Grace Adler, Flavien Prat win Del Mar Debutante

DEL MAR — They were flying early in Sunday’s $300,000 Grade I Del Mar Debutante, setting up the 7-furlong race beautifully for jockey Flavien Prat and Grace Adler.

With Elm Drive and Eda zipping along in 21.78 seconds for the opening quarter and 44.37 for the half mile, Prat sat comfortably in sixth place, biding his time until it was time to zoom home.

Grace Adler, the 9-2 fourth choice in the betting, made a wide, sweeping move turning for home and ran away from the other seven 2-year-old fillies. The Curlin filly won by 11 1/4 lengths.

It was Baffert’s third consecutive victory in the race and his record 10th overall. The winner ran the distance in 1:23.76.

“It was kind of set up,” Baffert said. “When they are going that fast … this track, you can’t go that fast. But this is a really good filly.”

Grace Adler, named for the character in the hit television series “Will and Grace,” won her debut by three-quarters of a length in a 5 1/2-furlong maiden special weight on July 31 at Del Mar. She cost her owners, Willow Grace Farm and Michael Lund Petersen, $700,000.

When the early leaders sped away early, Baffert had the right jockey on his filly. Prat won four more races Sunday and is on his way to another Del Mar riding title with 44 victories heading into today’s closing day.

“He’s really smart, and he really studies the race like all the top riders,” Baffert said. “You don’t have to give him instructions. He knew what he had to do. He’s pretty cool, too. He doesn’t panic or anything.”

Baffert also had the 6-5 favorite, Eda, who is still looking for her first victory after losing photo finishes in her first two starts and finishing fifth Sunday. John Velazquez had the riding assignment.

“He (Velazquez) was telling me that they never gave her a breather, and he rides Gamine (another speedy Baffert filly),” the trainer said. “He said they just stayed on him the whole time. When she drew the 2 hole, I knew she was compromised there.”

Said Prat: “Bob just told me that she wasn’t as fast as the other fillies, but that she’d come running. He was certainly right. It might have looked like I moved too early with her, but it was more a case of them coming back to me. We were going forward and they were coming back.”

Baffert said the $200,000 Grade II Chandelier Stakes, a Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” race on opening day of Santa Anita’s fall meet Oct. 1, could be the next assignment for Grace Adler.

“Then if she’s doing well, we’ll bring her back down here (for the Breeders’ Cup on Nov. 5-6),” he said.

Dance to the Music, the 3-1 second choice trained by Mark Glatt and ridden by Abel Cedillo, finished second, 2 3/4 lengths in front of 28-1 longshot Bicameral with Mario Gutierrez aboard.The 31-day meet wraps up Monday with the $300,000 Grade I Del Mar Futurity and a mandatory Rainbow Pick Six payout (races 5-10).

FLIGHTLINE WOWS ‘EM

John Sadler’s Flightline, who hadn’t been seen since his 13 1/4-length debut victory at Santa Anita on April 24 because of a foot abscess, turned in the performance of the meet in Sunday’s eighth race.

This time the 3-year-old Tapit colt beat five rivals by 12 3/4-lengths as the 1-5 favorite, running the 6 furlongs in an insanely fast 1:08.05 considering this hasn’t been a fast main track most of the meet.Sadler said they’re pointing Flightline, ridden by Prat, to the Grade I Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita on Dec. 26 if all goes well.