DEL MAR, CA – Repole Stable, Smith, Tabor, and partners’ Fierceness shipped in from New York and delivered a gutsy performance to win the $1 million Pacific Classic (G1) at Del Mar on Saturday. Despite a troublesome break, the 4-year-old son of City of Light quickly regrouped under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez and powered home to a decisive 3 ¼-length victory.
The win marked Fierceness’s seventh career triumph from 13 starts, boosting his lifetime earnings to $5,155,320. He covered the 1 ¼ miles in 2:01.00 and returned $5.20 as the second choice in the field of seven.
Trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, Fierceness is now squarely pointed toward the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) back at Del Mar on November 1. The Pacific Classic is part of the Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series, guaranteeing the winner an automatic berth. Last year, Fierceness ran second in the Classic.
Finishing second was Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners’ Journalism, the heavily favored 2/5 choice. The 3-year-old was making his first start against older horses and ran a respectable race, finishing 6 ½ lengths clear of third-place finisher Ultimate Gamble, owned by Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal.
The day was slightly dampened early on when trainer Bob Baffert announced that morning-line favorite Nysos would scratch due to a bruised heel, removing one of the race’s star attractions.
Still, the Pacific Classic delivered plenty of drama. Velazquez described the shaky beginning:
“At the start, he attempted to duck into the temporary railing. I got him out of there, but he over reacted by pulling in the the other direction. I wanted to stay off his mouth, so I had to sit on him a little. But he got straightened out going into the first turn. I was able to save ground behind the leaders. On the back stretch, he was keen to go on, that’s why I moved between horses going into the turn. I had to move as early as I did because he was so keen. Today I wanted to get him off the bridle a little and let him finish. I was very happy we got there.”
Sophie Green, assistant to Pletcher, echoed that relief:
“It (the start) had me a little bit worried there. He’s had bad breaks before in the past when he was 2-years-old and I almost felt like that again, but Johnny (Velezquez) knew what to do and kept him going. He had him in a great position. We thought the two (Midnight Mammoth) might go to the lead and we wanted to be as close to that as we could.”
Race Fractions: :22.99, :45.84, 1:10.26, 1:35.70, 2:01.00
For both Velazquez and Pletcher, the Pacific Classic win was their first in Del Mar’s signature event. Velazquez now owns 13 stakes victories at the seaside track, while Pletcher has three.
The winning ownership group is led by New York’s Mike Repole, whose colt stamped himself as a leading contender for this fall’s Breeders’ Cup Classic.
