The field of six fillies and mares were all group or graded stakes winners, including Princess Grace, who was a last-out third in the G2 Goldikova on the Breeders' Cup undercard Nov. 6 at Del Mar, and Regal Glory, who shipped west from her last-out second-place finish in the First Lady at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky. With no obvious early speed in the race, the field broke evenly, Jose Ortiz taking advantage of the absence of a clear pacesetter to send Regal Glory to the lead by 2 1/2 lengths. Zofelle was second and Viadera third as Regal Glory set fractions of :24.06 and :48.50, controlling the pace around the first turn and down the backstretch.

Into the far turn, Regal Glory held a two-length lead, as Zoffelle and Viadera started their closing moves. The daughter of Animal Kingdom was able to maintain her lead down the stretch, striding out to a three-length lead in the last sixteenth. Zofelle held on for second, with Princess Grace passing Viadera late to take third.

The final time for the one-mile Matriarch was 1:35.33. Find this race's chart here.

Regal Glory paid $5.20, $3.00, and $2.10. Zofelle paid $5.40 and $3.00. Princess Grace paid $2.40.

Bred in Kentucky by the late Paul Pompa, Regal Glory is out of the More Than Ready mare Mary's Follies, a graded stakes winner. She is owned by Peter Brant and trained by Chad Brown, who scores his second stakes win of the day after Juddmonte Farm's Verbal won the G3 Cecil B. DeMille earlier on Sunday's card. Consigned by Lane's End, the 5-year-old mare was sold to White Birch Farm for $925,000 at the January 2021 Keeneland Horses of All Ages Sale. With her win in the G1 Matriarch, Regal Glory has three wins in five starts in 2021, for a lifetime record of 16-9-4-0 and career earnings of $1,244,884.

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Besides the filly and mare grass feature, there also will be the Grade 3, $100,000 Cecil B. DeMille Stakes for 2-year-olds. The Matriarch has lured seven for its mile journey, while the DeMille has brought out 11 for its eight furlongs on the green.

The 15-day Crosby Season at the seaside track north of San Diego, Calif., featured the 38th edition of the Breeders' Cup World Championships, which established a new betting mark for the two-day, 14-race extravaganza. Additionally, the seaside track put on its own 13-day session climaxed by a seven-stakes, all on grass, four-day finish that puts a fine bow on a fine racing run.

Heading the 41st edition of the Matriarch – the last seven of which have been held at Del Mar – is Susan and John Moore's Princess Grace, a 4-year-old filly by the Japanese-bred stallion Karakontie who has won six of her eight lifetime starts, including a tally at Del Mar this past summer in the Grade 2 Yellow Ribbon Handicap. Trainer Michael Stidham sticks with Kent Desormeaux as her rider.

Princess Grace will have to have her running shoes on tight Sunday, though, with trainer Chad Brown having entered two of his mares in the test, including last year's winner Viadera.

The Matriarch will be seventh race on the Sunday card.

In the Cecil B. DeMille, which goes as Race 3, the horse to beat appears to be another Brown runner in Verbal, who has only made one starts, but it was a goodie. He won easily over a field of straight maidens at Belmont Park on October 10 at a mile on the grass and will have Jose Ortiz back again on board on Sunday.

Here are the full fields for both races from the rail out with riders and morning line odds:

Matriarch Stakes:  Princess Grace (8/5); Calvin Nguyen's Bodhicitta (John Velazquez, 12-1); Juddmonte's Viadera (Flavien Prat, 5/2); Aoshiba Corporation's Fast Jet Court (Drayden Van Dyke, 20-1); Heider Family Stables' Zofelle (Umberto Rispoli, 5-1), and Peter Brant's Regal Glory (Jose Ortiz, 9/5).

