The Padre Looks for First Graded Win in Del Mar Derby

Buying horses in training from Europe would ideally mirror the path of The Padre (Ire). He has marched up the ladder almost without a misstep, and he could become a graded stakes winner in the Aug. 31 $300,000 Del Mar Derby (G2T). Trainer Phil D'Amato seems to have a never-ending supply of European runners ready for just about every graded turf stakes on the California calendar. The Padre is one of two Irish-breds D'Amato brings to the 1 1/8-mile Derby, the other being Mythical Reel (IRE). D'Amato also has Kentucky-bred Iron Man Cal entered. His barn accounts for half of the six-horse field. The Padre is already a stakes winner at the current Del Mar meeting. After breaking his maiden in his only Irish start, in January, he came to D'Amato's barn. Second by just a half-length in his United States debut, a June 13 allowance optional claiming race at Santa Anita Park, The Padre then scored by a half-length in the 1 1/16-mile La Jolla Handicap Aug. 3 at Del Mar, despite having to sit behind a slow pace. "It wasn't a great setup," D'Amato said after the race. "He's a horse that comes from behind, and when they went three-quarters in 1:14... from that spot being wide and coming home, he had to fly. It just shows this horse has a brilliant turn of foot." Umberto Rispoli rode The Padre for the first time in the La Jolla and will return for the Derby. Iron Man Cal ran second in the other grass stakes for 3-year-olds at the meeting, the July 18 Oceanside Stakes, to Derby entrant Game Warrior. Iron Man Cal has only finished first once in six starts, though he was awarded the victory in the 2024 Zuma Beach Stakes (G3T) upon a disqualification. He also finished second in last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1T) by just a neck to Irish-bred Henri Matisse (IRE), trained by Aidan O'Brien. Iron Man Cal brings the biggest bankroll to the Derby of $308,730. Mythical Reel has only started in stakes company once before, when sixth in the May 11 Cinema Stakes at Santa Anita following a rough trip. Since that race, he finished second to Derby entrant Geometry in an Aug. 10 allowance optional claiming race at Del Mar. Geometry will be making his stakes debut, but he's an impressive 2-for-3. Trained by Jonathan Thomas for Augustin Stables, Geometry ran fifth in his 2024 debut at Kentucky Downs and broke his maiden by two lengths at Keeneland last October. He was away from competition until his race against Mythical Reel. Mark Glatt, second in the Del Mar trainer standings behind Bob Baffert and ahead of third-place D'Amato, has entered Freedom's Not Free, who gets the services of Del Mar leading rider Juan Hernandez for the first time. Freedom's Not Free has competed in five consecutive stakes since breaking his maiden in January, winning the Cinema and Pasadena stakes, plus a second and two thirds. Most recently he finished second to The Padre in the La Jolla. After winning the Oceanside, Game Warrior ran fifth in the La Jolla, unable to make progress into the swift late fractions.