Undefeated Kentucky-bred Prince of Monaco remained perfect with an impressive win in the $300,000 Del Mar Futurity (G1) on Sunday, Sept. 10. It was the second consecutive graded stakes score for the son of Speightstown, who also captured the Best Pal S. (G3) at Del Mar in his previous start.
Under jockey Flavien Prat, Prince of Monaco stalked the early pace of stablemate Mirahmadi from second. He took over approaching the eighth pole and was kept to task through the stretch to defeat that rival by three-quarters of a length at the wire, stopping the timer in 1:22.65. The $180,000 winner’s share of the purse increased Prince of Monaco’s bankroll to $327,000.
“He broke well, and I thought I was going to go to the lead. But other horses went for it, so we waited,” said Prat. “On the turn, he made his move, and we made the lead. His teammate (Mirahmadi) was trying hard, but I think my horse was just waiting for something to come up to him. That didn’t happen.”
Bred in Kentucky by Stonestreet Stables, Prince of Monaco is a $950,000 graduate of last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale. He is campaigned by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Stonestreet Stables, Dianne Bashor, Robert Masterson, Waves Edge Capital LLC, Catherine Donovan, and Tom Ryan. Conditioned by Bob Baffert, Prince of Monaco is produced from the Medaglia d’Oro mare Rainier.
In addition to his impressive wins in the Del Mar Futurity and Best Pal S., Prince of Monaco was an eight-length winner of his career debut at Los Alamitos in July.