Cecil B. DeMille Stakes:  Red Baron Barn or Rancho Temescal's Optimising (Umberto Rispoli, 3-1); Merecado Racing's Khantaro d'Oro (Juan Hernandez, 12-1); Alvarez Racing Stables' Groovy Huey (Edwin Maldonado, 30-1); West Point Thoroughbreds or Barker's Derecho Dandy (Joe Bravo, 5-1); Drakos or Hanson's Barsabas (Tyler Baze, 12-1); Homme or DeMaio's Il Capitano (John Velazquez, 20-1); Kretz Racing's Cabo Spirit (Victor Espinoza, 6-1); Featherston, Lambert or Underhill, et al's Stotland (Kent Desormeaux, 30-1); Glenn Sorgenstein WC Racing and Great Friends Stable, et al's Get Back Goldie (Kyle Frey, 6-1); Verbal (5/2), and Exline-Border Racing, Wilson, et al's Lottery Pick (Flavien Prat, 8-1).

First post for the Sunday finale will be 12:30 p.m.

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So begins the staging process for the four-day, seven-stakes Turf Festival that will wrap up the Bing Crosby Season at the track. And if the seven previous such closing stands of the fall meeting are any indication, the eager anticipation felt by horsemen and fans is more than justified.

A contingent of quality shippers from the east will arrive Monday or Tuesday in numbers that racing secretary David Jerkens expects will be similar to past years from the stables of trainers whose names top, or are highly stationed, on national lists.

Chad Brown has won nine Turf Festival races, with emphasis on the G1 events – Saturday's $400,000 Hollywood Derby and Sunday's $400,000 Matriarch – where he's notched three in each. He's expected to put seven or eight on the westbound plane, among them defending Matriarch champ Viadera. Brown has multiple graded stakes winner Public Sector and Sifting Sands nominated for the Hollywood Derby and Turf Cup nominee Rockemperor stabled at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif., and available for the relatively short trip down the freeway.

Michael Stidham's Princess Grace, who shipped in to win the Yellow Ribbon in the summer and returned for a third-place finish as favorite in the G2 Goldikova during Breeders' Cup Week, has remained on the grounds and is nominated for the Matriarch. So has Goldikova runner-up Zofelle for trainer Brendan Walsh.

Trainer H. Graham Motion, who has notched Red Carpet, Jimmy Durante, and Seabiscuit Stakes wins in past Turf Festivals, has a handful of horses on-site and could bring in reinforcements considering his six stakes nominees. Ken McPeek has indicated he will be sending Camp Hope, a winner of two starts in October at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky., and Greg Sacco is sending It Can Be Done off a third-place finish, beaten two lengths by Public Sector in the Hill Prince on October 23 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

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“Our primary focus is to get her over a million dollars,” said Yakteen, who has orchestrated a terrific career for the 5-year-old California-bred mare by Mucho Macho Man. “She's getting close now ($933,415) and if all goes well in the Matriarch, we'll try to run again in the Frankel (Grade 3 Robert J. at 1 1/8 miles on turf on Dec. 31) and follow a similar path to what we've done this year.”

A win or second-place finish in Del Mar's $400,000 Matriarch, to be contested at one mile on turf, would put Mucho Unusual over the $1 million dollar mark and further enhance her residual value as a broodmare.

With an overall race record of 21-7-5-4, Mucho Unusual, who took the Grade 1 Rodeo Drive Stakes at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif., on Sept. 26, 2020, is out of the outstanding producer Not Unusual, who is by Unusual Heat. A winner of the Grade 3 Frankel here on Dec. 27, 2020 and of the Grade 3 Megahertz on Jan. 18, 2021, Mucho Unusual has four graded stakes wins and five overall stakes victories, all on turf, to her credit.

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Del Mar will be hosting the 38th edition of the Breeders' Cup Championships during its fall stand with 14 major races worth more than $31 million slated on Friday, November 5 and Saturday, November 6. The track had previously been home to the Breeders' Cup in 2017.

