By Alan Carasso
It wouldn't rise to the level of a horse like Dare and Go stunning history-seeking Cigar in the 1996 renewal, but it was a surprise of similar magnitude in Saturday's GI FanDuel Pacific Classic, as Calumet Farm's Mixto (Good Magic) plugged on late and grabbed an exceptionally game Full Serrano (Arg) (Full Mast) to earn a fees-paid berth into the field for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic at odds of 22-1 some may have considered underlaid.
Mixto, who owned just a maiden victory from 13 starts prior to Saturday, was aggressively ridden by Kyle Frey from the outside stall and was put into the race immediately, forcing the pace through reasonable early fractions of :23.42 and :46.95 as favored Dr. Venkman (Ghostzapper)–last-out winner of the GII San Diego Handicap–enjoyed a beautiful trip from just behind the pacesetters in third. Reincarnate (Good Magic) tracked Dr. Venkman to his outside.
Full Serrano still had Mixto breathing down his neck after six furlongs in 1:11.62, but continued to bowl along beneath Reylu Gutierrez and was still going great guns as the field approached the stretch, with Frey now hard at work aboard Mixto. Still battling gamely into the final furlong, Full Serrano started to shorten stride and began to look for the wire, but Mixto did the better work of the two and was along in the final few jumps to cause the upset. Reincarnate wasn't far away in third, while Dr. Venkman, who had to alter course in deep stretch but was never a true winning chance, settled for fourth.
“The original plan was for me to go to the front,” said Frey, who also won the GII Del Mar Handicap aboard Gold Phoenix (Ire) (Belardo {Ire}) earlier on the program and was celebrating the first top-level win of his career. “But in the paddock I asked Doug (trainer O'Neill), I said if somebody goes crazy in there, are you OK with me taking a hold?' He said Sure.' So he was OK with Plan A and Plan B. He came running for me. So sweet. This is a tribute to the glory of God. This is the biggest day of racing in my career. No doubt.”
Mixto won his maiden at career start number seven at this venue last November and has not seen allowance company since. Second in the GII San Antonio Stakes in December and third in the GII San Pasqual Stakes the next month, he was fifth after attending the early pace in the GI Santa Anita Handicap Mar. 3. Third in the GIII Californian Stakes Apr. 20, the chestnut slipped to fifth in the GII Gold Cup May 27 and was most recently runner-up as the favorite in the July 7 Pleasanton Mile Stakes.
Pedigree Notes:
Mixto is the 19th stakes winner, 11th graded winner and fifth Grade I winner for Good Magic and his third descending from a Danzig-line dam (the full-brothers Mage and Dornoch are out of Puca, by Big Brown, whose sire Boundary was by Danzig). Concerto is now the broodmare sire of eight black-type winners, including the late GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile hero Battle of Midway (Smart Strike).
Mixto's dam, who was purchased by Farfellow Farms in foal to Awesome Again for $42,000 at Keeneland November in 2015, is a half-sister to 2010 GI Oak Leaf Stakes winner Rigoletta, the dam of the aforementioned Battle of Midway, as well as the MSW/MGSP Moretti (Medaglia d'Oro). She is also kin to Almost a Valentine (High Cotton), whose son Patternrecognition (Adios Charlie) won the GI Cigar Mile Handicap.
Musical Mystery is also the dam of the 3-year-old filly Mystical Chant (Liam's Map), an eight-start maiden who was recently claimed by Greg Foley for Tagg Team Racing for $30,000, the 2-year-old colt Olafmoon (Malibu Moon) and a yearling full-brother to Mixto that sells as hip 1301 at the upcoming Keeneland September Sale. Empty for 2024, Musical Mystery was bred to Mage this year.
#9 MIXTO ($46.40) pulls off the upset in the $1,000,000 FanDuel Racing Pacific Classic (G1) at @DelMarRacing. @FreytheF rode the @DougONeill1 trainee to his first graded victory. Mixto has guaranteed himself a spot in the starting gate for the @BreedersCup Classic. pic.twitter.com/qh7h1SaUGQ
— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) September 1, 2024
Saturday, Del Mar
FANDUEL RACING PACIFIC CLASSIC S.-GI, $1,001,500, Del Mar, 8-31, 3yo/up, 1 1/4m, 2:02.10, ft.
1–MIXTO, 124, c, 4, by Good Magic
1st Dam: Musical Mystery, by Concerto
2nd Dam: Almost Aprom Queen, by Montbrook
3rd Dam: Romantic Dinner, by Who's for Dinner
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN, 1ST GRADE
I WIN. ($140,000 2yo '22 OBSAPR). O-Calumet Farm;
B-Farfellow Farms Ltd. (KY); T-Doug F. O'Neill; J-Kyle Frey.
$600,000. Lifetime Record: 14-2-2-4, $782,180. Werk Nick
Rating: A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Full Serrano (Arg), 124, h, 5, Full Mast–Serra Do Mar (Arg),
by Jump Start. 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. O-Hronis Racing LLC;
B-Haras Gran Muneca (ARG); T-John W. Sadler. $200,000.
3–Reincarnate, 124, c, 4, Good Magic–Allanah, by Scat Daddy.
($775,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing,
Madaket Stables LLC, Robert E. Masterson, Stonestreet Stables
LLC, Jay A. Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital LLC and
Catherine Donovan; B-Woods Edge Farm, LLC (KY); T-Bob
Baffert. $120,000.
Margins: HF, HF, 2. Odds: 22.20, 7.90, 5.20.
Also Ran: Dr. Venkman, There Goes Harvard, None Above the Law, Katonah, Il Miracolo. Scratched: Adare Manor.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
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