Background Check: Del Mar Debutante

In this continuing series, we examine the past winners of significant filly/mare races by the lasting influence they've had on the breed. Up today is the GI TVG Del Mar Debutante S., a race with a surprising amount of repercussion on the sport.

First run the year before Queen Elizabeth II took the throne, the Del Mar Debutante has seen 72 winners, with D. Wayne Lukas and Bob Baffert together combining for more than a quarter of those visits to the winner's circle. It's been run on Polytrack; it's been run in two divisions; and it's been run at seven-eighths since 1994 after stints at six and eight furlongs. The 2-year-old filly event was officially designated a Grade I in 1999.

With the storied history and sheer volume of big-league filly/mare contests focused at Saratoga over the summer, other tracks–even those as spectacular as Del Mar–can be overshadowed. But every now and then a race, like the Del Mar Debutante, has a list of past winners that pops up on the radar. While not all of the Debutante's victresses have been stellar broodmares, there have been a few that have more than held their own. The list may not be long, but it's top notch.

Following are the some of the most important Del Mar Debutante winners by what impact they have had on the breed through their sons and daughters.

Althea (1981, Alydar–Courtly Dee, by Never Bend): A champion 2-year-old who died at just 14 in a paddock accident, this mare–bred by the partnership of Helen Groves, Helen Alexander, and David Aykroyd–produced four stakes winners from her five foals, including Japanese champion Yamanin Paradise and GSW Destiny Dance. Her daughters and granddaughters have been responsible for GISW and influential sire Arch, U.S. champion Covfefe, UAE champion Festival of Light, and GISWs Acoma and Balletto (UAE). From an extended family that just keeps giving, it's all but a certainty that even more will bubble to the surface as time goes by from Althea's branch of her Broodmare of the Year dam.

Terlingua (1976, Secretariat–Crimson Saint, by Crimson Satan): There a substantial list of stakes performers who trace to this Tom Gentry-bred chestnut, including MGISW Ticker Tape (GB), English G1SW Crowded House (GB), and French G1SW Brando (GB), but it's her GISW son, Storm Cat, who launched a legacy. Christened the leading sire, broodmare sire, and juvenile sire in the U.S.–all multiple times–he simply redefined the breed. After standing for multiple years at $500,000 as the premier sire in the land, Storm Cat has left reverberations still felt today even though he was pensioned 14 years ago and died a few years later.

Brown Berry (1960, Mount Marcy–Brown Baby, by Phalanx): This C. V. Whitney-bred mare is a bit of an outlier, as it would be a challenge to find her in any top pedigrees of today. However, as one of history's rare broodmares to produce more than one Classic winner–and on each side of the Atlantic, to boot–she surely deserves a mention. Her son Avatar won the 1975 GI Belmont S. (and two other Grade Is) and another son, Hours After, won the 1988 G1 Prix du Jockey Club. She also produced two other major stakes winners, as well as five more stakes performers.

Tonga (1949, Polynesian–Tirl, by Tick On): Winner of the very first Del Mar Debutante, Tonga didn't have a single stakes winner among her five foals. However, one of her daughters produced three black-type winners and daughters who would beget, among others, GI Kentucky Oaks winner Gal in a Ruckus, MGISW Habibti, and Canadian Broodmare of the Year No Class, who would be the foundation mare of Sam-Son Farm. The long list of Canadian champions produced by No Class and her daughters include Classy 'n Smart, Sky Classic, and Regal Classic, while her granddaughter Dance Smartly was also a U.S. champion and her grandson Smart Strike was a two-time leading sire in the U.S. whose son, two-time Horse of the Year Curlin, is among the top sires in the U.S. Not a year goes by without the far-reaching effect on both sides of the border of No Class.

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Blockbuster Kentucky Downs Card on Tap Saturday

Kentucky Downs will host six graded events Saturday, led by the 'Win and You're In' $1-million GII Fanduel Turf Sprint S. and $1-million GII Kentucky Turf Cup S. NBC Sports will broadcast both live on CNBC.

After successfully defending his title in Saratoga's GI Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer S. Aug. 27, Gufo (Declaration of War) returns on short notice for the Kentucky Turf Cup. He is the 7-5 morning-line favorite. The 8-year-old Arklow (Arch) looks for his third win from five attempts in this contest following victories in 2018 and 2020, respectively.

Drawn widest of all in post 12, GII Twin Spires Turf Sprint S. winner and last out GI Jaipur S. runner-up Arrest Me Red (Pioneerof the Nile) is the 9-5 morning-line favorite in the Fanduel Turf Sprint.

The rescheduled GIII WinStar Mint Million S. features last year's winner Pixelate (City Zip). Originally carded for last Saturday, inclement weather forced the cancellation of racing following the day's seventh race.

The streaking Big Invasion (Declaration of War) is the clear-cut one to beat in the GII Franklin-Simpson S. following impressive wins in Saratoga's GIII Quick Call S. and Mahony S. “Every time he runs, he gets better,” jockey Joel Rosario said.

Princess Grace (Karakontie {Jpn}) and Dalika (Ger) (Pastorius {Ger}), one-two in the 2021 GIII Kentucky Downs Ladies Turf S., face off again in Saturday's renewal. Dalika got the better of her aforementioned rival by a half-length in last month's GI Beverly D. S. at Churchill Downs.

The globetrotting Campanelle (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}), most recently a dead-heat third in Royal Ascot's G1 Platinum Jubilee S., returns in the GIII Mint Ladies Sprint S. The full field of 12 also includes the race's defending winner In Good Spirits (Ghostzapper).

