A field of 10 three-year-olds have been entered for Saturday’s $200,000 El
Camino Real Derby (G3) at Bay Meadows. Highweight duties of 117 pounds will be
shared by three — STELLAR MAGIC (Western Fame), UNCLE DENNY (In Excess [Ire])
and BUZZARDS BAY (Marco Bay). All other runners will only have to tote 115
pounds in the 1 1/16-mile test.
Stellar Magic has won three of four starts and comes off a daylight score in the
San Mateo Mile S. over the track on February 12. Jockey Dennis Carr, who has
been aboard for all of the bay’s victories, has the call. Uncle Denny also owns
a 4-3-0-0 career mark and a stakes win, which occurred in the
California Breeders’ Champion S. at Santa Anita. In his last race, the
Rafael Becerra-trained bay ran a close fourth, beaten just 1 3/4 lengths, in the
Sham S. Buzzards Bay is looking to add another Derby victory to his record after
scoring his first stakes win in the Golden Gate Derby in mid-January and will
have Mark Guidry returning the saddle.
From the rail out, the field with jockeys is WANNAWINEMALL (Royal Anthem),
Mike Smith; Stellar Magic; STORMIN AWAY (Skip Away), Joseph Steiner; VASILIAS
(Comic Strip), Macario Rodriguez; Uncle Denny, Russell Baze; CUSTOMER (Silver
Charm), Tammi Piermarini; BIG TOP CAT (Storm Cat), Jon Court; WIND WATER (Bold
Badgett), Jason Lumpkins; SHARP WRITER (Capote), Frank Alvarado; and Buzzards
Bay.