Artie Schiller's 3-year-old son Mr. Commons made a bold four-wide
move coming into the stretch en route to a dominating 1 1/2-length
victory in the $112,100 Oceanside S. on opening day at Del Mar. The
Thoroughbred Daily News heralded this victory by proclaiming "Mr.
Commons exudes class" in the feature story headline.
Mr. Commons is one of eight stakes horses, three stakes winners, by
Artie Schiller, who ranks among the top 10 sophomore sires at stud in
Kentucky.
Mr. Commons settled near the back of the pack early in the one mile
Oceanside. He inched his way steadily forward down the backstretch, then
launched a bid in earnest going into the final turn. He struck the
front with about 3/16ths of a mile to run to finish full of energy. The
final time on the firm turf was 1:34.96.
The Oceanside was the first start on the grass for Mr. Commons since he
broke his maiden in January. In the interim, he finished third in the
Santa Anita Derby (G1).
“He’s a very versatile horse,” winning trainer John Shirreffs said. “He
can run well on dirt. But he’s outstanding on turf. It made sense to get
him back on something we know he likes.”
With the $67,260 payday, Mr. Commons has now bankrolled $253,660 for Ian
Banwell, who campaigns the bay colt in the nom de course St. George
Farm Racing LLC.