Glatt Calls Audible With Collusion Illusion, Tries Dirt Sprinter Collusion Illusion On Turf In Green Flash

Mark Glatt-trained Collusion Illusion, voted the top sprinter of the 2020 Del Mar Thoroughbred Club meeting in Del Mar, Calif., off a victory in the Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes, will make his 2021 racing debut in Sunday's G3 Green Flash Handicap. It's sprinting all right – five furlongs. But it's also on turf, which will be a first for the 4-year-old son of Twirling Candy.

A minor hoof injury incurred on the eve of the race prevented Collusion Illusion from a title defense in the Bing Crosby on July 31.

“He got a little off schedule when he was supposed to run in the Bing Crosby, and we had talked about running him on turf at some point,” Glatt said. “Given his level of fitness and what races were available to us in the near future here, the Green Flash was the only one that made sense.

“It's time to try him on the turf and see how he does. If it works out, this could open up a whole new avenue (of racing) for us to consider.”

The field for the Green Flash from the rail out with jockeys and morning line odds in parentheses: Kneedeepinsnow (Drayden Van Dyke, 20-1); Texas Wedge (Umberto Rispoli, 6-1); Lieutenant Dan (Giovanni Franco, 7-2); Collusion Illusion (Flavien Prat, 7-2); Chasin Munny (Jose Valdivia, Jr., 10-1); Little Juanito (Ricky Gonzalez, 6-1); Give Me the Lute (Kent Desormeaux, 6-1), and Gregorian Chant (Juan Hernandez, 5-2).

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Mendez Celebrates Dr. Schivel, Prepares Two For CTBA Stakes

The eyes of Luis Mendez took on a little extra sparkle Sunday morning when the subject turned to Dr. Schivel's victory on Saturday in the Bing Crosby Stakes at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, Calif.

Mendez trained Dr. Schivel in his first four career starts as a 2-year-old in 2020, culminating in a victory in the $300,000 Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity. The colt was privately purchased after an impressive maiden victory a month earlier and the new ownership, Red Baron's Barn and Rancho Temescal, kept him in Mendez's care through the Futurity pending transfer to the stable of Mark Glatt.

And even though Dr. Schivel is no longer on his shedrow, the horse's success understandably generates feelings of pride in Mendez.

“It was beautiful, lovely, the best possible feeling,” Mendez said. “I'm really happy for the owners and Mark Glatt, too. I'm glad that the horse keeps going up and up. We had a barbeque and watched the race. I got some texts from people saying congratulations. It makes you feel good inside.”

Getting Dr. Schivel to the point he did has had a positive effect on Mendez and his career.

“I'm more comfortable and confident,” Mendez said. “Trainers I respect are now asking me (for advice) sometimes and I take that as a compliment.”

There's a large wooden sign with his name on it that identifies the area where Mendez has 18 stalls in the Del Mar stable area. And he'll saddle a couple of prospects from those stalls when Week Four of the summer season starts Thursday.

Mendez has Ko Olina and Drizella entered in Thursday's featured $100,000 California Thoroughbred Breeders' Association (CTBA) Stakes for California-bred 2-year-old fillies.

Sagely, Mendez isn't about to favor one over the other. He just cites their individual characteristics and is glad that sorting out the jockey assignments for them worked out without excess stress on himself.

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Edwin Maldonado, who had ridden them both in recent maiden wins, opted for Ko Olina, a daughter of Stanford owned by C T R Stables. That put Juan Hernadez, who had ridden Drizella in her first two starts, comfortably back in the irons of another daughter of Stanford owned by William R. Peeples.

“Ko Olina had me worried before she won here because she was really nervous and washed out before the race,” Mendez said. “Drizella had been very aggressive and kind of nervous going to the track to train before, but I like the way she has settled down and is acting now.”

The CTBA field from the rail with jockeys in parenthesis: Madiha (Umberto Rispoli); At the Spa (Tyler Baze); Lion's Lair (Tiago Pereira); Gianna's Wild Cat (Jessica Pyfer); Carmen Miranda (Giovanni Franco); Irish Wahine (Abel Cedillo); It's Simple (Mario Gutierrez); Ko Olina (Edwin Maldonado) and Drizella (Juan Hernandez).

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Glatt Says Dr. Schivel Exited Bing Crosby In Good Health

A year after winning the $300,000 Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes with 3-year-old Collusion Illusion, trainer Mark Glatt did it again Saturday with another sophomore colt, Dr. Schivel at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, Calif.

It's the first time one trainer has won the premier sprint stake of the meeting back-to-back with 3-year-olds tackling older rivals. And, as Glatt states it, there's no secret or trick to pulling off the unprecedented.

“When you have a really good 3-year-old, like this horse and Collusion Illusion last year, going against older is not that big a factor,” Glatt said. “When you have just an average horse, I think (age) comes into play a lot more.”

Dr. Schivel, a Kentucky-bred son of Violence, broke his maiden here in his third career start last August and came back a month later to win the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity for trainer Luis Mendez in early September.

