USA Is a Winner in Jockey Challenge

The first Santa Anita International Jockey Challenge belonged to the old timers and many of those in attendance were delighted it turned out that way.

Jockeys Eddie Delahoussaye, 46, and Laffit Pincay, Jr., 51, helped lead Team USA to victory over Team Europe in the four-race competition, 48 1/2-35 1/2.

Delahoussaye, whose move to California was triggered when he won a similar competition at Hollywood Park in the late 1970s, was the top individual among the eight riders who competed.

He finished with 17 1/2 points, most of them provided when Dombey, who was returning after a lengthy layoff for trainer Darrell Vienna, rallied from last to win the final event in the challenge. Delahoussaye just missed a second victory when Blackwater was beaten by a nose in the day’s third race.

Team Europe, which consisted of Frankie Dettori, Michael Kinane, Olivier Peslier and Kieren Fallon, held the lead through the first three races, but the American quartet of Delahoussaye, Pincay, Gary Stevens and Jerry Bailey finished 1-2-3-4 in the concluding race.

Kinane, the pride of Ireland, won the third with favored Captain Collins, then Peslier, a leading rider in France, won the fourth race with 9-1 shot Sahara King and it was his first winner in this country.

“Going into the [last] race, we were about five points back and the strategy was to win and have one finish third because that was the only way we could win,” said Delahoussaye.

“But, we ran one, two, three, four, so that was even better. This was great. We did it last year at Lone Star Park [in Texas] and it was a great event, but this was even better because people got a chance to see some of the European riders and they are starting to ride more like the U.S. riders.”

Pincay, who won the fifth with 7-2 shot Nor’easter and got a loud ovation when he was introduced, certainly enjoyed himself.

“It was a lot of fun and I hope they do it every year,” he said. “Any time trainers talk about jockeys being old, I hope they remember this day. You can do a lot of things when you’ve got the horse.

“I was so happy [when winning on Nor’easter] I felt like I had won another Kentucky Derby.”

*

Although he failed to win a race in the Challenge, Dettori more than made up for it later in the afternoon.

The Italian-born jockey rode Kessem Power to a $30.60 surprise in the $250,000 San Luis Rey Stakes, beating 5-2 favorite Storm Trooper by a half-length in 2:28 2/5 for the 1 1/2 miles on turf. Star Performance was third.

A 6-year-old bred in New Zealand, Kessem Power provided trainer Mike Mitchell with the biggest win of his career and is also his finest claim. He took Kessem Power for owner Robert Baron for $50,000 last Aug. 15 at Del Mar and the horse has since won six of nine and earned $331,250.

Worse than third only once since joining Mitchell’s barn--and that was when he clipped heels and unseated jockey Kent Desormeaux last month in the San Luis Obispo Handicap--Kessem Power overtook Storm Trooper, who was trying to give trainer Neil Drysdale a sweep of the weekend stakes, in the final yards.

“I met [Mitchell] in Hong Kong [two years ago] and he had a lot of confidence in me,” said Dettori, who did his famous flying dismount after taking the winner’s circle picture. “He told me, ‘Look, he’s got a big kick and if you can wait until the final furlong marker, then you have a big button to press.’ It turned out he was absolutely right.

“I spent four winters in California [before returning to Europe] and that was a very important time in my career. I learned so much from these riders here and to come back and finally win one is great. It is a day to remember, that’s for sure.”

Notes

Owners Pam and Marty Wygod have ended a long association with trainer Ron Ellis and have transferred a string of horses to David Hofmans. Hofmans is receiving eight horses from the Wygods, including multiple stakes winners Exotic Wood and Benchmark, who is on the mend from surgery he underwent late last year. . . . There is a Pick Six carryover of more than $156,000 for Wednesday. . . . Brian Beach, a former agent for Kent Desormeaux, is the new agent for Jose Valdivia.