Princess of Sylmar successfully beat older rivals on
Sent off the 2-1 second choice to Royal Delta’s prohibitive 1-5 odds,
“Like I said before the race, we have a lot of respect for how good Royal Delta
Royal Delta stumbled slightly when the gates opened and bumped with And Why
Royal Delta took over in 1:10 2/5 from Roman Invader, who had set splits
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“The only thing Todd told me was to ride with a lot of patience,” Castellano
said. “I think she did it the right way today. She kept track of Royal Delta all
the way. Turning for home, I didn’t see Royal Delta take off, and my filly just
grabbed me. When I let her go she just took off and opened up.
“If you asked me what the pace was, I couldn’t have told you. I thought :48
or :49. My filly did it so easy. I was a little concerned the first half because
my goal was just to get her in a good spot and I had to use her a little bit
early in the race to get her into a good spot. Turning for home, I turned her
loose just a little bit and she gave me the gear and she took off.
“Royal Delta was my target all the way in the race. When I saw she didn’t
take off at the quarter-pole, which usually she does, I thought, ‘Whoa, I think
I have a chance to win the race.'”
“I just wanted to emphasize, ‘Let her run her race. Don’t chase. Wherever you
are, let it be on her terms, and just try to sit back and play to her
strengths.’ I felt like if there was anyone on paper who could do that, it was
her,” Pletcher added. “It was nice (Royal Delta) didn’t get completely loose. We
kind of got within striking distance at the quarter-pole and I thought we had a
big shot.”
The Bill Mott-trained Royal Delta was easily best of the rest, 6 3/4 lengths up on Centring, who in
turn had 4 1/4 lengths to spare over fourth-placer And Why Not as Roman Invader
finished in last. Lady Cohiba was withdrawn.
“She didn’t necessarily stumble in front, but just kind of lost her footing
for a jump or two,” explained Mike Smith, who was aboard Royal Delta. “She got
up and still was in a comfortable place where I wanted to be. (Princess of
Sylmar) got up to me at the quarter-pole and just out-footed me to the wire
today.
“I felt somebody to my outside at the quarter pole and I knew it was her. It
was just a matter of whether I could out-stride her to the wire, and I just
couldn’t today. My hat’s off to the winner.”
“(Princess of Sylmar) came to us and beat us today,” Mott gave credit to the
winner. “I think Royal Delta is doing well. We looked for a big race from her. I
think she ran a good race, maybe not her best race.
“When she put (Roman Invader) away on the turn, I thought she’d go ahead and
open up a little more than she did. No big excuse. It was an incredible race.
You have to give the winner her due. She’s champion three-year-old, that’s for
sure.”
When asked if Royal Delta’s loss gives him pause concerning the Breeders’
Cup, Mott replied, “I’ve won more Breeders’ Cups finishing second in the Beldame
than winning it.”
Princess of Sylmar justified her status as the top three-year-old filly in the country, having
The Pennsylvania-bred daughter of Majestic Warrior began her career at Penn
“This a new stratosphere for us,” Stanco said. “When (exercise rider) Jake
“As you might have noticed, she’s gone into a growth spurt and has put on
Princess of Sylmar’s incredible run may have concluded for now in the Beldame
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When Pletcher was asked about the Breeders’ Cup following the Beldame, the
horseman said, “I don’t think that’s a question we can answer right now. We need
two or three more weeks to sort that out.”
If she does head to the sidelines for a well-deserved break, Princess of
Sylmar will take with her a 10-8-1-0 scorecard having banked $1,607,220
lifetime. She is the first registered foal out of the
stakes-placed Catienus mare Storm Dixie, who is a half-sister to Group 3 victor
Rhythm Band, Grade 3-placed Musical and the dam of Grade 3 heroine
Youcan’tcatchme.
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