Princess of Sylmar successfully beat older rivals on
Saturday in Belmont Park’s Grade 1, $392,000
Beldame
Invitational when overtaking two-time champion and race defender Royal Delta
to score by two lengths on the wire.
Sent off the 2-1 second choice to Royal Delta’s prohibitive 1-5 odds,
Princess of Sylmar paid $6.20 for the win under jockey Javier Castellano.
Trained by Todd Pletcher, she is campaigned by breeder Ed Stanco’s King of
Prussia Stable.
“Like I said before the race, we have a lot of respect for how good Royal Delta
is,” Pletcher remarked, “and it says a lot about Ed Stanco that we could have gone to what
appeared to be an easier spot on paper (the Grade 1, $1 million Cotillion at Parx
Racing) and we came here and took on the defending champ and were a deserving
winner. It wasn’t about the money, you know?”
Royal Delta stumbled slightly when the gates opened and bumped with And Why
Not to her inside, but that didn’t stop the dark bay mare from moving to the
lead. She soon found company, however, in the form of Centring to her outside
and Roman Invader on the rail. It was the latter who ranged up to take command
on the backstretch from Royal Delta as Castellano allowed Princess of Sylmar to
settle into a nice stalking spot back in fourth.
Royal Delta took over in 1:10 2/5 from Roman Invader, who had set splits
through the half-mile in :23 3/5 and :46 3/5, rounding the turn as Princess of
Sylmar began her run while three wide. The two favorites hooked up at the top of
the stretch, with Princess of Sylmar drawing even and then away from her more
experienced rival to finish nine furlongs on the fast main track in 1:47 4/5.
“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
captured the Alabama, Coaching Club American Oaks and Kentucky Oaks in her past
three. Her only loss this season came as a second to recent Cotillion winner
Close Hatches in the Gazelle at Aqueduct in early April. Prior to that, Princess
of Sylmar had racked up a pair of wins in the Busanda and Busher by a combined
14 1/2 lengths.
The Pennsylvania-bred daughter of Majestic Warrior began her career at Penn
National as a juvenile, running fourth in her debut against state-bred rivals
before romping to break her maiden by 19 lengths last November. She then shipped
to Aqueduct to defeat winners in an optional claimer on December 13.
“This a new stratosphere for us,” Stanco said. “When (exercise rider) Jake
Nelson was on her in Saratoga two days after we won the Alabama, I walked out
with her and she was full of herself. He said she hasn’t missed a beat.
“As you might have noticed, she’s gone into a growth spurt and has put on
weight. Todd told me Tuesday she was just perfect in her training. He felt very
confident.”
Princess of Sylmar’s incredible run may have concluded for now in the Beldame
as her connections previously said that, as she wasn’t nominated to the
Breeders’ Cup, they would bypass the championship event.
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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