It doesn’t always turn out that way, but Saturday’s $300,000 Grade I Hollywood Derby at Del Mar was a prime example of a race playing out the way it looked on paper.
The two favorites — Program Trading (4-5) and Webslinger (7-2) — were next to last and last up the backstretch in the seven-horse field before rallying strongly to finish first and second in the mile and an eighth turf race for 3-year-olds. Program Trading held off Webslinger by a neck to earn first prize of $180,000.
Final time was 1:47.82 as Flavien Prat won his fourth race of the afternoon to pull within 20-17 of Juan Hernandez in the battle for top jockey of Del Mar’s fall Bing Crosby meet that ends Sunday.
East Coast-based trainer Chad Brown won his fourth Hollywood Derby, part of Del Mar’s Turf Festival, shipping Program Trading west after a runner-up finish in the Grade III Virginia Derby on Sept. 9. The son of Lope de Vega hiked his earnings to $695,520 with his fourth victory in five starts.
“We had a good trip,” Prat said. “The pace was pretty fair. He relaxed well and had a good turn of foot. Luckily there was a horse in front of me (Redistricting) that bolted around the turn so I had a clear path. As soon as I asked him to make a run, he was there for me. I think he will still improve. He has run well every time.”
Prat has been aboard the winner in his past four races. The victory was Prat’s fourth stakes win of the 13-day meet and his first in the Hollywood Derby. He has 94 stakes victories overall at Del Mar, tied for seventh most all time with Bill Shoemaker and Eddie Delahoussaye.
Brown stayed home to watch the race and sent assistant Jose Hernandez to saddle Program Trading, who’s got two Grade I victories to his credit. Hernandez was also here last year when the Brown-trained Regal Glory won her second consecutive Matriarch Stakes.
“He was a little behind in the post parade,” Hernandez said. “He was playing. I had him stay with the pony, make sure they’re OK. The horse, he’s been doing so well. We arrived Tuesday and he galloped three or four days. This is our routine, trying to win some races.”
Silver Knott, the 9-2 third choice in the betting, set fractions of 23.17, 47.19 and 1:12.19 before giving way and finishing third under Jamie Spencer, 1 1/2 lengths behind Webslinger.
Zona Verde, a 10-1 longshot ridden by Hernandez and trained by turf master Philip D’Amato, went gate to wire to win the $100,000 grass race for 2-year-old fillies by one length over 8-5 favorite Lady de Berry.
A daughter of Calyx, Zona Verde won for the second time in seven starts to pad her earnings to $114,926 with the winner’s share of $60,000. She went into the race off a sixth-place showing in the Grade III Surfer Girl Stakes at Santa Anita on Oct. 8.
Final time for the 1 mile was 1:36.02.
“This filly broke good and Juan just took the initiative and that was the winning move,” D’Amato said.
