With Weather Cooperating, Solana Beach Stakes Goes Sunday

Eddie’s New Dream © Benoit Photo

With the rains and winds from a potential hurricane (yes, west coasters, a hurricane) threatening to play havoc with the Sunday racing card at Del Mar, the track nonetheless for now has a full program scheduled for the day, including the 30th edition of the Solana Beach Stakes as its feature attraction.

The Solana Beach, a mile on the grass for California-bred fillies and mares, carries a purse of $150,000 and has drawn a field of six older females for the race that is schedule as No. 7 on a nine-race card. Interestingly, and unusually, five of the six runners in the affair are gray horses.

The stakes is part of the $4.85 million Golden State Series for Cal-breds, one of 39 such events that take place up and down the state over the course of the year. Eight of those races have been scheduled at Del Mar this summer.

Possible favorite in a tight-knit field for the turfer is Redddam Racing’s Eddie’s New Dream, a 5-year-old mare by the now-retired stallion Square Eddie who is almost always there or thereabouts in her races, as can be noted by her seven wins and eight placings from among her 25 starts.

Trainer Ben Cecil has named regular rider Mario Gutierrez on his charge and they’ll come out of Post 3 in the short lineup.

Chief threats to the likely favorite are Nick Alexander’s Rose Maddox and Abrams, Dutko or Paran’s Ultimate Hy. The former – who has the enviable record of five firsts and seven seconds from 16 outings – will get leading rider Juan Hernandez in the boot. Ultimate Hy will be handled by Umberto Rispoli as she comes off a nifty allowance victory at Del Mar going a mile on July 29.

Here’s the full field for the stakes in post position order with riders and morning line odds:

Rose Maddox (2-1); Youkhanna or Youkhanna’s Sunshine Babe (Kent Desormeaux, 6-1); Eddie’s New Dream (9/5); Lovingier, Madiha or Navarro’s Madiha (Antonio Aguilar, 10-1); Harris Farms’ Glorious Spring (Tiago Pereira, 8-1), and Ultimate Hy (3-1).

First post on Sunday is scheduled for 2 p.m.