DEL Handicap (Grade 2)- $750.000 Purse
DEL- For Fillies and Mares Three Years Old and Upward
One Mile and One Quarter on the Dirt
July 13, 2019

A large purse is available at DEL this week, and a field of seven is set to go to the gate to contest what is the 14th running of the DEL Handicap, and the ninth time it runs with a Grade 2 designation. I’m glad to be back and writing this week after taking a couple week vacation around the fourth of July holiday. When I first looked at this field, my first thought was that I didn’t really see that one headliner amongst them. That is not to say that they are not well accomplished, and there have been some big price tags associated with some of them in private sales. Whoever wins this race, however, will have their biggest career win up to this point as they hope to catapult it into further success, perhaps the BC Distaff. Weights range between 118 and 121 for the race, so that will not be a major story for this race. Four trainers have sent us seven runners. Let’s take a look!

#1- Ghost Road (Fractious, ridden by T Gaffalione)- After two strong graded runs during the spring time, Fractious purchased this filly for $330.000 from Team 7 Illusions. While their first race together did not go well, it would be interesting to see her get the win here for the simple fact that she would be beating three horses from Team 7 in this field in order to do it. Most in this field have never run this distance, and she is no exception. As long as the Grade 1 Phipps in an aberration, she’ll be fine. But is it one?

#2- Prima Dona (Joshua Stables, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- This race features a rematch between the top two finishers from last month’s Fleur de Lis (Grade 2) at CD. Prima Dona was second there in what was her debut for Joshua Stables after he acquired her for $400.000 in private sales. She lost in that race to Charo, but gained on her in the stretch there. In this race, she’ll have another furlong to get her while carrying two less pounds. She has the highest career earnings in this field, by forty seven cents over Harsh.

#3- Charo (Team 7 Illusions, ridden by E Esquivel)- It didn’t take as much money for Team 7 Illusions to acquire her as it did for the prior two trainers to get their entry. Charo was a nice $10.000 claim on St. Patrick’s Day, and she’s been a four-leaf clover ever since. She’s won two of three while running for Team 7, and that includes the Grade 2 Fleur de Lis where she held off Prima Dona while going wire to wire. The set up here is a little different, but she is certainly capable of doing that again.

#4- Google Command (Team 7 Illusions, ridden by L Contreras)- On this one, the trainer did spend a lot of money. The exceptionally well bred three year old (Commanding-Google Maps) was acquired for $350.000, quite a tag, and much of that might be so she can easily get acquainted with the great Cherokee Sunset in the future, but recent works show that she might have some accolades of her own to attain before she enters that life. She knows how to run near the front, but has not done so against this type of opposition. Not picking her, but I am excited to watch her run.

#5- Nude Beach (Joshua Stables, ridden by A Bocachica)- Up until her last race, this filly spent her entire career running on the grass. She’d purchased by Joshua Stables for $125.000, and the trainer put her right on the main track, likely not because it would make more sense for a horse named this to be running on dirt. Bute was also added, but that race was not a case of her showing that she should have always been there. She didn’t even beat anyone. Likely, the trainer is very confident with her running this distance.

#6- Foxy Dame (Team 7 Illusions, ridden by D E Centeno)- Joshua and Team 7 Illusions make up the entire middle of the starting gate, and this five year old mare will be a longshot. She has only raced once since February 2018, that coming last month after she was acquired from Canadian Racing for $40.000. That race was a dud, but that can be attributed to the super-long layoff. Other then that race, we’re talking about some old race lines, which do not seem like they’d be relevant any longer. Let’s see what happens.

#7- Harsh (Mb Stables, ridden by A Beschizza)- This is the veteran of the group, with 20 career starts, and most of them have been at the stake level. She’s been better in small ungraded stakes, but did come through recently in the muddy Grade 3 Doubledogdare at KEE, and its $100.000 purse. Harsh is lacking that big race win, despite all these efforts, and this would surely change everything. She’s earned the chance, and I think she gets a piece of this, but I’m looking elsewhere for my pick.

Prediction: 2-7-3-4

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES