Pacific Classic at Del Mar, California
This month has been very tragic for the trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. His trainee Tuscan Evening died of a heart attack after a session of training at the Del Mar race course in California. 13 days after the horse’s death Jerry switched on the television and saw a recording of the prep race of Beverly D, Eclaire de Lune, in which Tuscan Evening lost, the horse did win the Beverly D though. Jerry’s filly Blind Luck won the Alabama Stakes, which was Jerry’s first Grade I victory at the Saratoga Race Course. This also lead to the filly getting the title of best filly in the country.
Having gone through all these circumstances, the trainer Jerry Hollendorfer has become even more devoted to his work. He has started working tirelessly and spends most of his time training his horses for the Pacific Classic. He has recently avoided talking to correspondents and experts and the only statements that he gave about his horses and their training sessions comprised of very carefully selected words.
Moreover, Jerry is seen not celebrating his victories very enthusiastically. When asked as to whether he celebrated his filly’s victory in the Alabama Stakes, he gave a feeble smile and said that he did.
Hollendorfer is expecting another victory at the Pacific Classic which will be taking place on Saturday, by sending out his trainee Dakota Phone for the 1 million dollar Pacific Classic. This is the race with the biggest purse to be run at the Del Mar Race Course this season. Dakota Phone won the prep race for the Pacific Classic which was called the San Diego Handicap. By winning this race the horse broke his 16 race losing streak and its lifetime record was brought to 2 for 2 on the Del Mar Race Course’s Polytrack surface. The winner of the last year’s Pacific Classic was Richard’s Kid.
After the sudden death of Jerry’s horse Tuscan evening, the hard working trainer was only able to recover from the shock due to the filly Blind Luck and the mare Dakota Phone. Talking to the correspondents at the paddock of the Del Mar track he said that no one’s life is perfect and everyone goes through a number of problems and trouble in their horse racing career. He further said that the loss of Tuscan Evening did traumatise him but he said he will have to get up and start working.
The Pacific Classic is the 8th race on the 11 race card. It begins at 1 p.m. Pacific which is an hour earlier than the normal time. This race is followed by the Del Mar Mile with a purse of $250000 which is a Grade II race on turf. On the other hand Pacific Classic is preceded by the Grade I race run for the sprinters called the Par O’ Brien with a race money of $ 300000. Pacific Classic and Pat O’ Brien, both the races are a part of the 6 race sequence and have a guaranteed pool of $ 750000.
The race horse to be sent out by Jerry the trainer, Dakota Phone has lost the Pacific Classic twice. The race is run over a distance of 1 and a quarter miles. Dakota Phone did however manage to finish the 14 horse Santa Anita Handicap in the third place in the beginning of 2010. The trainer is satisfied with his horse’s performance this year. He was not pleased by the way Dakota Phone performed and trained last season. Jerry also revealed that Dakota Phone’s ankles were swollen last summer and thus he could not run strongly.
Other contenders of the race include Richard’s Kid, The Usual Q.T., Temple City, Awesome Gem and Hold Me Back. After returning from the Dubai World Cup, Richard’s Kid has earned the third position in the Hollywood Gold Cup and Cougar II Handicap. The race horse was defeated by Pacific Classic horses Unusual Suspect, Awesome Gem and Temple City in the aforementioned races.
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