“For a non-Breeders' Cup card, this is truly amazing,” Ted Nicholson, Kentucky Downs' Vice President for Racing, said of Saturday's 12-race program.

Baffert Shooting for Fourth Straight Debutante…

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert will be represented by a pair, led by 9-5 morning-line favorite and 'TDN Rising Star' Home Cooking (Honor Code), while looking for a fourth straight victory and 11th win overall in Saturday's GI TVG Del Mar Debutante S.

Home Cooking romped by 9 1/4 lengths with blinkers off at second asking Aug. 21 while her stablemate Fast and Shiny (Bernardini) won at a generous 6-1 on debut Aug. 7. Both are owned by Pegram, Watson and Weitman.

The rail-drawn Vegas Magic (Good Magic) puts a perfect three-for-three record on the line for Doug O'Neill following a 14-1 upset in the GII Sorrento S. Aug. 13.

Saturday's graded stakes action also includes: Del Mar's GII John C. Mabee S.; Pimlico's GIII Baltimore/Washington International Turf Cup S.; and the GIII British Columbia Derby at Hastings.

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Grace Adler Dominates in Del Mar Debutante

Willow Grace Farm and Michael Lund Petersen's Grace Adler (Curlin) swept to the lead with a powerful five-wide move into the stretch and pulled away effortlessly down the lane to win the

GI TVG Del Mar Debutante by 11 1/4 lengths at Del Mar Sunday. Favored Eda (Munnings) was pressed every step by Elm Drive (Mohaymen) through a quarter in :21.78 and a half in :44.37 as Grace Adler settled off the pace while running free and clear. She moved closer without being asked on the bend, ricocheted to the lead off the turn and, meeting no opposition, strode away powerfully down the lane for an authoritative victory.

The victory gave Bob Baffert his 10th win in the Del Mar Debutante. While the trainer was happy with the effort of Grace Adler, he admitted he knew stablemate Eda was in trouble as she battled on the hot early pace.

“I wasn't happy with [Eda's] position early because they were going way too fast up front,” Baffert said. “Grace Adler is a really good filly and when she started to make her move, you could tell by Trevor Denman's voice that she was really making up the ground. They're both good fillies, it's just too bad that Eda got caught up in a speed duel. It was set up for Grace Adler.”

Flavien Prat, who was riding his third Del Mar Debutante winner, said the race developed much as Baffert had predicted.

“Bob just told me that she wasn't as fast as the other fillies, but that she'd come running,” Prat said. “He was certainly right. It might have looked like I moved too early with her, but it was more a case of them coming back to me. We were going forward and they were coming back.”

Grace Adler was stretching out to seven furlongs Sunday after battling to a determined 3/4-length debut victory going five furlongs over the Del Mar track July 31.

 

Pedigree Notes:

Grace Adler is the 45th graded stakes winner for two-time Horse of the Year Curlin.

Her dam, Our Khrysty, won the 2010 GIII Turnback the Alarm H. and is a half-sister to GI Whitney S. winner Bullsbay (Tiznow). The mare, purchased by Blue Heaven Farm for $600,000 at the 2011 Fasig-Tipton November sale, produced a colt by Into Mischief in 2020 and a filly by Uncle Mo this year before being bred back to War Front. Her Into Mischief colt RNA'd for $350,000 at last year's Keeneland November sale and is catalogued as hip 99 at the upcoming Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Sunday, Del Mar
TVG DEL MAR DEBUTANTE S.-GI, $301,500, Del Mar, 9-5, 2yo, f, 7f, 1:23.76, ft.
1–GRACE ADLER, 120, f, 2, by Curlin
                1st Dam: Our Khrysty (GSW, $313,260), by Newfoundland
                2nd Dam: The Hess Express, by Lord Carson
                3rd Dam: Turcomedy, by Turkoman
   1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN, 1ST GRADE I
   WIN. ($700,000 Ylg '20 FTKSEL). O-Willow Grace Farm &
Michael Lund Petersen; B-Blue Heaven Farm (KY); T-Bob
Baffert; J-Flavien Prat. $180,000. Lifetime Record: 2-2-0-0,
$222,000. Click for eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk
   Nick Rating: A.
2–Dance to the Music, 120, f, 2, by Maclean's Music
                1st Dam: Beautified, by Congrats
                2nd Dam: Makeup Artist, by Dynaformer
                3rd Dam: Deux Anes (GB), by Longleat
($40,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP; $575,000 2yo '21 OBSAPR). O-Red
Baron's Barn LLC & Rancho Temescal LLC; B-George Kirkorian
(KY); T-Mark Glatt. $60,000.
3–Bicameral, 118, f, 2, by Constitution
                1st Dam: Humble Song, by Songandaprayer
                2nd Dam: Song of Africa, by Alzao
                3rd Dam: Intensive, by Sir Wiggle
($30,000 Wlg '19 KEENOV; $100,000 Ylg '20 FTKSEL; $120,000
RNA 2yo '21 OBSAPR). O-Calvin Nguyen; B-Constitution
Syndicate & Dr. & Mrs. Charles H. Huber (KY); T-Richard Baltas.
$36,000.
Margins: 11 1/4, 2 3/4, HF. Odds: 4.60, 3.40, 28.30.
Also Ran: Myfavoritedaughter, Eda, Rock the Belles, Elm Drive, At the Spa. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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