The Futurity Is Now for Baffert

Bob Baffert winning the $250,000 Del Mar Futurity is becoming a given on this meeting’s final day.

For the third year in a row, the trainer was in the winner’s circle after the season’s main event for 2-year-olds with heavily favored Worldly Manner on Wednesday doing what Silver Charm and Souvenir Copy had done in 1996 and ‘97, respectively.

With little in the way of competition, the son of Riverman and 2-5 choice cruised home by five lengths under Kent Desormeaux in 1:23 for the seven furlongs.

In winning for the third time in four starts, Worldly Manner gave owner-breeders John and Betty Mabee their second consecutive win in the Futurity, and for good measure, they also own and bred Daring General, who raced coupled with the winner and finished second, 2 1/2 lengths ahead of 17-1 shot Waki American.

“You get nervous for a race like this,” said Baffert, who became the first trainer to win the Futurity three years in succession and who set a record with 10 stakes wins during the season, easily eclipsing the old mark of six shared by himself and Charlie Whittingham.

“I didn’t think he could lose, but you worry about bad luck and you still have to go out there and do it.”

Desormeaux, who rode Worldly Manner because Gary Stevens is recovering from knee surgery, sat third early while 3-1 second choice Hidden City and Prenuptual Deal set the pace, then took charge with about a quarter of a mile to go.

“He went to them on his own,” said Desormeaux, who won six stakes at Del Mar. “I never asked him and he just inhaled them. He’s got a great stride and it’s nice to be able to win a sprint with a horse that doesn’t really want to sprint.”

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Julio Canani was another trainer sorry to see the Del Mar meeting end. Tuzla’s victory in the $134,950 Palomar Handicap was the fifth stakes win of the meeting for Canani and, overall, he finished with nine wins from only 21 starters. His son, Nick, also won a pair of stakes, taking the San Clemente Handicap and Del Mar Oaks with Sicy d’Alsace.

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Baffert won the training title for the second consecutive year, finishing with 18 victories, four more than Barry Abrams and Bob Hess, Jr. Corey Nakatani topped the jockeys with 44 victories, and his 12 stakes wins equaled the Del Mar record set by Laffit Pincay in 1976 and equaled by Chris McCarron in 1995 and Stevens last year. It was the second title at Del Mar for Nakatani, who also won in 1994.

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Three-year-old colt Coronado’s Quest will be retired in two months and sent to stud as one of the country’s top stallion prospects in years, the Baltimore Sun reported.