Transferred to Glatt's barn, the colt was given a nine-month layoff, then overcame some bumping to win his 2021 debut in a June allowance race at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif., that signaled stakes readiness.

“After he won his comeback race, we were eyeballing a race in New York (Sunday's 6 ½-furlong, $200,000 Amsterdam) at Saratoga that was a straight 3-year-old race,” Glatt said. “As we got further removed from his comeback race we (considered) how difficult it is to ship in to Saratoga and how he loves this track.

“Several of the owners live around here and want to watch the horse run, so I thought it was best to stay here and give it a try.”

The $180,000 winner's share of the purse pushed Dr. Schivel's career earnings to $416,000 from six career starts. The Bing Crosby was a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the $2 million Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Sprint over the same course on November 6.

Glatt said Sunday morning that Dr. Schivel and Law Abidin Citizen – third in the 2020 Crosby, fourth Saturday beaten less than a length – both came out of the race in good health. A third Glatt entrant in the Crosby, defending champion Collusion Illusion, was scratched due to a minor injury incurred in a training run Friday.

“It probably would have been safe to run him but the ownership group and I thought it was best to err on the conservative side and have him run another day,” Glatt said. “I don't know when, but I don't think that day will be very far off.”

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Trainer Bob Baffert said that Eight Rings, the Crosby runner-up beaten a neck at odds of 16-1, came out of the race with a shoe on one hoof that was bent nearly in half, but was otherwise fine.

“We were happy with him and thought he showed a lot of heart,” Baffert said. His next assignment remains to be determined.

Trainer Peter Miller reported that third-place finisher and 3-2 favorite C Z Rocket, beat only a half-length, exited the effort well. “He ran great, but you can't make up as much ground as he needed to on this track the way it's playing,” Miller said.

C Z Rocket will not defend his title in the $200,000 Grade 2 Pat O'Brien Stakes on August 28. “We'll wait for Santa Anita,” Miller said.

 

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Dr. Schivel Earns Breeders’ Cup Sprint Berth With Hard-Fought Bing Crosby Triumph

Red Baron's Barn, Rancho Temescal, William Reeves and partners Dr. Schivel, a 3-year-old taking on older rivals, made the lead in midstretch, then hung extra tough late to capture the 76th running of the Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes by a neck Saturday at Del Mar racetrack in Del Mar, Calif.

The victory in the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series Win and You're In contest gave Dr. Schivel a fees-paid berth in this year's Breeders' Cup Sprint, to be run at Del Mar on Nov. 6.

The son of Kentucky sire Violence gave his jockey and trainer a unique double in the $301,500, six-furlong dash – back-to-back scores in the shore track's premier race for sprinters with 3-year-olds, something that's never happened before. The final time in the dash was 1:10.47.

Flavien Prat, Del Mar's leading rider, was aboard the colt for his fourth victory of the day. He now has 17 wins in the first nine days of racing and also a remarkable streak in the Crosby: he's won six of the last seven runnings of the race. Mark Glatt is the trainer of Dr. Schivel and he also was the conditioner of last year's winner, the then 3-year-old Collusion Illusion (who was entered and scratched in this year's Crosby).

Finishing second in the Crosby was Coolmore Stud, Madaket Stables or Starlight Racing, et al's Eight Rings, while running third was the 3-2 race favorite, Madaket Stables, Barber or Kagele's C Z Rocket.

Dr. Schivel, who was making only the sixth start of his career, scored his fourth victory and picked up a winner's check for $180,000 and increased his bankroll to $416,000. The bay youngster had won last year's Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity for former trainer Luis Mendez, then was put on the shelf for nine months before coming back to win an allowance race at Santa Anita in June.

Dr. Schivel paid $6.80, $4.00 and $2.60 across the board. Eight Rings returned $10.80 and $4.80, while C Z Rocket paid $2.40 to show.

In the track's Pick 6 Single Ticket Jackpot wager, there was a carryover for the seventh day in a row. The pool going into Sunday is now up to $566,809.

The Grade 1 Clement L. Hirsch heads Sunday's card. First post for the day is 2 p.m.

FLAVIEN PRAT (Dr. Schivel, winner) – “No special instructions; just ride. He broke well, then when we went across the gap, he grabbed the bit. He was running well, pretty much all the way around. He was game late. Good win.”

MARK GLATT (Dr. Schivel, winner) – “They went fast early, maybe not as fast as we thought. Flavien (Prat) rode him perfectly, gave him a good trip, and the outside post was a benefit. This is a real racehorse. He beat the olders today, and hopefully in November he'll be able to do it again. (Scratch of Collusion Illusion?) He grabbed a quarter training yesterday and he just wasn't perfect on it today. It probably would have been safe to run him but the ownership group and I thought it was best to err on the conservative side and have him run another day.”

:21.83  :44.67  :57.39  1:10.47

The stakes win was the sixth of the meeting for rider Prat and his sixth (of the last seven) in the Bing Crosby. He now has 66 stakes wins at Del Mar.

The stakes win was the first of the meeting for trainer Glatt, but his second in the Bing Crosby (Collusion Illusion, 2020). He now has 12 stakes wins at Del Mar.

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