Del Mar Invitational Handicap : Whittingham Receives a Welcome Home Gift as Payant Caps Sweep

It didn’t take Charlie Whittingham long to erase the bad taste of Sunday’s Arlington Million in Chicago, where one of his horses got sick and the other finished up the track.

The 76-year-old trainer merely hitched a ride home on a private jet and started fresh Monday afternoon, winning with all three of his starters, including the Argentine horse Payant in the $300,000 Del Mar Invitational Handicap.

“I came back blazing,” said Whittingham of Payant’s narrow victory over favored Saratoga Passage in the meeting’s richest race for older horses.

Whittingham won his first Invitational in 1961 with Scotland, when the race was worth only $18,000 to the winner. Payant, his sixth winner, earned $165,000.

The 5-year-old bay had been either overmatched or unlucky in almost a year of California competition since being imported in early 1988. The son of Cipayo had been been close without winning in eight stakes, including a very unlucky fourth in the Santa Anita Handicap last March.

“It has been a little frustrating,” said co-owner Dr. William Seabaugh of Cape Girardeau, Mo. Seabaugh was part owner of 1987 Del Mar Futurity runner-up Bold Second. “But you have to remember he’s been running against the best horses around.”

And with the country’s best turf horses running in the Million on Sunday, Payant’s job was made a little easier. But not that easy.

Saratoga Passage, winner of the Eddie Read Handicap at Del Mar on Aug. 13, appeared in control of the race nearly every step of the 1 3/8 miles. Gary Stevens kept him close to pacesetters Truly Met and Blade of the Ball, then made his run for the money at the top of the stretch.

At that point, the filly No Review, winner of last year’s Del Mar Oaks, was closing fastest on the outside.

“When she started to move, she got me excited,” said jockey Rafael Meza, who was trying for his biggest Del Mar payday.

Payant was moving faster. Under a perfectly timed ride by Robbie Davis, Payant caught and passed both No Review and Saratoga Passage to win by a short head. No Review was beaten a similar margin in settling for third.

“That’s one of the reasons we like riding Robbie,” said Whittingham’s assistant, Rodney Rash. “His timing is perfect.”

Davis, as usual, gave most of the credit to the horse.

“When I saw Saratoga Passage open up I didn’t think I was going to catch him,” said Davis, who has won four stakes for Whittingham this summer. “Then he really took off, switched leads and kicked it in. If the stretch wasn’t so short here he would have won easier.”

Payant, the second choice of the Labor Day crowd, paid $8.80, $4.80 and $3.40. Saratoga Passage returned $3.40 and $3, and No Review paid $6.80. The all-Whittingham Triple--including She’s a V.P. in the sixth and Runaway Prince in the seventh--paid $840.

Horse Racing Notes

Eddie Delahoussaye’s bad luck continued on Monday when his Del Mar Handicap mount, the morning line second choice Brisque, sustained a minor hoof injury and had to be scratched. Delahoussaye had picked Brisque over Saratoga Passage for the race. . . . Sunday Silence continued to train well for the Sept. 24 Super Derby with a mile work Monday at Del Mar in 1:39 4/5 under exercise rider Pam Mabes. The Derby and Preakness winner will leave for Louisiana Downs a few days before the $1 million race. . . . Mister Wonderful II, ridden by Fernando Toro, bounced back from a sixth-place finish in the Aug. 13 Eddie Read Handicap at Del Mar to win the $100,000 San Francisco Handicap at Bay Meadows Monday, beating Skip Out Front by a half-length. . . . Trainer Ricky Sebolt drew a six-month suspension from the Del Mar stewards for “conduct detrimental to horse racing.” Sebolt, who trains a small stable at Pomona, sent a horse out for a recent workout, contrary to the advice of two veterinarians. The horse broke down and had to be destroyed, and the exercise rider suffered a broken wrist. “There had been problems with the way he conducted his business in earlier cases,” said steward David Samuel. “But in this instance his actions endangered both horse and rider.”. . . . Visiting Japanese jockey Yutaka Take was 0 for 2 Monday on longshots but still got rave reviews from local riders. “I’m very impressed with him,” said Gary Stevens. “He has a very American style.” . . . Mill Native will pass Thursday’s $60,000 Figonero Handicap, but the 1 1/16-mile grass feature has attracted the Europeans In Extremis and Fair Judgment, as well as Nasty Naskra, a two-time turf winner at the meet.