A highlight of the session will be its two Grade 1 offerings on closing weekend, the Hollywood Derby and the Matriarch Stakes. Each will carry a value of $400,000, the highest sum ever for a stakes race at the shore oval outside of the $1-million TVG Pacific Classic.

Twelve of the major stakes are Graded – two Grade 1s, four Grade 2s and six Grade 3s. The track has put an emphasis on grass racing during its previous fall stands and that holds true once more with 11 of the stakes, including the last seven, all contested on the deep Jimmy Durante Turf Course. Those seven turf tests will be conducted during Del Mar's final weekend, starting on Thanksgiving Thursday, November 25 and continuing through closing day on Sunday, November 28.

“This is the best fall stakes schedule we've ever presented,” said DMTC vice president and racing secretary David Jerkens. “The success of Del Mar racing over the past two years has allowed us to partner with our horsemen and horsewomen in this robust schedule. We think it will be an attraction to good horses from across the country.”

The track's two premier stakes will be presented on its closing weekend – the $400,000 Grade 1 Hollywood Derby for 3-year-olds at nine furlongs on grass Saturday, November 27 and the $400,000 Grade 1 Matriarch Stakes for fillies and mares at a mile on the green on Sunday, November 28.

Additionally, closing weekend also will offer the $250,000 Grade 2 Seabiscuit Handicap for 3-year-olds and up at a mile and one-sixteenth on turf Saturday, November 27 and the $250,000 Grade 2 Hollywood Turf Cup for 3-year-olds and up at a mile and one-half on the lawn on Friday, November 26. Both of those races have had their values increased by $50,000 from previous runnings.

Racing will be conducted Wednesday through Sunday in Week 1, then Friday through Sunday in Weeks 2 and 3 before finishing with a Thursday through Sunday session in the final Week 4.

First post daily will be 12:30 on all racing days with the exceptions of the Breeders' Cup Days and Thanksgiving. The first race on Breeders' Cup Friday goes off at 11:55 a.m., while the first on Breeders' Cup Saturday begins at 10:15 a.m. The Thanksgiving Day card will have a first post of 11 a.m.

As in past years, Del Mar's racing office plans to card eight races during its weekday cards and nine for the weekend programs.

The complete list of stakes follows:

DATE RACE / CONDITIONS PURSE / DISTANCE

Wed. Nov 03 Seashell Stakes* Fillies & Mares, Three-year-olds & up, N/W S/S of $60,000 at 1 M o/o since April 1 $100,000 Added 1 Mile

Thu. Nov 04 Let It Ride Stakes* Three-year-olds, N/W S/S of $60,000 at 1 M o/o since April 1 $100,000 Added 1 Mile (Turf)

Fri. Nov 05 QATAR GOLDEN MILE STAKES Two-year-olds $150,000 Guaranteed 1 Mile (Turf)

Fri. Nov 05 GOLDEN STATE JUVENILE FILLIES STAKES Fillies, Two-year-olds, Cal-Bred $175,000 Guaranteed 7 Furlongs

Fri. Nov 05 GOLDEN STATE JUVENILE STAKES Two-year-olds, Cal-Bred $175,000 Guaranteed 7 Furlongs

Fri. Nov 05 SENATOR KEN MADDY STAKES (Grade 3) Fillies & Mares, Two-year-olds & up $200,000 Guaranteed 5 Furlongs (Turf)

Sat. Nov 06 TAA STAKES (Grade 2) Three-year-olds & up $250,000 Guaranteed 1 5/8 Miles

Sat. Nov 06 GOLDIKOVA STAKES (Grade 2) Fillies & Mares, Three-year-olds & up $300,000 Guaranteed 1 Mile (Turf)

Sun. Nov 07 BETTY GRABLE STAKES Fillies & Mares, Three-year-olds & up, Cal-Bred $100,000 Guaranteed 7 Furlongs

Sat. Nov 13 DESI ARNAZ STAKES Fillies, Two-year-olds $100,000 Guaranteed 7 Furlongs

