Gabriel Charles gets jump on Gervinho in first Del Mar
Derby division
In a tale of two trips, Sam Britt and Michael House’s Gabriel Charles swept
to the fore as Gervinho had to wait and alter course, and that was the key to
victory in Sunday’s first division of the Grade 2, $251,250
Del Mar Derby.
The pair were coming off big efforts in different divisions of the July 17
Oceanside. Gervinho got up in time in the first division, propelling him into
3-1 morning-line favoritism here. Gabriel Charles was a fast-finishing second to
Rising Legend in the second division, where he just missed by a head in his
belated sophomore debut. Although Gabriel Charles was listed at 7-2 on the
morning line, the Jeff Mullins trainee was bet down to 9-5 favoritism, and the
market got it right.
With Hall of Famer Mike Smith back aboard, Gabriel Charles was nestled near
the rear of the field in the early stages, duplicating the patient tactics that
had clearly agreed with him last time. Up front, Redwood Kitten established
splits of :23 4/5, :48 1/5 and 1:12 1/5. Chief Havoc stalked in second, covering
up the rail-skimming Gervinho, who was racing in the front runner’s slipstream.
Smith gave Gabriel Charles his cue approaching the far turn, and the Street
Hero colt accelerated. Splitting rivals rounding the bend, Gabriel Charles
rolled to the outside entering the stretch and quickly overwhelmed Redwood
Kitten and Chief Havoc.
Meanwhile, Gervinho was trapped on the fence at the crucial juncture. Jockey
Rafael Bejarano had to steer Gervinho around Redwood Kitten, and by the time he
had clear sailing, Gabriel Charles was gone beyond recall. Gervinho reduced the
deficit to 1 1/4 lengths at the wire, but Gabriel Charles was firmly in command
as he completed 1 1/8 firm-turf miles in 1:46 4/5.
“I wore this tie so that if we didn’t win I could hang myself,” Mullins
joked. “Mike (Smith) made about two or three moves in there, but he said he was
doing it comfortably and that made his job easy. It’s gratifying to know he’ll
go two turns, which has always been kind of a question mark with this horse. I
don’t know if it was by design the way Mike rode him last time, but he figured
out something about him and it sure worked.”
Smith credited the Mullins barn.
“Jeff and his crew have done a wonderful job turning this colt around,” Smith
said. “They took the blinkers off and got him to settle. He’s always had a nice
turn of foot, but he used to fire it early. Now they’ve got him waiting and
firing at the end.
“I had a good trip today and it all worked out right. When we came through
the lane, I just waved the stick at him. The other day when I hit him, the first
time he responded. But then the next time he just got mad. So I let him do his
own thing today.”
Bejarano was pleased with Gervinho, but regretful that he couldn’t get out
sooner.
“No real excuses — he ran well,” Bejarano said. “I just wish I would have
gotten first jump. The winner did. But the No. 9 horse (Redwood Kitten) got in
my way and I had to wait. But he ran well.”
Redwood Kitten reported home another head back in third, and Procurement
closed from last to garner fourth. Next came Outside Nashville; Pure Loyalty;
Chief Havoc; Say Ow; Rising Legend, whose saddle slipped; and the eased Si Sage.
Tom’s Tribute and Layton Register, the also-eligibles, stayed in the barn.
Layton Register is entered in Monday’s 11TH race.
Gabriel Charles paid $5.80 to win for his first graded score, and his resume
now reads 7-3-2-0, $289,800. The bay colt made a splash at Del Mar last summer
by capturing his debut on Polytrack, edging Den’s Legacy in a photo. Gabriel
Charles didn’t build on that promising beginning when sixth in the Del Mar
Futurity and a remote eighth in the FrontRunner at Santa Anita.
But a surface switch worked wonders for Gabriel Charles next time out in the
Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint Preview on Santa Anita’s downhill turf,
resulting in a 3 1/2-length romp over Den’s Legacy. Gabriel Charles was forced
back onto dirt when the December 29 Eddie Logan was rained off the turf, and he
finished a well-beaten second on the wet-fast track. He was not seen again until
the Oceanside on opening day, and showed a new dimension by coming from the
clouds in his first start with Smith, and without blinkers. The formula worked
even better here.
Bred by Doris E. Tummillo in Kentucky, Gabriel Charles was a $19,000
Keeneland September yearling who went to House for $160,000 as a two-year-old at
OBS April. His dam, the stakes-placed Atticus mare Star of Atticus, is a
half-sister to two stakes performers — Grade 1-placed Nan, a close second in
the 2009 Del Mar Oaks, and multiple stakes-placed Limoncella.
This is the family of multiple Chilean Group 1-placed stakes victress Tao
Mina; Grade 1-placed stakes heroine Key Hunter, the dam of Grade 3 winner Liquor
Cabinet; and multiple Grade 2 star Pants on Fire, most recently successful in
the July 28 Monmouth Cup.
Further back in the maternal line, one finds 2005 Horse of the Year Saint
Liam; Rolling Fog, hero of last year’s Del Mar Futurity; and Irish champion and
noted broodmare Minstrella, among others. Gabriel Charles’ sixth dam is Hall of
Famer Gallorette.
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