Roman Ruler Is Heavy Favorite

Most Del Mar Futurity winners haven’t transferred their success to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Maybe it’s the stretching out from a one-turn seven furlongs -- the Futurity distance since 1993 -- to a two-turn 1 1/16 miles that has mattered.

Whatever the reasons, only one Del Mar winner -- Tasso in 1985 -- has also won the Breeders’ Cup race for 2-year-olds.

Today’s heavy favorite in the 57th edition of the Futurity, Roman Ruler, might, like Tasso, be an exception. There are two other undefeated horses in the seven-horse field besides Roman Ruler, yet Jeff Tufts, the Del Mar oddsmaker, has made trainer Bob Baffert’s colt a prohibitive 3-5 on the morning line.

“He’s something,” said jockey Corey Nakatani when Roman Ruler won the Best Pal Stakes by seven lengths here Aug. 15.

Roman Ruler’s reputation had preceded him. He paid 50 cents on the dollar that day, and in his only previous start, against maidens at Hollywood Park on June 19, he was 4-5 as he won by four lengths.

The Best Pal, run at 6 1/2 furlongs, was still not an easy race for Roman Ruler, because as he started to pass rivals on the far turn, he had to avoid the fallen Wetherly, who broke a leg and was euthanized.

“I was lucky to miss” Wetherly, Nakatani said after the race. “My horse was just terrific. He was so much the best that he just went ahead and won real easy.”

Nakatani, who has won 51 races through the first 42 days of the meet, trails only Tyler Baze in the standings going into today’s final card. Baze, who has been riding with a broken bone in his foot, the result of a starting-gate accident Saturday, won three races on Labor Day and has 52 for the meet.

Baze rides eight races today, including Swiss Lad, fresh from a maiden win on Aug. 24, in the Futurity. Nakatani also has eight mounts.

The Futurity field also includes Declan’s Moon, who broke in with an easy win at 5 1/2 furlongs July 31, and Chandtrue, winner of his four starts, three of them stakes, the last of which was the Hollywood Juvenile.

Starting with Silver Charm in 1996, Baffert won the Del Mar Futurity seven consecutive times. The streak ended last year when Baffert’s Cooperation ran fourth as Richard Mandella saddled Siphonizer for his win. Another of the horses entered today is the Baffert-trained Allright, a son of Silver Charm who ran seventh in his debut on Aug. 21.

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Trainer Mike Machowsky said that Southern Image, whose career has been plagued by foot problems, would miss the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Lone Star Park on Oct. 30. Machowsky told the Daily Racing Form that Southern Image, whose wins this year include the Santa Anita Handicap and the Pimlico Special, wouldn’t run again until next year.