The aptly named Getaway Car extended his record to 2-for-2 in Sunday’s $147,000 Best Pal (G3), the stepping stone to the Del Mar Futurity (G1). But trainer Bob Baffert unveiled another hot prospect later on the card, Gaming, who is likewise nominated to Del Mar’s signature race for two-year-olds.
Getaway Car races for a consortium led by SF Racing, Madaket Stables, and Starlight Racing. The $700,000 Keeneland September yearling made a flashy debut here on July 20, going gate to wire by 3 1/4 lengths.
As a result, Getaway Car was hammered into 3-10 favoritism for the Best Pal. The son of Curlin and Surrender Now, a precocious stakes winner herself as a juvenile, won even more easily.
Getaway Car made short work of his rivals while rattling off fractions of :22.20 and :45.77. Jockey Juan Hernandez barely had to move his hands for the colt to widen his margin to 5 1/2 lengths, and he crossed the wire unextended in a final time of 1:10.73 over six furlongs.
Mischief River, a fellow debut winner and Del Mar Futurity nominee, was second at every call. But he lost ground down the stretch.
Wesley Ward’s filly White Sands, who scratched out of Saturday’s Sorrento (G3) in her own division, raced alongside Mischief River early before racing awkwardly on the turn. According to the chart, the one-eyed White Sands brushed Mischief River at that point and dropped back. Although she appeared to be out of contention, White Sands regrouped and kept on valiantly in third, 1 1/4 lengths behind Mischief River.
Tiz Happy was run off his feet at the back of the quartet. Ivan the Great was withdrawn.
Hernandez didn’t expect to find himself in front that quickly, but he was happy to let Getaway Car roll.
“You know what, going into the gate, it looked like he was going to have a lot of speed against him,” Hernandez said. “But in my mind I am going to take advantage of my position (on the outside).
“The gate opened, my horse broke in front, and I just decided to let him go. He was very comfortable on the lead. He is really fast, so he cleared everybody. I just waited till the quarter pole, where his ears went up. I asked him to pick it up again and he did. Can’t wait for the next one.”
Getaway Car has earned $135,000. The question is whether he’ll develop with maturity and distance like his Hall of Fame sire or take more after his dam, Surrender Now. She peaked at two, dominating the 2017 Landaluce S. by eight lengths. Surrender Now placed in a pair of turf sprints as an older horse, but her fireworks came at the beginning of her career. Her half brother, Red Flag, had a similar profile as the 2020 Bob Hope (G3) romper who’s descended through the ranks.
Baffert is banking on the Curlin influence to prevail in Getaway Car.
“This guy’s been a lot of fun — great name, and he’s fast. He wasn’t slowing down,” Baffert said. “He’s got a beautiful stride, just a beautiful way of doing it. He’s by Curlin, and Curlins usually get better with age. The good horses can get the distance.”
Interestingly, Gaming also has precocity in his pedigree. From the first crop of Baffert’s 2018 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) champion Game Winner, Gaming is out of a mare by trans-Atlantic two-year-old phenom Johannesburg. Gaming’s dam, So Stylish, was stakes-placed in Ireland at two, and she is a half sister to European champion juvenile One Cool Cat.
A $250,000 OBS March purchase by the Three Amigos — Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman — Gaming went off as a relatively lukewarm 2.30-1 favorite in the seventh race. He grabbed a narrow lead for Hernandez, withstood early pace pressure through splits of :21.87 and :44.71, and opened up in the stretch.
Gaming’s inexperience showed as he clung to his left lead until the final strides. Nevertheless, he still pulled clear by 5 1/2 lengths, easing down, in a final time of 1:17.42 over 6 1/2 furlongs.
Note that Gaming posted his six-furlong split in 1:10.51, implying that he could mix it up with Getaway Car. But comparisons between the six-furlong Best Pal and a 6 1/2-furlong maiden must be treated with caution.
