The 16th Running of The DEL Oaks-G3
July 3, 2021 18:25
DEL Race #2 $300.000
3YO Fillies 122 Lbs
1 1/16 Dirt
Stakes/Track Record-1:41.57 (Cardi B-2019)
The champ is back! Feral Impact, Champion Juvenile Filly of 2020, rebounded nicely from last month’s G1 Acorn when she got the best of a stretch-long battle to post a one-length win over Glamorous Life in the the $300.000 G3 DEL Oaks on Saturday. Mb Stables’ daughter of Impactful also scored four BC points towards a start on Championship Weekend in November.
From the start, this one was a battle. Up front, a three horse contingent of Naples, Hot Summer, and Sundress all were battling for the lead while Feral Impact and Glamorous Life enjoyed the view from behind. The front-running trio covered the opening quarter in :24 as Feral Impact started maneuvering to get closer while Glamorous Life remained the back marker in the field of five (Mercantile was scratched by Mo Mentum Farm due to the track listed as Good).
Just after the half mile point of the race, :48, Feral Impact moved off of the rail and started pushing her way towards the front. That early move by jockey J. Talamo put Hot Summer and Naples in precarious positions as they were moved to the three and four paths, respectively. When they reached three-quarters in 1:121/5 the horses were lined-up four across the track with Sundress nearest the rail, the eventual winner in the two path, Hot Summer at least three wide, and poor Naples widest of all. In a five-horse field, you never want to be three-to-four wide; you especially don’t want to be that wide at the turn for home after having to race wide throughout, but, by the time they reached the top of the lane, Hot Summer and Naples had put Sundress away. At this point, Feral Impact decided that she had seen enough, but the front two were proving to be very stubborn on the front end.
At the 1/8 pole, Naples was under a drive while behind Hot Summer and Feral Impact who were now separated by only a head. It was at this point that Glamorous Life decided to throw her hat in the ring as she moved out to the four-path to take aim on the front markers. Feral Impact put away the super game Hot Summer just inside the 1/16 pole and the main threat to the champ was going to be Glamorous Life. The latter got within a length, but the champ reached the wire first to complete the 8.5 furlongs in 1:43 4/5 over the “good” dirt surface. Hot Summer got the better of Naples for third, but both fillies ran tremendous races in defeat.
With the win, Feral Impact now shows a record of 11-5-3-0 for career earnings of $2,000.960. While the winner garnered four BC points, Glamorous Life grabbed two and Hot Summer took home one. Mb Stables claimed his second renewal of this race and jockey J. Talamo earned his first. This was an excellent renewal of the $300.000 G3 DEL Oaks and it is safe to assume we haven’t seen the last of any of these five fillies as we go down the path to the BC in November.
Congratulations to Feral Impact and Mb Stables, the winners of the 2021 G3 DEL Oaks!
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES
