DEL MAR : Flawlessly Catches Longshot to Win the Ramona Handicap

Favored Flawlessly, the defending champion female turf runner, caught longshot front-runner Heart Of Joy in the stretch to win the $321,500 Ramona Handicap for fillies and mares at Del Mar on Saturday.

Flawlessly, ridden by Chris McCarron, beat Heart Of Joy by a length for her 11th turf victory in 14 starts. She has never finished worse than second on the grass.

Jolypha, ridden by Kent Desormeaux and the second betting favorite, faded to sixth of seven in the 1 1/8-mile race. Let’s Elope rallied to finish third.

Flawlessly paid $3.80 to win and Heart Of Joy returned $14.20.

“Awesome,” McCarron said of Flawlessly. “Awesome.”

“She does everything so right,” trainer Charlie Whittingham said. “She was running so easily, I knew she’d win.”

The only surprises were how long Heart Of Joy lasted and how completely Jolypha folded. Heart of Joy, ridden by David Flores, led by as many as six lengths down the backstretch and the race seemed set up for Flawlessly and Jolypha, running together in second and third, to overhaul her in the stretch.

“I ignored the filly in front,” McCarron said. “I ran the race like I was in front myself. When Desormeaux let Jolypha run, I let mine start to go.

“I looked over my shoulder and saw we were a good way in front of the fourth horse, so I ducked down and got outside so I wouldn’t get stuck behind the leading horse.”

Everyone expected Heart Of Joy to stop in the stretch.

“She’s run many times, and you’ve seen me ride her, and she’s very difficult to rate,” McCarron said. “If she was running a length or two in front, she’d have been pulling David out of the saddle trying to get going. What surprised me was that she hung on like she did.”

Whittingham was aware before the race that there was no apparent pace-setter.

“I told Chris to use his judgment,” Whittingham said. “She’s got enough that Chris could put her wherever he wanted. It wouldn’t make any difference. The thing about her is that she never sweats, never worries. You could take her home and put her in your parlor.”

It was obvious at the top of the stretch that Flawlessly was going to get past Heart Of Joy. It was also obvious Jolypha was finished.

“When I asked her to go and punch it, she was done,” Desormeaux said. “She wanted to run to the outside fence. Flawlessly is, and always has been, the real McCoy.”

Whittingham said he would like to take Flawlessly to Chicago and run her against males in the Arlington Million. It would depend on the situation with the equine virus at Arlington, which is being treated throughout the stable area with a vaccine.

“It would definitely be a step up in class, or at least in talent,” McCarron said, “but Charlie’s the master. He calls the shots.”

Horse Racing Notes

Kotashaan, ridden by Kent Desormeaux, is the 9-5 morning-line favorite for today’s $300,000 Eddie Read Handicap for over 1 1/8 miles on turf. The Richard Mandella-trained horse won his last three starts at Santa Anita, all at 1 1/2 miles or longer, but did not run at Hollywood Park. His style in all three races was to trail by three to six lengths and rally on the far turn. Desormeaux’s challenge will be where to comfortably place his horse in what figures to be a tactical race with no obvious pace-setter.

Pat Valenzuela, still stiff from a spill Friday afternoon, took off all of his mounts Saturday except for his ride on Let’s Elope in the Ramona. Sal Gonzalez Jr. and Chris McCarron, also involved in the spill, lost their mounts Friday but came back without missing any rides. None of the involved horses were injured. Gonzalez skipped his last two mounts Saturday because of illness.

Eddie Delahoussaye returned to Del Mar on Saturday for the first time since he was inducted into thoroughbred racing’s Hall of Fame on Thursday in New York. He rode even-money favorite Dream Trapp to victory in the second race.

Trainer Jude Feld’s telephone listing in the stable directory was “only” off by one digit. This was enough to cause rather rude awakenings for the party who has that wrong number. A trainer’s day starts at 5 a.m. . . . The string of favorites winning Saturday produced a modest $297 Pick Six payoff with 519 winning tickets. Bettors picking five out of six won $16.80.