Horses to Watch: Follow 2 exciting Del Mar maiden winners

Endlessly looked like a talented young turf horse in the making when rallying to victory in a one-mile maiden special weight over the Del Mar lawn on Sunday. The son of multiple Grade 1-winning turf star Oscar Performance rated in third place behind slow splits of 23.25, 48.56 and 1:14.02 and lacked room in the homestretch, but found a seam close to home and exploded through to win by 2 1/4 lengths in 1:38.33.

With an unencumbered run, Endlessly might have won by much more, so this Michael McCarthy trainee is well worth following. Don’t forget, McCarthy’s Rombauer won his debut racing one mile over the Del Mar turf before going on to win the 2021 Preakness.

Heartland

A half-brother to champion and successful sire Classic Empire, Heartland started as the 4-5 favorite in a 5 1/2-furlong maiden special weight on Saturday at Del Mar and ran to expectations. The son of Justify raced greenly during the early stages and dropped nearly six lengths behind blazing splits of 21.23 and 44.51 seconds, but down the homestretch he gobbled up ground to win by two lengths in 1:03.20.

Heartland’s quick final time translated to an excellent 90 Beyer Speed Figure from Daily Racing Form. This exciting Bob Baffert trainee might be a future stakes winner in the making.

Recent watch list winners

Elite Power

Last year’s champion male sprinter picked up his eighth consecutive victory when surging late to beat Gunite (see below) in the Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap (G1) at Saratoga. The early fractions weren’t particularly fast (22.64 and 45.49 seconds), but Elite Power rallied relentlessly through the homestretch to win the six-furlong sprint by a head in 1:09.22. At this point, he’s well on his way to winning a second Eclipse award.

Forte

Battled his way between rivals to win a deep renewal of the Jim Dandy (G2) at Saratoga. Adding blinkers seemed to make a difference for last year’s champion 2-year-old male, who stayed closer to the early pace before rallying gamely between rivals to prevail by a nose in 1:49.61 seconds for 1 1/8 miles. He’s shaping up as the favorite for the Travers (G1) at Saratoga next month.

New York Thunder

After winning his first three starts on turf and synthetic, New York Thunder switched to dirt for Saratoga’s Amsterdam (G2) and ran out of his skin, setting blazing fractions of 21.48 and 43.56 seconds before powering clear down the homestretch to dominate by 7 1/2 lengths. New York Thunder completed 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:14.65 seconds and figures to draw plenty of betting support if he comes back in the H. Allen Jerkens Memorial (G1) at Saratoga next month.

Worth another try

Count Again

Returned from a 14-month layoff in the 1 1/8-mile Eddie Read (G2) at Del Mar and finished a decent fourth. The two-time Grade 1 winner trailed through slow fractions of 24.54, 49.20 and 1:13.07 and was still seven lengths off the pace with three furlongs remaining, but even though the pace accelerated at that point, Count Again gained 4 3/4 lengths to finish only 2 1/4 lengths away from victory. He ran his final three furlongs in approximately 34.76 seconds and is worth watching again next time.

Disarm

Trailed the Jim Dandy field for most of the journey before passing one rival to finish fourth. It wasn’t the most inspiring performance at first glance, but Disarm was only beaten 2 1/4 lengths against a strong field and can’t be judged too harshly. He didn’t get the best pace setup and can rebound with a better setup (perhaps against slightly easier competition) in the future.

Dr. Schivel

Launched a big outside rally from ninth place to gain the lead at the furlong marker of the Bing Crosby (G1) at Del Mar, only to flatten out late and finish third by a head against The Chosen Vron and Anarchist. This was a big effort in defeat, so I’ll give Dr. Schivel another try next time.

Saudi Crown

Ran a gallant race in the Jim Dandy, setting fractions of 23.93, 48.10 and 1:12.30 before battling on through solid closing fractions to finish second by a nose against Forte. Saudi Crown ran fast in defeat and finished ahead of three graded-stakes winners, so I’ll view this effort in a positive light.

Spirit of Makena

Broke slowly in the Bing Crosby and ran into significant trouble around the turn, checking severely and stumbling. He lost a lot of ground and wasn’t asked for much thereafter, so I’ll draw a line through his last-place finish and see if he can bounce back next time.

Twilight Gleaming

Twilight Gleaming is another who ran into trouble at Del Mar. She broke from the rail in the Daisycutter Handicap, got boxed in around the turn and checked sharply while trying to rally inside down the homestretch. She crossed the wire in seventh place and was upgraded to sixth place via disqualification, but the truth is Twilight Gleaming never got a fair chance to run. I’ll forgive her subpar finish.

Gunite

Ran a big race against Elite Power in the Vanderbilt, tracking and setting the pace before succumbing in the final strides to finish second by a head. Gunite pulled 6 1/4 lengths clear of Smile Sprint (G2) winner Dean Delivers to reiterate his standing as one of the best sprinters in the United States.

Off the watch list

Coffee in Bed

Drew’s Gold

Upcoming entries

Amazing Grace

The German-bred mare Amazing Grace won the 1 1/2-mile Orchid (G3) at Gulfstream Park to kick off her U.S. campaign, but she was subsequently compromised by an extremely slow pace when fourth in the 1 3/8-mile Sheepshead Bay (G2), and stretching out over two miles for the Belmont Gold Cup (G2) against males produced another fourth-place finish. Perhaps Amazing Grace can bounce back while returning to 1 1/2 miles (and the filly-and-mare ranks) for Thursday’s ninth race at Saratoga, the Glens Falls (G2, post time 5:44 p.m. EDT).

War Like Goddess

Can War Like Goddess win a third straight renewal of the Glens Falls? She’s been North America’s leading long-distance grass mare each of the last two years, but needs to bounce back from an uncharacteristic sixth-place finish in the New York (G1) last time out. The good news is, the 1 1/4-mile distance of the New York was likely too short for War Like Goddess, who boasts a near-perfect 6-for-7 record racing 1 1/2 miles.

Which horses do you have your eyes on?

In this biweekly series, racing analyst J. Keeler Johnson shares promising horses from his handicapping watch list, reviewing runners who have recently caught his eye and previewing horses scheduled to run back in the near future.