REMATCH? Hardly. Stellar Wind dominated Vale Dori yet again, this time taking the Grade 1 Clement L. Hirsch at Del Mar last Sunday.

Stellar Wind and Vale Dori had met twice before with the Virginia-bred Stellar Wind handing defeats to the Argentine-bred Vale Dori in the Beholder Mile in June and the Zenyatta back in August.

This time, Vale Dori led while Stellar Wind stalked. No horse stalks like Stellar Wind, the $2 million earner sat just off Vale Dori before pulling the curtain to win by a deceivingly dominant neck for Hronis Racing, John Sadler and Victor Espinoza.

“I was nervous because of the way favourites have fared here,” Sadler said.

“But she’s a good mare, she came through and she stuck her nose out at the end like she usually does.

It looked like it was going to set up pretty much like the last race, Vale Dori is the speed.

We know we can’t sit off her too far, you’ve got to hook into her and wear her down.”

Stellar Wind improved her career record to 10 wins from 15 starts.

BING CROSBY

Just when you’ve think you’ve seen it all… Drefong rode a five race win streak into the Grade 1 Bing Crosby at Del Mar last Sunday. Off since dominating the Breeders’ Cup Sprint in November, the son of Gio Ponti was sent off the second choice behind Roy H in the six-furlong stakes.

Breaking from stall two, Drefong ducked inside the gap of the inside rail, deposited Mike Smith and changed everything. Third-choice Ransom The Moon took advantage scoring a comfortable win over Roy H.

Owned by Agave Racing Stable and Jeffry Wilke, the five-year son of Malibu Moon collected his third win and first Grade 1 score since joining Phillip D’Amato’s prolific California stable.

Arrogate works: Champion Arrogate, an inexplicable fourth in his most recent start, breezed a bullet work at Del Mar on August 1st. The Bob Baffert trainee is all set for the Pacific Classic later this month.