Berkeley rematches Grace 1-2

Saturday’s Grade 3, $100,000 Berkeley Stakes at Golden Gate Fields offers a rematch between Camino Del Paraiso and Big Fish, the one-two finishers in the Joseph Grace on Nov. 6.

The 1 1/16-mile Grace was switched from the Golden Gate turf course to the Tapeta main track at 1 1/16 miles – the same course and conditions as the Berkeley. Both races are for 3-year-olds and up.

Eight-year-old Camino Del Paraiso and 3-year-old Big Fish sat well off the pace in the Grace, with Camino Del Paraiso sixth and Big Fish last in the field of seven. Camino Del Paraiso got first jump on his rival and won by 1 1/2 lengths.

Other contenders in the Berkeley Stakes include Extra Hope, who won the Grade 3 Native Diver at Del Mar about a year ago; Sash, second in the Los Alamitos Special at this distance in September; and Jungle Cry, who lost a photo to Camino Del Paraiso in the Rolling Green on the turf here on Labor Day after having won the Robert Dupret Derby.

Camino Del Paraiso has done most of his best work on turf, but showed in the Grace that he likes the Tapeta just fine.

“I said he could go on either surface,” said trainer O.J. Jauregui.

Jauregui describes Camino Del Paraiso as a “cool horse” and a “trier.” He’s at his best stalking the pace, and came from a couple of lengths farther back than usual in the Grace. Jauregui said he would prefer to see Camino Del Paraiso closer to the front in the Berkeley.

Big Fish might be better on turf – he won the Del Mar Juvenile Turf last year – but he won the California Cup Derby on dirt in January and handled the synthetic surface well in the Grace.

Big Fish was five to six lengths back early in the Grace, and trainer David Hofmans expects him to come from the back of the pack again in the Berkeley.

Hofmans said that jockey Irving Orozco told him that he followed Camino Del Paraiso in the Grace and perhaps should have gone around him, Orozco rides again on Saturday.

Sash looms the speed of the race. Trained at Santa Anita by Mark Glatt, Sash was used up on the pace in the Bull Dog at Fresno in his last start on Oct. 17.