DEL MAR — The only way to beat War Emblem might be to give him the gate, but another bad start for the Kentucky Derby winner shouldn't detract from Came Home's authoritative win Sunday in the $1-million Pacific Classic at Del Mar.
From the same barn--trainer Paco Gonzalez and owners Trudy McCaffery and John Toffan--that won Del Mar's richest race with Free House in 1998, Came Home responded to the rat-a-tat-tat of jockey Mike Smith's whipping from the quarter pole to the wire, winning by three-quarters of a length before 36,041, the track's third-largest crowd. War Emblem, more than 10 lengths better when Came Home struggled to finish sixth in the Derby in May, had problems loading, came away late and ran sixth after leading for a few strides at the top of the stretch.
When War Emblem stumbled and almost fell at the break of the Belmont Stakes, leading to an eighth-place finish and a squandered Triple Crown, trainer Bob Baffert attributed the awkward beginning to racing luck. But after the Pacific Classic, Baffert sizzled, suggesting that Del Mar's starting-gate crew and Gary Brinson, the official starter, had compromised War Emblem's chances.
With all 14 starters in the gate, War Emblem, who drew the No. 6 post, was backed out of his stall for the second time. He was barely back in when Brinson released the field. War Emblem, who won the Derby on the front end, brushed the horse next to him, leaving the gate as jockey Victor Espinoza settled for an early third-place position behind Sky Jack and Bosque Redondo, Came Home's stablemate, whose role was to ensure a solid early pace.
"I understand the starter was trying to help, but I don't need that kind of help," Baffert said. "I kind of think [Brinson] caught him up in the air. I was wishing I had a radio to tell Victor to hold [Brinson] up. I think the starter sort of over-compensated, and that was one of the worst things--for the gate to open at that time, when he was still walking."
The son of a trainer, Brinson is a veteran starter who handles the same duties at Hollywood Park. A 14-horse field is a rare experience for the Del Mar gate crew. According to Joe Harper, president of the track, that many horses haven't run in a race here since the Del Mar Futurity in 1961.
