Royal Delta is pointed towards the Sabin Stakes to get her season underway
The 3-year-old champion filly of 2011, Royal Delta’s main goal this early in the season is to take part in the Group 1, $10 million Emirates Airline Dubai World Cup at the Meydan on 31 March, 2012, but before flying all the way to Dubai, the Besilu Stables
owned filly will swing by Gulfstream Park to make her 2012 debut in the Grade 3 Sabin Stakes, run over a distance of 1 1/16 miles on dirt on 25 February, 2012.
She will come up against the likes of Grade 1 Ogden Phipps Handicap winner, Awesome Maria, who will also be making her debut of the new campaign, and the ever so dangerous, Groupie Doll, who already made her 2012 debut in an allowance/optional claimer at
Gulfstream Park on 27 January, 2012, and finished second.
Trained by Bill Mott, the Kentucky bred daughter of Empire Maker, out of mare Delta Princess by A.P. Indy, Royal Delta is exiting a win in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Ladies Classic at Churchill Downs last fall, where she put to rest a solid lineup, and defeated
It’s Tricky in second and Pachattack in third, going over a distance of 1 1/8 miles.
With the exception of finishing 9th in her 2011 debut, the Suncoast Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, Royal Delta in her next six starts didn’t finish worse than third.
She bagged 4 starts out of seven starts in 2011, winning the Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico on dirt over her favoured distance of 1 1/8 miles.
Third in the Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks to winner, It’s Tricky, Royal Delta bounced back to win the Grade 1 Alabama Stakes at Saratoga, going over the Classic distance of 1 ¼ miles on dirt, where she came back from nowhere to take her revenge from,
It’s Tricky, who finished second to the winner.
Prior to the Breeders’ Cup, Royal Delta was exiting a strong second place finish in the Grade 1 Beldame Stakes at Belmont Park.
The Kentucky bred filly is expected to continue her good run of 2011 in the new season, and start proceedings from the Grade 3 Sabin Stakes before the all important World Cup night.
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