Beholder Takes on Boys in Pacific Classic at Del Mar

For just the fifth time in the history of the Grade 1, $1 million Pacific Classic, a female will take on the boys, with Beholder seeking to become the first female to win the marquee race of the Del Mar summer meeting. 

Trained by Richard Mandella, who has won the Pacific Classic three times (Pleasantly Perfect in 2004, Gentleman in 1997 and Dare and Go in 1996), Beholder was installed as the 5-2 morning line favorite and takes on nine male rivals.

The race is a Breeders’ Cup Challenge ‘Win and You’re In” race, with the winner earning an automatic starting berth in the Grade 1, $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland on Oct. 31.

Beholder has won two Breeders’ Cup races in her career, taking the Juvenile Fillies in 2012 and the Distaff in 2013. A victory in the Pacific Classic could entice her connections to skip the Distaff and go in the Classic for an unprecedented third Breeders’ Cup victory for the five-year-old mare.

The Classic is the ultimate goal and likely final race for Triple Crown winner American Pharoah.

Mandella is confident Beholder can handle the boys. “I don’t often do it, but I don’t often get one as good as Beholder,” the trainer told Hank Wesch of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club. “I think she deserves a chance to step up.  It has been pretty easy for her for a year and she’s not over raced, so I think there’s nothing wrong in trying and I’m pretty confident in her.

The talented mare will have to beat nine males going 1 1/4 miles over the main track at Del Mar. Among the foes she has to beat are a duo sent out by Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who has won the race four times, most recently with Game On Dude in 2013.

Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

Baffert will saddle Bayern, last year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic winner, who has made three starts since but has failed to find his way to the winner’s circle. The colt was a disappointing sixth in the Grade 2 Churchill Downs Stakes and then faded to finish a well-beaten 10th in the Grade 1 Met Mile at Belmont Park.

His last start was encouraging, a third-place finish in the Grade 2 San Diego Handicap where he dueled for the early lead and weakened to finish third, beaten 1 1/4 lengths by the winner Catch a Flight, who is in the Pacific Classic field as well.

Baffert’s Hoppertunity was fourth in the San Diego and is looking to snap a four-race losing streak on Saturday. His last win was in the Grade 2 San Pasqual back in January at Santa Anita.  

Pacific Classic Day at Del Mar features two other ‘Win and You’re In” races. The Grade 2, $250,000 Del Mar Handicap winner will earn a starting spot in the field for the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Turf, and the winner of the Grade 2, $250,000 Pat O’Brien stamps a ticket to the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

Here is a look at my predictions for the top three finishers in the Pacific Classic:

Win: Red Vine

Red Vine ships in from New York for the Christophe Clement barn, and we should catch a decent price on this five-year-old. The switch to dirt has suited this guy, who won three in a row and then was second last out in the Grade 3 Salvatore Mile at Monmouth Park. The winner of that race was Bradester, who returned to win the Grade 2 Monmouth Cup in his next outing on Aug. 2.

He won the Majestic Light Stakes two back for his first stakes win on dirt. And his last pair of Beyer Speed Figures are a good fit, although he faces a much tougher group here. He should get a good pace set up, and it looks as if he can handle the 1 1/4 miles. His sire Candy Ride won this race in 2003.

Place: Hard Aces

Hard Aces makes his first start since winning the Grade 1 Gold Cup at Santa Anita by a nose at today's 1 1/4 mile distance, nipping Hoppertunity. Third-place finisher Catch a Flight came out of the race to win the Grade 2 San Diego Handicap in his next outing on July 25 at Del Mar.

The blinkers added two back in the Grade 2 Californian seem to have woken this guy up, and he should benefit from what likely is going to be a strong pace.

Show: Beholder

Beholder takes on the boys here and is coming in riding a four-race winning streak. Last out the mare drew off to win the Grade 1 Clement L. Hirsch by seven lengths. She has now won 13 of her 18 career starts including the 2012 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies and the 2013 Breeders' Cup Distaff.

She gets a five-pound break in the weights here but has not raced at the 1 1/4 mile distance. Her best puts her right in the mix, but she has not produced a triple digit Beyer since last June when she was fourth in the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps at Belmont Park.

Here are Twitter accounts to follow for the Pacific Classic.

Morning line odds are courtesy of Equibase.

Follow Michael Dempsey on twitter @turfnsport.