Call It a Gate of Wrath

DEL MAR â€”  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.

“[War Emblem] was rearing up and pawing at the gate, so we backed him out,� Brinson said. “We loaded him again and he started rearing and pawing at the gate again and we backed him out. I was afraid if we didn’t back him out, he would hook a foot over the door and hurt himself. So we loaded him last and as soon as he was set, we [broke the field]. The way he was acting, if he was in the gate much longer, there was going to be a serious problem.�

War Emblem was beaten by about 4 1/4 lengths. Since the late Prince Ahmed bin Salman bought 90% of him for $900,000 the week after his Illinois Derby win, the colt has won the Derby, Preakness and Haskell under Baffert and lost twice--in the Belmont and Sunday.

“I didn’t have enough chance,� Espinoza said of the start. “He wasn’t ready. The back door to the gate wasn’t even closed when they opened the front one. He wasn’t ready to break and we came away a little too slow. When he broke like that, I didn’t have much choice but to spot him where I did. I didn’t want to rush him to try to make the lead. I just had to be patient. No doubt I would have been on the lead if I had broken clean. Turning for home, I felt he might go, but it wasn’t there at the end.�

When the serious running began, leaving the quarter pole, War Emblem was overtaking Bosque Redondo and Sky Jack, but Came Home, who had been in fourth place, was moving even faster from the far outside. The winner felt the crack of Smith’s whip five times before they straightened out in the homestretch. Smith hit him 19 more times through the lane.

Momentum, emerging from heavy traffic, finished second, 1 1/2 lengths ahead of Milwaukee Brew, who was next to last, 12 1/2 lengths behind, with a half-mile left. Pleasantly Perfect, a 17-1 shot running in his first stake, was fourth.

In the 12th Pacific Classic, War Emblem, who went off at 6-5, was the 11th favorite to fall. Came Home, the third 3-year-old to win the stake, paid $23, running 1 1/4 miles in 2:01 2/5. For Californians McCaffery and Toffan and their partners, Will Farish of Kentucky and Texan John Goodman, the Gone West-Nice Assay colt earned $600,000, pushing his purses to $1.8 million. Gonzalez, Came Home’s trainer, knew Came Home could handle 1 1/4 miles--also the Kentucky Derby distance--the way he finished in winning the Swaps at 1 1/8 miles last month at Hollywood Park.

“Somebody said that the only way this horse could get a mile and a quarter was in a helicopter, but I knew better,� Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez’s other horse, Bosque Redondo, who finished fifth, broke down past the wire and had to be vanned off. His jockey, David Flores, was shaken up and took off the rest of his mounts. Bosque Redondo fractured bones in his right foreleg. His racing career over, he will undergo surgery either today or Tuesday.

“The vets think he has a good chance at survival,� Gonzalez said.

Smith, 37, is a two-time Eclipse Award-winning jockey who has won eight Breeders’ Cup races. He moved his business from New York to Southern California in May 2001 and was hired to ride Came Home when Chris McCarron retired after his winning ride aboard the colt in the Affirmed Handicap, three weeks before the Swaps.

“[Came Home] digs in, he gives it all he’s got,� Smith said. “When I came up alongside War Emblem on the turn, he went for it. He veered in a little bit on me [in the stretch], but it wasn’t that big of a deal. In the end, it was a question of whether he was good enough. He was plenty good enough.�

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Earlier Sunday at Del Mar, Kalookan Queen beat Warren’s Whistle by 3 1/2 lengths to win the Rancho Bernardo Handicap for the second consecutive year.... In other races, Shine Again beat Raging Fever by a half-length to win the Ballerina Handicap at Saratoga and Sabertooth won the Longacres Mile at Emerald Downs.

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

THE FINISH

*--* Horse Win Place Show Came Home $23.00 $9.60 $5.80 Momentum $5.80 $3.80 Milwaukee Brew $3.20

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Copyright 2002 by Equibase Company

12th PACIFIC CLASSIC. Run as fifth race on Del Mar card. 1 1/4miles. Three year olds & up. Value of Race: $1,000,000 1st: $600,000, 2nd: $200,000, 3rd: $120,000, 4th: $60,000, 5th: $20,000.

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*--* 1A-CAME HOME...23.00 9.60 5.80 3-MOMENTUM...5.80 3.80 8-MILWAUKEE BREW...3.20

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Time-22.52, 45.48, 1.09.82, 1.35.47, 2.01.45. Clear & Fast. Winner-DBB.c.1999 Gone West-Nice Assay. Trained by J. Paco Gonzalez Own-William S. Farish, John B. Goodman, Trudy McCaffery, and John A. Toffan, Mutuel Pool-$1,938,391.

$2 DAILY DOUBLE (5-1) PAID $148.40

$1 EXACTA (1-3) PAID $56.40

$2 QUINELLA (1-3) PAID $60.80

$1 SUPERFECTA (1-3-8-7) PAID $2,616.90

$1 TRIFECTA (1-3-8) PAID $250.50

$1 PICK THREE (4-5-1) PAID $219.00

COMMENTS

* CAME HOME stalked the pace outside, bid four wide leaving the second turn and into the stretch, made the lead nearing midstretch, inched away and drifted in despite left handed urging but held on gamely.

* MOMENTUM tracked the leaders along the inside, was boxed in behind rivals leaving the second turn and until nearing midstretch, came out and closed gamely.

* MILWAUKEE BREW unhurried and angled in early, settled a bit off the rail, went around a foe into the stretch, split horses past midstretch and again late to get the show.

* PLEASANTLY PERFECT a bit crowded early, settled just off the inside, moved up leaving the backstretch, swung five wide into the stretch and finished well.

* BOSQUE REDONDO had good early speed and dueled outside a rival, battled between horses leaving the second turn and into the stretch, fought back in midstretch but weakened late, then broke down after the wire.

* WAR EMBLEM brushed early, stalked outside a rival, bid three deep leaving the second turn, briefly put a head in front into the stretch but weakened in the final furlong.

* JIMMY Z off a bit slowly, settled off the inside, came five wide into the stretch and lacked the needed rally.

* BONUS PACK chased a bit off the inside, came out leaving the second turn, also came five wide into the stretch and could not offer the needed late kick.

* SEINNE wide early, settled outside, went four wide on the second turn and into the stretch and failed to menace.

* NATES COLONY unhurried and angled in early, went around a rival on the second turn and passed tiring foes.

* SKY JACK had good early speed and dueled inside, fought back leaving the second turn, steadied when squeezed nearing midstretch and also weakened.

* GREY MEMO between horses early, dropped back outside, came six wide into the stretch and was not a threat.

* TAPATIO wide early, angled in and settled outside a rival chasing the pace, dropped back into the second turn and had little left.

* SPEEDY PICK, between horses early, angled in and saved ground, also dropped back approaching the second turn and gave way readily.