Stable Notes Del Mar, California Wednesday, September 3, 1997 (Day 37)

SOLID FIELD SHAPING UP FOR THE GRADE II DEL MAR FUTURITY

The first three finishers in Del Mar's Grade III Best Pal Stakes, the winner of the Grade III Sapling Stakes at Monmouth Park and three impressive maiden winners at the seaside track appear certain for next Wednesday's closing-day feature, the Grade II, $250,000 Del Mar Futurity.

Coming out of the Best Pal for the Futurity, which produced this year's Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner Silver Charm, will be winner Old Topper, runner-up King of the Wild, and third-place finisher Souvenir Copy. Both Old Topper, trained by the ever-youthful 86-year-old Noble Threewitt, and King of the Wild, trained by Steven Young, will be supplemented for a $10,000 fee.

It's expected that Souvenir Copy, trained by Bob Baffert, will be joined by stablemate Commitisize in the Futurity gate.

Sapling winner Double Honor, who also has placed in two other graded stakes, will carry the hopes of the D. Wayne Lukas stable, along with stablemate Yarrow Brae.

Winged Express, who scored an impressive maiden win at Del Mar, as did Yarrow Brae and Commitisize, fills out the early prospective field.

The riders for the 2-year-olds are Alex Solis for Old Topper, Gary Stevens for Double Honor, Pat Day for Yarrow Brae, Eddie Delahoussaye for King of the Wild and Rene Douglas for Winged Express. No riders have been assigned yet to Souvenir Copy or Commitisize.

DEL MAR DERBY WINNER ANET COMES OUT OF RACE IN "PERFECT" SHAPE

Everyone in racing knows the "big horse" in trainer Bob Baffert's barn is Silver Charm, winner of the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. But the barn's "little horse," Anet, made some headlines of his own Monday by winning the Grade II, $300,000 Del Mar Derby in only his second start on grass.

"I've always been high on this colt," Baffert said after Monday's race. "He's a little guy, but he has a big heart. I call him 'Raptor' and Silver Charm 'T- Rex,'" likening them to a couple of creatures in the popular film, "Jurassic Park."

The 3-year-old son of Clever Trick won the 1 1/8-mile race from gate to wire under a heady ride by Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens. And, said Baffert assistant Eoin Harty this morning, "He came out of the race just perfect." There are no immediate plans for the colt's next race, but Baffert did mention, as a long-term goal, one of the Breeders' Cup races -- perhaps the Sprint at 6 furlongs or the Mile on the turf, each with a purse of $1 million, or the $4-million Classic, at 1 1/4 miles.

STEVENS' DEL MAR DERBY WIN TIES HIM WITH SOLIS FOR STAKES HONORS

The victory by Gary Stevens in Monday's Del Mar Derby was his ninth in a stakes race on Day 36 of the seaside course's 43-day meeting, tying him with Alex Solis for most stakes winners for the meet. Solis won his ninth on Saturday when he booted home Rainbow Dancer in the Grade II, $250,000 Del Mar Handicap.

The record for stakes victories in a season -- 12 -- is within reach for the pair, but it probably figures to be a longshot prospect. The record was set by Laffit Pincay, Jr. in 1976 and tied by Chris McCarron in 1995.

The season's nine stakes wins for Stevens sent him past retired Don Pierce and into fifth place on the all-time stakes-winning list at Del Mar with 58. Solis, who wasn't in the Top Ten at the beginning of the meet, passed Kent Desormeaux and Fernando Toro and is tied with Corey Nakatani for eighth on the list.

Also over the weekend, McCarron scored his track record 110th stakes win on Sunday when he took Radu Cool to the winner's circle in the Grade II, $300,000 Chula Vista Handicap for his fourth straight win in that race. For his career, through Monday's races, McCarron has 6,522 victories and record purse earnings of $211,035,174.

WEIGHTY ISSUE PUTS FAMOUS DIGGER ON SIDELINES FOR PALOMAR 'CAP

A not-too-happy Barry Abrams said this morning that his double stakes winner Famous Digger will not run in Saturday's Grade III, $125,000- added Palomar Handicap, citing what he considers a weight advantage for Listening, who has run in two straight Grade I races against the likes of Twice the Vice, Jewel Princess and Exotic Wood -- losing to the first two in the Vanity Handicap at Hollywood Park and defeating the last named in Hollywood's Milady Handicap.

In the meantime, the 3-year-old Famous Digger has run in her own age group, but has chalked up four straight victories. Listening has been assigned 120 pounds for the 1 1/16-mile race on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course, and Famous Digger was given 116 pounds, the least she's carried since winning Hollywood Park's Grade III Honeymoon Handicap May 24. At Del Mar, Famous Digger won the Grade II San Clemente Handicap and the Grade I Del Mar Oaks.

JOCKEYS' RACE APPEARS TO BE GOING RIGHT DOWN TO THE WIRE

With the final seven days of the 1997 racing meet ahead before the September 10 closing day, the race for the riding title remains as close as some of the classic finishes fans have seen at the seaside course this summer.

Going into today's eight-race card, here's how the standings read for the top three riders: Alex Solis, 34 victories; Kent Desormeaux, 32; Eddie Delahoussaye, 30.

Solis is trying to win his second straight Del Mar title and seventh straight overall at Southern California's three major tracks -- Del Mar, Santa Anita and Hollywood Park. Desormeaux is shooting for his third local title, having finished first in 1992 and '93, and a title for Hall of Famer Delahoussaye would be his second. He won here previously in 1989.

Here's who they'll ride today, with morning-line odds:

Solis (6 mounts) -- Third race: Meadow Vista, 9-5; Fourth: Bugged, 2-1; Fifth: Sam's Place, 6-1; Sixth: Bold and Swiss, 6-1; Seventh: Ski Dancer, 7-2; Eighth: Shiney Halo, 2-1.

Desormeaux (5 mounts) -- First race: Star of Zilzal, 6-1; Fifth: Tabled Til Now, 6-1; Sixth: Flood the Gun, 2-1; Seventh: Advancing Star, 5-2; Eighth: Sassy, 3-1.

Delahoussaye (4 mounts) -- Third race: Enabru, 2-1; Sixth: Zacks Buckaroo, 5-1; Seventh: Madame Pandit, 9-5; Eighth: Sisterbull, 9-2.

LAFFIT PINCAY, JR. WATCH -- In his pursuit of Bill Shoemaker's record of 889 victories at Del Mar, Laffit Pincay, Jr. failed to ride a winner on Monday and starts today's races with 886 victories. Pincay's mounts today (race and morning-line odds): First race: Movinanagroovin, 15-1; Eighth: Miss Zepher, 20-1.

SHORE LINES -- Antonio Castanon, who rode at Del Mar from 1989-91, is back for another run at the track with hopes of establishing himself on the Southern California circuit. The 24-year-old native of Mexico City has been riding in the East, most recently at Philadelphia Park. Don Pierce will handle the rider's book of business. ... One of Laffit Pincay, Jr.'s three wins at Emerald Downs on Sunday was aboard Bay Street Blues in the Washington State Thoroughbred Breeders' Association's Lads Stakes, a prep for the $100,000 Gottstein Futurity at Emerald Downs September 28. Pincay is expected to ride back in that race.