Sun. Nov 14 BOB HOPE STAKES (Grade 3) Two-year-olds $100,000 Guaranteed 7 Furlongs

Sat. Nov 20 NATIVE DIVER STAKES (Grade 3) Three-year-olds & up $100,000 Guaranteed 1 1/8 Miles

Sun. Nov 21 CARY GRANT STAKES Three-year-olds & up, Cal-Bred $100,000 Guaranteed 7 Furlongs

Thu. Nov 25 RED CARPET STAKES (Grade 3) Fillies & Mares, Three-year-olds & up $100,000 Guaranteed 1 3/8 Miles (Turf)

Fri. Nov 26 HOLLYWOOD TURF CUP (Grade 2) Three-year-olds & up $250,000 Guaranteed 1 1/2 Miles (Turf)

Sat. Nov 27 JIMMY DURANTE STAKES (Grade 3) Fillies, Two-year-olds $100,000 Guaranteed 1 Mile (Turf)

Sat. Nov 27 SEABISCUIT HANDICAP (Grade 2) Three-year-olds & up $250,000 Guaranteed 1 1/16 Miles (Turf)

Sat. Nov 27 HOLLYWOOD DERBY (Grade 1) Three-year-olds $400,000 Guaranteed 1 1/8 Miles (Turf)

Sun. Nov 28 CECIL B. DEMILLE STAKES (Grade 3) Two-year-olds $100,000 Guaranteed 1 Mile (Turf)

Sun. Nov 28 MATRIARCH STAKES (Grade 1) Fillies & Mares, Three-year-olds & up $400,000 Guaranteed 1 Mile (Turf)

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If you need testimony on that, ask the folks at Del Mar.

The New York-based conditioner competed in five of the seven Graded stakes the seashore track offered during Thanksgiving weekend and he won four of them, running second in the other. On Sunday – closing day of the shore track's seventh Bing Crosby Season — he completed his latest tour de force by capturing the Matriarch Stakes with Juddmonte Farms' homebred filly Viadera, who beat stablemate Blowout, owned by Peter Brant, by a whisker in a four-horse blanket finish.

It was the fourth time Brown had captured the $301,500 Grade 1 headliner for fillies and mares and his charge did it with elan this time. The daughter of the British stallion Bated Breath skipped the mile over the Jimmy Durante Turf Course in a stakes record 1:33.03, which shattered the former mark by more than a second.

Finishing third in the distaff crucible was Juddmonte Farms other entrant, Juliet Foxtrot.

Joel Rosario rode Viadera for his fourth Matriarch score. Blowout, under Flavien Prat, had half a length on Juliet Foxtrot and Mike Smith, who in turn had a neck on fourth-place finisher Sharing, owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gainesway Stable and ridden by Manny Franco.

“Whew. I had to work for that one,” said Rosario. “She's a good filly, a really good filly. But she makes you work. I had to stay after her. She can run, though, there's no doubt. I'm lucky that Chad Brown gives me an opportunity like this. Grass horses and especially fillies. He's the best.”

The winner paid $12.80, $5.80 and $3.80 across the board. Blowout returned $5.60 and $3.80, while Juliet Foxtrot paid $4.80.

Viadera earned a first prize of $180,000 and moved her earning up to $391,441. She has now won six of 13 lifetime starts, the last three in stakes.

Previously this weekend, Brown had captured the Grade 3 Red Carpet Handicap here on Thursday with the filly Orglandes; the Grade 3 Jimmy Durante Stakes with Fluffy Sox and the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby with Domestic Spending, both on Saturday. His second-place finish came Saturday with Flavius, beaten three-quarters of a length by Count Again in the Grade 2 Seabiscuit Handicap.

Brown now has 12 stakes wins at Del Mar, nine of them of the Grade 1 variety.

“This weekend has been amazing,” said Brown's assistant, Jose Hernandez. “I didn't know which filly (of the stablemates) was the winner, but I'm happy it turned out to be Viadera. My boss Chad Brown is an amazing trainer and I just do my best for him. It's an amazing job for me and I love the horses. In the future, I don't know when it would be, if Chad wanted to come out here with a string, I'd like that. We like it out here.”

The Sunday 10-race card drew the curtain on a banner fall meeting for the seaside oval that saw fully safe racing and a remarkable handle rise of over 30% during the 15-day stand.

Racing will resume at Del Mar next July when the track presents its 82nd summer season, followed by its second hosting of the Breeders' Cup Championships next November.

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Blowout zipped out to the early lead at Del Mar Sunday, was clear around the first turn and completed the opening quarter in :22.62, but Juddmonte homebred Juliet Foxtrot (GB) (Dansili {GB}) surged to the lead midway down the backstretch and was two lengths in front of Blowout through a half in :45.63 as Viadera remained unhurried near the back of the pack. Juliet Foxtrot was still in front at the top of the lane, but Blowout reengaged that foe as they passed the three-quarters in 1:09.37. The Peter Brant colorbearer took a slim lead with a furlong to run, but Viadera was finding a seam to run through and closed powerfully to just get on top on the line.

“I had to work for that one,” admitted winning rider Joel Rosario. “She’s a good filly, a really good filly. But she makes you work. I had to stay after her. She can run, though, there’s no doubt. I’m lucky that Chad Brown gives me an opportunity like this. Grass horses and especially fillies. He’s the best.”

Viadera’s win capped a successful holiday weeked on the west coast for Brown, who also won the GI Hollywood Derby and GIII Jimmy Durante S. and was second in the GII Seabiscuit S.

“This weekend has been amazing,” said Brown’s longtime assistant Jose Hernandez. “I didn’t know which filly was the winner, but I’m happy it turned out to be Viadera. My boss Chad Brown is an amazing trainer and I just do my best for him. It’s an amazing job for me and I love the horses. In the future, I don’t know when it would be, if Chad wanted to come out here with a string, I’d like that. We like it out here.”

Group placed in Ireland with trainer Ger Lyons, Viadera was transferred to Chad Brown this summer. Fourth behind fellow Brown trainee Newspaperofrecord (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) while making her stateside debut over a yielding turf course in the June 6 GIII Intercontinental S., she earned her first U.S. win in the July 17 De La Rose S. at Saratoga. She made it two in a row when she nailed Blowout on the line to win the Noble Damsel last time out.

Pedigree Notes:

Sacred Shield produced a full-sister to the winner last year and a colt by Camacho (GB) this year. The mare is a half-sister to the dam of Group 1 winner Passage of Time (GB) (Dansili {GB}) and to the dam of multiple Group 1 winner Twice Over (GB) (Observatory).

Viadera is one of 10 graded winners for Bated Breath and one of two in the U.S. His Simply Breathless (GB) won last year’s GIII Wilshire S. The Juddmonte stallion has been represented stateside this year by stakes winner and multiple graded placed Feel Glorious (GB). Last year, his Daayeh (GB) was  second in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Sunday, Del Mar
MATRIARCH S.-GI, $301,500, Del Mar, 11-29, 3yo/up, f/m, 1mT, 1:33.03, fm.
1–VIADERA (GB), 123, f, 4, by Bated Breath (GB)
1st Dam: Sacred Shield (GB), by Beat Hollow (GB)
2nd Dam: Quandary, by Blushing Groom (Fr)
3rd Dam: Lost Virtue, by Cloudy Dawn
1ST GRADE I WIN. O-Juddmonte Farms, Inc.; B-Juddmonte
Farms Ltd. (GB); T-Chad C. Brown; J-Joel Rosario. $180,000.
Lifetime Record: 13-6-1-1, $391,441. *1/2 to Crossed Baton
(GB) (Dansili (GB)), MSW & GSP-Eng, GSP-Fr, $141,509.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick Rating: A.
2–Blowout (GB), 123, f, 4, by Dansili (GB)
1st Dam: Beauty Parlour (GB), by Deep Impact (Jpn)
2nd Dam: Bastet (Ire), by Giant’s Causeway
3rd Dam: Benediction (Ire), by Day Is Done (Ire)
(€450,000 Wlg ’16 GOFNOV). O-Peter M. Brant; B-Dayton
Investments Ltd. (GB); T-Chad C. Brown. $60,000.
3–Juliet Foxtrot (GB), 123, m, 5, by Dansili (GB)
1st Dam: Kilo Alpha (GB), by King’s Best
2nd Dam: Anasazi (Ire), by Sadler’s Wells
3rd Dam: Navajo Princess, by Drone
O-Juddmonte Farms, Inc.; B-Juddmonte Farms Ltd. (GB);
T-Brad H. Cox. $36,000.
Margins: NO, HF, NK. Odds: 5.40, 4.70, 5.90.
Also Ran: Sharing, Maxim Rate, Tamahere (Fr), She’s Our Charm, Bodhicitta (GB). Scratched: Mucho Unusual.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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The Bing Crosby Season will offer 16 stakes races during its run, headed by a pair of grassy Grade 1's on closing weekend – the $300,000 Hollywood Derby on Nov. 28 and the $300,000 Matriarch Stakes on Nov. 29.

After its Saturday/Sunday opening weekend, the track will settle into a Friday-through-Sunday format for the following three weeks, then close things out with a four-day finish starting on Thanksgiving Thursday, Nov. 26.

The track will continue its emphasis on the safety of its horses and riders which has now resulted in a highly successful three-year span that has seen it rise to the top of a list of the nation's safest racetracks. Its extensive program of enhanced procedures and protocols include additional veterinarian oversight, a panel of experts that scrutinizes all horse entries and overriding analyses of medications and workout routines for its horses. These once novel steps now have become part of the day-to-day routine at the shore racing headquarters.

As was the case during recently concluded summer meet, the track will operate its fall season under stringent COVID-19 protocols, including daily health screenings for all employees and essential personnel. It will have medical professionals onsite and require both the wearing of face masks and social distancing. In accordance with state and local guidelines, racing again will be conducted without fans in attendance.

“Safety is on our menu from start to finish,” said Del Mar Thoroughbred Club's CEO Joe Harper. “If you start with safety, everything else just flows. And not only will we again have safe racing, but we'll once more have the best racing in the country throughout our stand, something racing fans are going to love to watch.”

Nine of the track's fall stakes will be run on its Jimmy Durant Turf Course starting with the opening day Kathryn Crosby Stakes for fillies and mares going a mile. The meet's last seven stakes – presented over the extended Thanksgiving holiday weekend – are all contested on the lawn, leading up to the two Grade I offerings mentioned earlier.

In keeping with its Bing Crosby/Hollywood theme, the majority of the track's stakes are named for stars of the past who had Del Mar connections. Among the black-type presentations are races named for Desi Arnaz, Bob Hope, Betty Grable, Cary Grant, Jimmy Durante and Cecil B. DeMille.

Del Mar's racing office – headed by a pair of pros in its executive vice president for racing Tom Robbins and racing secretary David Jerkens – will be presenting either eight or nine races daily with a first post of 12:30 p.m. on all days with the exception of Thanksgiving Day and its special 11 a.m. start.

It also will present live cards on both Breeders' Cup days – Friday, Nov. 6 and Saturday, Nov. 7. Eight Del Mar races will be run both afternoons around the 14 championship events – five on Friday and nine of Saturday — conducted at Keeneland Race Course in Kentucky this year.

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This is the seaside track's seventh fall season, annually a short-but-sweet run that has become the foremost late-year meeting in the country.

