Blue Stripe Runs Away From Shedaresthedevil in Clement Hirsch

Pozo de Luna's Blue Stripe (Arg) (Equal Stripes {Arg}), a Group 1 winner in her native country, scored her first top-level win in the big leagues of American racing Saturday, conquering odds-on defending champion Shedaresthedevil (Daredevil) and three other rivals in Del Mar's GI Clement L. Hirsch S. The victory in the Win and You're In qualifier punched Blue Stripe's ticket to the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff.

Annexing the G1 Criadores last May Hipodromo in Argentina for trainer Nicolas Martin Ferro, the bay was ambitiously spotted in the Distaff in her Stateside debut and finished a well-beaten seventh. Rallying to capture the GII Santa Margarita S. Apr. 30 at Santa Anita, she was a narrow second in the GII Santa Maria S. there last out June 18.

Sent off as the 53-10 third choice in this scratched-down field, Blue Stripe settled in third as Private Mission (Into Mischief) showed the way by a length and a tail to odds-on Shedaresthedevil through a :23.18 quarter. The pacesetter let it out a bit past a half in :46.82, but the chalk came after her entering the far turn and swept past with ease midway around the bend. Blue Stripe's bid was not far off though, and she challenged Shedaresthedevil going by three-quarters in 1:11.42. Surging to the front straightening into the lane, Blue Stripe slammed the door by the eighth pole and held firm for a two-length success over Desert Dawn (Cupid), who tagged the favorite for second in the final jump.

Pedigree Notes:

Blue Stripe is one of 59 stakes winners, 49 graded/group stakes winners and 24 Grade I/Group 1 winners for influential South American sire Equal Stripes and is his first American Grade I victor. She is a half-sister to multimillionaire and 2019 GI Breeders' Cup Distaff heroine Blue Prize (Arg) (Pure Prize), who sold for $5 million to OXO Equine two days later at Fasig-Tipton November. Blues for Sale, a three-time group winner in Argentina, has a 2-year-old Suggestive Boy (Arg) filly named Blue Coast (Arg).

Saturday, Del Mar
CLEMENT L. HIRSCH S.-GI, $400,000, Del Mar, 8-6, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/16m, 1:42.97, ft.
1–BLUE STRIPE (ARG), 123, m, 5, by Equal Stripes (Arg)
1st Dam: Blues for Sale (Arg) (MGSW-Arg), by Not For Sale (Arg)
2nd Dam: Key Cure, by Cure the Blues
3rd Dam: Dancer's Key, by Key to the Mint
O-Pozo de Luna, Inc.; B-La Manija (ARG); T-Marcelo Polanco;
J-Hector Isaac Berrios. $240,000. Lifetime Record: 10-6-1-2,
$461,882. *1/2 to Blue Prize (ARG) (Pure Prize), G1SW-Arg &
MGISW-USA, $2,692,253. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple
Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Desert Dawn, 119, f, 3, by Cupid
1st Dam: Ashley's Glory, by Honour and Glory
2nd Dam: Ashley Secret, by Dr. Carter
3rd Dam: Whatever It Takes, by Hatchet Man
($32,000 RNA Ylg '20 OBSOCT). O/B-H & E Ranch (AZ); T-Philip
D'Amato. $80,000.
3–Shedaresthedevil, 123, m, 5, by Daredevil
1st Dam: Starship Warpspeed, by Congrats
2nd Dam: Andria's Forest, by Forestry
3rd Dam: Andriana B., by Far North
($100,000 Wlg '17 KEENOV; $20,000 RNA Ylg '18 KEESEP;
$280,000 2yo '19 KEENOV; $5,000,000 4yo '21 FTKNOV).
O-Flurry Racing Stables LLC, Qatar Racing Limited & Whisper
Hill Farm, LLC; B-WinStar Farm, LLC (KY); T-Brad H. Cox.
$48,000.
Margins: 1 3/4, HD, 17 1/4. Odds: 5.30, 6.30, 0.80.
Also Ran: Soothsay, Private Mission. Scratched: Lisette, Samurai Charm. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.