DEL MAR — The horses are new. The results are familiar. Bob Baffert has swept Southern California’s first weekend of graded stakes for the 2-year-olds of 2024.
Saturday, it was Nooni leading from gate to wire with jockey Juan Hernandez to win the Sorrento Stakes at Del Mar, prompting Baffert to say his young fillies appeared to be a little ahead of his young colts this summer.
Sunday, it was Getaway Car saying “Oh yeah?” and striking a blow for the boys in the Baffert barn by recording his own front-running win with Hernandez aboard in the Best Pal Stakes.
Getaway Car opened an advantage on the four-horse field from the start and went on to win by 5 1/2 lengths over Mischief River, with the filly White Sands third and Tiz Happy last in the $150,000, Grade III sprint. Getaway Car was clocked in 1:10.73 for the 6 furlongs. He paid $2.60.
Baffert was asked if he learned anything from such a straightforward victory.
“Yeah,” the trainer said. “He’s fast.”
Getaway Car, who cost $700,000 at an April auction, is a son of Curlin, the 2007 and 2008 American Horse of the Year, and Surrender Now, the 2017 Landaluce Stakes winner at Santa Anita for trainer Peter Miller.
Named for a Taylor Swift song — the name was chosen by Katie Ryan, wife of part-owner Tom Ryan — Getaway Car has yet to trail in two starts.
“He’s got a beautiful way of going,” Baffert said, “and Curlins usually get better with age.”
Hernandez said he expected to be challenged for the early lead.
“(But) he is really fast, so he cleared everybody,” the rider said. “I just waited ’til the quarter pole, where his ears went up. I asked him to pick it up again, and he did. Can’t wait for the next one.”
That should be the Del Mar Futurity on Sept. 8.
Baffert and Hernandez added a 2-year-old winner later in the card when Gaming, a $250,000 son of Game Winner, took a 6-1/2-furlong maiden race. Gaming’s 6-furlong fraction, 1:10.51, was faster than Getaway Car’s final time.
Next up
The $300,000, Grade I Del Mar Oaks on Saturday highlights the upcoming, Thursday-to-Sunday racing week.
Nominees for the 1 1/8-mile turf race for 3-year-old fillies include unbeaten San Clemente Handicap winner Iscreamuscream, Honeymoon Stakes winner Circle of Trust and Delaware stakes winner Whiskey Decision.
Last year’s Del Mar Oaks was won by Anisette, now a three-time Grade I winner and the champion of Saturday’s Yellow Ribbon Handicap.
Notable
• Del Mar will debut a bet called the 3X3 — pronounced “three by three” — on Thursday. It will challenge bettors to pick three trifectas in a row — on races six, seven and eight the first day — at a cost of $1 per combination. The major portion of the pot will be paid to those picking all nine 1-2-3 finishers in the sequence, and smaller payoffs will go to those with eight, seven, six, five, four and three of the nine. Del Mar will guarantee a $10,000 minimum pool each day. The bet will be available only to bettors at Del Mar, Los Alamitos and satellites the first week, and via Xpressbet beginning with the second week, a track spokesman said. The 3X3 was approved by the California Horse Racing Board during the Santa Anita meet but hasn’t yet been offered there.
• Jockey Abdul Alsagoor was taken to the hospital to have a shoulder examined after he was thrown from Brunchandcrunch soon after the start of the second race Sunday. Brunchandcrunch, a 3-year-old colt, was caught by outrider Edgar Alferez as he headed the wrong way on the first turn.
• The stewards gave rider Reylu Gutierrez a three-day suspension after Forgiving Spirit was disqualified from third to sixth place in Saturday’s second race.
• After starting the Del Mar meet 1 for 37, trainer George Papaprodromou won three races Sunday, Omaha Girl paying $74.60.
• Hernandez leads Umberto Rispoli 23-16 atop the jockey standings and John Sadler leads Baffert 11-9 in the trainer standings after four weeks of the eight-week Del Mar meet.
• Sadler and owners Hronis Racing LLC made a high-priced claim out of Sunday’s fourth race, taking Kitty Kitana for $100,000. The 5-year-old mare, who’s often second and third, finished a close fourth in the optional-claiming event for trainer Phil D’Amato.
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