Baltas tops trainer standings, Miller third

A stakes win by a San Luis Rey Training Center horse clinched this year’s Del Mar Thoroughbred Club fall meet trainer title for Richard Baltas; San Luis Rey trainer Peter Miller ended the Bing Crosby Season meet third in the trainer standings.

Baltas and Miller also combined for three stakes race wins on the final weekend of the meet which began Nov. 8 and concluded Dec. 1. Baltas saddled Next Shares in the Nov. 30 Grade 2 Seabiscuit Handicap; Miller won the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby with Mo Forza in that Nov. 30 race and Baltas mathematically clinched the trainer championship Dec. 1 when Oscar Dominguez won the Grade 2 Hollywood Turf Cup Stakes.

“That always means something,” Baltas said of the trainer championship.

Horses trained by Baltas won 11 races during the 2019 Bing Crosby Season meet.

“I just think I have a little bit more numbers and a greater quality of horses and got rewarded for that,” he said.

Baltas shared the 2017 summer meet training championship with Phil D’Amato, who also has some of his horses at San Luis Rey. Baltas first saddled a horse at Del Mar in 1991, although his first trainer win at the track was not until 2004.

“Every time I get a little bit better horses to train. My clients have been backing me, and I have a good team working for me,” he said.

Bob Hess won four races on the final weekend to finish the meet with seven trainer victories. Miller won six races during the 2019 Bing Crosby Meet.

“I thought it was great,” Miller said. “We won one of the two Grade 1s at the meet, so it was a very successful meet.”

The other Grade 1 stakes race was the Dec. 1 Matriarch Stakes; winner Got Stormy is trained by Mark Casse.

This year’s Bing Crosby Season meet was scheduled to have 15 days, but heavy rain caused the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club to cancel the Nov. 21 and Nov. 28 races while the Nov. 29 turf races were moved to the dirt course.

The horses returned to the turf Nov. 30, and the 1 1/16-mile Seabiscuit Handicap was one of those turf races. Miller also had a horse in that race; Om led throughout most of the contest before finishing sixth.

Next Shares and jockey Jose Valdivia had the third post position.

“He had an inside post, which helped save ground. He wasn’t too far back, and he ran his race,” Baltas said.

Next Shares broke last among the nine horses and was sixth after a quarter of a mile and fifth after half a mile and after three-quarters of a mile. As the horses entered the stretch Next Shares was second, half a length behind Om and a length in front of third-place River Boyne.

Next Shares finished half a length in front of Sacred Life, who took second and had a winning time of 1:42.00.

Baltas considers the storm to have benefited Next Shares.

“It softened up the turf a little bit. That was more to his liking,” Baltas said.

Om finished three lengths behind Next Shares and half a length behind fifth-place Prince Earl, a San Luis Rey horse trained by D’Amato.

Next Shares is a 6-year-old gelding who was foaled in Kentucky April 15, 2013. He was sired by Archarcharch out of Two Dot Slew. The Seabiscuit Handicap was his seventh career win, and the $120,000 first-place share of the total $200,000 purse gave him career earnings of $1,677,771.

Baltas is considering the Grade 2 San Gabriel Stakes at Santa Anita Park as a potential next race for Next Shares, who won the January 2019 San Gabriel Stakes.

Mo Forza, a 3-year-old colt, was ridden by Paco Lopez in the Hollywood Derby.

“Just glad the way he rode it,” Miller said. “It worked out.”

The 12 horses in the Hollywood Derby, which was for 3-year-olds, ran 1 1/8 miles on the turf. Lopez and Mo Forza broke 11th but were in third after a quarter of a mile. Baltas’ horse, Neptune’s Storm, which is not one of Baltas’ San Luis Rey horses, was in the lead at that point while Casse’s horse Uncle Bull was second. Those positions were unchanged at half a mile and at three-quarters of a mile.

Uncle Bull fell back as the horses approached the stretch, and Neptune’s Storm had a head lead over Mo Forza as they entered the stretch while Mo Forza was three lengths in front of third-place Succeedandsurpass, which is also one of Baltas’ Santa Anita horses. When Mo Forza crossed the finish line 1:48.57 after the start of the race he was three-quarters of a length in front of Neptune’s Storm and 1 1/4 lengths ahead of third-place Standard Deviation.

“It was a great win and got a great ride,” Miller said.

Mo Forza was the favorite at 2.8:1. It was the third career win and third consecutive win for the horse which began his racing career in August, and the $180,000 first-place share of the $300,000 total purse brought his career earnings to $379,460.

Uncle Mo sired Mo Forza out of Unusual Heat. Mo Forza was foaled in Kentucky April 5, 2016. Miller has not made a decision on Mo Forza’s next race.

Oscar Dominguez was one of 10 horses in the Hollywood Turf Cup Stakes, which was a 1 1/2-mile turf race. He was ridden by John Velazquez. Oscar Dominguez and Velazquez broke seventh and ninth after a quarter of a mile, last after half a mile and after 1 mile and ninth after 1 1/4 miles.

“I just kind of sat there and waited,” Velazquez said. “He let me do what I wanted to do.”

Although Velazquez and Oscar Dominguez were ninth with two furlongs remaining, they trailed leader Chosen Vessel by less than four lengths. They were seventh as they entered the stretch and three lengths in back of Chosen Vessel, who went from first to fifth during the stretch.

“He didn’t go too wide around the turn,” Baltas said.

United was the only horse behind Oscar Dominguez after 1 1/4 miles and would also finish the race a position behind Oscar Dominguez. United was sixth, a head in front of Oscar Dominguez, as they entered the stretch. Oscar Dominguez passed United and five other horses in the stretch and defeated United by a neck. Oscar Dominguez won the race in 2:28.17.

“He’s a true mile and a half horse,” Baltas said. “The horse is ready. I have to give a lot of credit to San Luis Rey.”

Oscar Dominguez had been trained by Miller before being claimed for $40,000 at a Santa Anita race in February.

“He’s been overachieving the whole time we’ve had him,” Baltas said.

Nancy Messineo and Bruce Smith now own Oscar Dominguez. The 6-year-old gelding was foaled in Ireland May 8, 2013. He was sired by Zoffany out of American Queen. The Hollywood Turf Cup Stakes was the sixth career win for Oscar Dominguez.

Bettors who wagered on Oscar Dominguez to win the Hollywood Turf Cup Stakes received 11.1:1 odds. The Oscar Dominguez team received $120,000 from the total purse of $200,000, which increased the horse’s lifetime earnings to $427,630.