Although odds-on favorite Nooni was a spent force by the the head of the stretch, the $301,000 Del Mar Debutante (G1) still fell to the Bob Baffert stable for an 11th time on Saturday when second choice Tenma outdueled Vodka With a Twist to the wire to win the seven-furlong test by a nose under Kazushi Kimura.
Tenma has proven a game filly through two starts, having also won her debut by a neck at Del Mar on Aug. 18 after a prolonged stretch duel.
“I rode her the other day when she won first time out and she did well closing. The plan was to try to do the same thing today,” Kimura said.
Tenma rated in fifth and was aided by a strong pace. Proud Starlet clicked off an opening quarter in :21.50 before 4-5 favorite Nooni poked her head in front at the half-mile mark in :44.38.
“I saw those two fillies up front working on each other and I was happy with my spot,” Kimura said. “She closed well for me. I think she’s going to want to run farther.”
Vodka With a Twist was the first to reach and pass the tiring speed and opened up a solid lead in midstretch, but Tenma wore her down in the final yards. The final time was 1:23.67 for seven furlongs over a fast track.
Owned by Baoma Corp., Tenma returned $8. Vodka With a Twist finished nine lengths clear of So There She Was, who nosed out Jack’s Magic Girl. Nooni weakened to fifth and was followed by Proud Starlet and Night Beacon.
Bred in Kentucky by Bobby Flay, Tenma is by Nyquist and out of Amagansett, a daughter of Tapit. This extended female family includes multiple Irish highweight Misty for Me, the dam of English and Irish highweight U S Navy Flag and the multiple Group 1-winning Roly Poly.
One race later, 2-5 favorite Thought Process was an easy two-length winner of the $103,000 Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf over 10 rivals, finishing up one mile on firm ground in 1:35.06 under Hector Berrios. Finishing second in the race was Supa Speed, who had 2 1/2 lengths on Sea Runner.
A 3 1/2-length maiden winner over the course and distance on Aug. 17, Thought Process has now won two of three starts. Phil D’Amato trained the daughter of Collected for the partnership of Little Red Feather Racing, Madaket Stables, and the Estate of Brereton Jones.
Bred by Jones, the late former governor of Kentucky, Thought Process was reared by Creative Thinking, a stakes-winning daughter of Creative Cause.
