/16th miles – $300,000

– Best Pal Stakes (Grade 2) – Sunday – 2 year olds – Six and one half furlongs – $150,000