DEL MARDEL MAR — Peter Miller had never won a Breeders’ Cup race before Saturday.
Then he won one about 10 minutes from his house in Encinitas – with his two horses in the Turf Sprint finishing first and second – and itted even his dreams aren’t as good as what happened in those 56.12 seconds at Del Mar.
“Honestly, no,” he said after the long shots Stormy Liberal and Richard’s Boy proved best in a field of 12. “I’m too much of a realist.”
Then, two hours later, Miller won another Cup race, with Roy H taking the Sprint. A great day had somehow become beyond great.
“This is starting to get old,” he quipped as he walked into the interview room for the second time. “ … I feel like Chad Brown, Bob Baffert, one of those guys.
“It’s just unbelievable; a dream come true.”
Gary Hartunian of Pacific Palisades owns all three horses, although David Bernsen – who splits time between San Diego and Las Vegas – bought an undisclosed minority share of Roy H after the gelding’s runner-up finish in the Bing Crosby this summer at Del Mar.
In two starts since the sale, Roy H – named for Hartunian’s late grandfather – has won the Santa Anita Sprint Championship and Breeders’ Cup Sprint.
“He’s a great guy, and I needed a lucky rabbit’s foot,” Hartunian explained.
Said Bernsen: “Timing is everything.”
Miller, 51, has been coming to Del Mar since he was a kid growing up in Los Angeles. He trains at San Luis Rey Downs in Bonsall.
“To run 1-2 here for my first Breeders’ Cup and here at home … is special,” he said after the first victory.
After the second win, he said, “You know, you never think you’re going to win a Breeders’ Cup race. There are just too many good horses and too many things can happen. But anyone that asked me about my horses today, I said they’re all live. Use them all. And I meant it. … I felt like they were all just coming into the race great.”
There weren’t a lot of people who used Stormy Liberal, a 5-year-old gelding who hadn’t raced in almost five months. He was 30-1, and Richard’s Boy was 13-1. The $1 exacta for the two horses paid $277.50, although Hartunian said he only bet Richard’s Boy to win.
Asked what he was thinking as the two horses raced down the stretch, with Richard’s Boy in front almost until the end, Miller said, “I’m just hoping for the wire and hoping for one of them to win. When they ran 1-2 that was just beyond beyond. It was a surreal time.”
The win by Roy H was far less surprising. Also a 5-year-old gelding, he was coming off an impressive win at Santa Anita and was the third choice at just under 5-1.
“We got great rides and great luck,” Miller said.
More locals
The news was not as good for the rest of the San Diego County contingent. Bolt d’Oro, the Juvenile favorite, raced very wide throughout and finished third for owner/trainer Mick Ruis. West Coast, owned by Gary and Mary West of Rancho Santa Fe, also finished third.
None of the other local connections hit the board. Skye Diamonds, owned by a partnership that includes Jeff Bloom of Oceanside and Jon Lindo of Carlsbad, was fourth in the Filly & Mare Sprint.
Early stakes races
Kitten’s Roar, who failed to draw into the field for the Filly & Mare Turf, wound up with a victory anyway in Saturday’s first race, the $200,000 Goldikova. Ridden by John Velazquez, she beat Thundering Sky by 2 ¼ lengths and returned $6.20 as the favorite.
The $200,000 Golden State Juvenile went to Bookies Luck ($5.20), who held off Smokem in the 7-furlong race for Cal-bred 2-year-olds. Kent Desormeaux (who was aboard Roy H), rode Bookies Luck.
Finally, the $200,000 Juvenile Turf Stakes was won by Declarationofpeace ($30.40), a long shot who had underachieved since being purchased for $2.6 million as a yearling. Ryan Moore rode the winner for trainer Aidan O’Brien.
Betting numbers increase
Saturday’s on-track handle was $15,900,812, up 17.2 percent from last year at Santa Anita.
The two-day on-track total: $25,181,317, up 21.4 percent from last year.
All-sources handle also increased. Saturday’s total was $113,803,603, up 6.15 percent from last year. The two-day total was $166,077,486, up 5.9 percent from last year.
Not Baffert’s best weekend
If any trainer figured to have a big Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar, it was Bob Baffert. He was starting 11 horses, including three favorites, at a track where he has won far more stakes races than anyone else.
But, on a weekend when long shots dominated, Baffert came up empty.
He did have four runner-up finishes – Collected (Classic), Abel Tasman (Distaff), Alluring Star (Juvenile Fillies) and Solomini (Juvenile) – but his three favorites all failed to hit the board.
Mor Spirit was eighth in Friday’s Dirt Mile; Drefong was sixth in the Sprint; and Arrogate, bidding for Horse of the Year honors, finished in a dead-heat for fifth in the Classic. It could be argued that Mor Spirit, coming off a five-month layoff, or Arrogate, who had lost twice here over the summer, shouldn’t have been favored, but perhaps it speaks to Baffert’s previous success that they were.
It was the first time since 2012 that Baffert did not saddle a Breeders’ Cup winner. He had six wins over the last four Cups, including an unprecedented three straight in the Classic.
Baffert said he was happy with how several of his horses ran, including Collected, West Coast (third in the Classic) and the 2-year-olds, but obviously frustrated with others, particularly Arrogate and Drefong, both of whom won Cup races last year at Santa Anita.
“I knew in the first 100 yards it was over when he couldn’t make the lead,” Baffert said of Drefong. “He’s been good to us and I really can’t complain. I knew the inside post would be tough on him.”
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