Racing at Del Mar : On the Line Is First to the Finish Line in Crosby

After a pair of disappointing detours to pastures not so green, Eugene Klein’s On the Line resurfaced Sunday at Del Mar with a breathtaking five-length victory in the $108,800 Bing Crosby Handicap.

Running the six furlongs in 1:08, just one-fifth of a second off the stakes record, the 4-year-old chestnut humbled a field that included defending Crosby champion Olympic Prospect and the streaking Sam Who. In the process, On the Line reclaimed bragging rights as the country’s top sprinter.

On paper, the Crosby shaped up as anything but a romp. But at six furlongs, even the fastest thoroughbred cannot afford the slightest mistake, and Sam Who’s race was over before it began.

Favored at 8-5 in the field of seven and trying for his sixth straight win, Sam Who eliminated himself at the start, stumbling out of the gate. Making things worse, Olympic Prospect swerved inward and sideswiped the little gelding. Jockey Laffit Pincay knew he had lost any chance.

“He broke so fast, the ground broke out from under him,” Pincay said of Sam Who.

Olympic Prospect, the 2-1 second choice, had no excuse in terms of racing luck. His fate was likely determined by trainer John Sadler’s decision to run just eight days after Olympic Prospect’s 11 1/2-length win in a race at Louisiana Downs.

But the big gelding appeared fit and fresh, and he even had an accommodating lead down the backstretch. With Alex Solis sitting chilly, Olympic Prospect cruised along with his customary grace. On the Line, in second place, was his only serious pursuer.

After a half-mile in :43 4/5, however, it was clear that Olympic Prospect was in trouble. By way of comparison, he ran the first half of the 1988 Crosby in :43 2/5 and went on to win by 1 1/4 lengths. Gary Stevens brought On the Line alongside at the head of the stretch and took the lead with a slingshot move that ended the suspense in just a few strides.

As Olympic Prospect backed up through the field, Speedratic and Cresting Water came on to make it a race for second place. Speedratic, making his first start since Feb. 5, got the nod by a nose.

On the Line carried top weight of 124 pounds and returned $8.60, $5.20 and $4.20. Speedratic paid $8 and $6.20, while Cresting Water returned $4.40. The exacta was worth $300.50.

Sam Who earned high marks for managing to finish fourth, beaten by just 1 1/4 lengths for second money. Even Wayne Lukas, On the Line’s trainer, had words of consolation for the connections of the frustrated favorite.

“I felt bad when he didn’t break well,” said Lukas, who is still wincing from the pain of a disk operation earlier this summer.

“But in my heart, I didn’t think Sam Who was going to beat my horse even if he did break well. I think a horse was going to have to run about 1:07 3/5 to beat him today, and you just don’t see that.”

Even Stevens was duly impressed by On the Line.

“I gave up a mount in the Kentucky Derby to ride him earlier this year in the Carter Handicap in New York,” Stevens said. “That gives you an idea of what I thought of him.”

After winning three stakes races in his first four starts of 1989, On the Line turned in terrible races in the Metropolitan Mile in New York and in a Breeders’ Cup-sponsored race at Hollywood Park.

“He just didn’t like the grass at all in that last race,” Lukas said. “I’ve never had any luck running him on the grass. But at six or seven furlongs, I think he’s the best in the country.”

To prove his point, Lukas will bring On the Line back in the seven-furlong Pat O’Brien Handicap at Del Mar Aug. 30.

Horse Racing Notes

Dominant Dancer, leader of California’s 2-year-old fillies, is coming back sooner than expected in Wednesday’s Junior Miss Stakes at Del Mar. Trainer Don Harper is satisfied that her shin problem is under control, but the daughter of Moscow Ballet will have her work cut out. She breaks from Post No. 12 in a field of 12 going six furlongs. . . . Clover Racing Stable’s Nediym, who finished a close second to El Senor in Saturday’s Sword Dancer Handicap at Belmont, will make his next start in the $300,000 Del Mar Invitational on Labor Day. . . . Trainer Ross Fenstermaker and owner Fred Hooper are back together again for their fourth time around. Fenstermaker, who first went to work for the famed Florida breeder in 1953, has a fresh batch of Hooper 2-year-olds, while John Russell trains the rest of the California string. . . . Robbie Davis won two more races Sunday to maintain his lead in the Del Mar jockey standings.