“Our fall meet has just gotten better and better as we've gone along,” said Del Mar's racing secretary David Jerkens. “We're again putting the emphasis on the two things that have worked very well for us in the recent past — turf racing and 2-year-olds. This first book will get our horsemen through the initial three weekends, then we'll be out with a 7-day one that will take us to the finish.”

The condition book is now available on-line at www.dmtc.com/horsemen/condition-book. Hard copies also are being distributed at racing centers throughout California.

The track will offer 16 stakes worth $2,250,000 during the stand, with nine of them run on its Jimmy Durante Turf Course. Additionally, its overnight purses – already among the highest in the nation – will rise by 10% across the board this fall making a good thing even better for its horsemen.

Among its stakes offerings are nine graded events, topped by the Grade 1, $300,000 Hollywood Derby for 3-year-olds on Saturday, Nov. 28 and the Grade 1, $300,000 Matriarch Stakes for older fillies and mares on Sunday, Nov. 29. Both are run on turf.

Further, there will be six stakes for juvenile runners, including a pair of graded grass miles.

The stakes lineup with its turf emphasis has drawn a stellar sprinkling of top-line horses from across the country previously and more of the same is expected in 2020.

Racing will be conducted on Saturday and Sunday to open the session, then Friday, Saturday and Sunday for the following three weeks. It will finish with a four-day week kicked off by the Thursday, Nov. 26, Thanksgiving holiday.

First post will be 12:30 PT daily with the exception of Thanksgiving Day when there will be an early 11 a.m. post.

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Owned by Juddmonte Farms, Viadera notched her second stakes victory in her third start in the United States in the one mile test over the Widener turf, where she was placed at the rear of the field early on, saved ground to the inside and prevailed to get up at the right time by a neck under jockey Joel Rosario.

“He rode a really good race,” said Brown, who secured a fifth straight victory in the Noble Damsel. “He was able to save some ground and she was able to get up at the last jump.”

Rosario also piloted Brown-trained Off Limits (2017) and Uni (2018) to Noble Damsel triumphs, both of whom won the Matriarch at the end of their respective years.

Viadera, a 4-year-old bay daughter of Bated Breath, arrived at the Noble Damsel off a narrow victory in the De La Rose on July 17 at Saratoga, where she defeated stable mate Noor Sahara (fourth in the Noble Damsel) by a neck. A victory in the Matriarch would give Juddmonte Farms a record seventh triumph in the race after previously winning with champions Ryafan (1997), Heat Haze (2003), and Intercontinental (2004).

But it was Blowout who Brown said impressed him the most. Peter Brant's consistent daughter of Dansili out of Group 1 winner Beauty Parlour set torrid fractions on the front end, and the favorite still had enough left to hang on for second.

“Those were just insane fractions,” Brown said. “It showed the heart and the talent that she has to nearly still pull it off. It was remarkable to me. I was most impressed with her. Both horses ran terrific and so far, they look good. If they do well this next month, we'll point them both to the Matriarch.”

Never off the board and never beaten more than three-quarters of a length in 10 lifetime starts, Blowout is still in search of her first graded stakes win but scored triumphs in the Wild Applause last June and the Pebbles last September going one mile over the Widener turf.

“She's very consistent,” Brown said. “She's been very unlucky in a couple of her losses, but she's a developing horse with a lot of ability and super well-bred as well. I'll believe she'll have her day winning a graded stakes.”

Earlier on the card Brown saddled the Brant-owned American West to a debut victory going a one-turn mile over the Belmont main track, where she earned a 65 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort. The juvenile daughter of Curlin is out of stakes placed Jacaranda, who is a half-sister to leading second crop sire Constitution.

“She came out of the race well, we'll talk to Peter Brant about what we'll do with her and just see how she trains,” Brown said.

Bred in Kentucky by Alpha Delta Stable, American West was purchased for $925,000 from the Mill Ridge Sales consignment at the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

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