Tamara – by Bolt d’Oro, out of Beholder – resembles parents with runaway G1 victory at Del Mar

Tamara, daughter of Bolt d’Oro and Beholder, dominates the G1 Del Mar Debutante | Benoit photo

It is rarely seen that top-level mares produce racehorses that match their parent’s caliber. Yet, on Saturday, September 9th, the daughter of Champion Freshman Stallion Bolt d’Oro and the Hall of Fame mare Beholder dominated the Grade 1 Del Mar Debutante at Del Mar. Tamara, named for Tamara Gustavson, Spendthrift Farm owner and daughter of founder B. Wayne Hughes, skipped away from the nearly full field of promising two-year-old fillies, to win Del Mar’s premier race for that class by 6 3/4 lengths.

Tamara won her debut race, also at Del Mar, on August 19th after a rough start to earn TDN Rising Star honors. Trainer Richard Mandella, who also trained Beholder, commented that “She’s gifted. It gave me chills.” Jockey Mike Smith comfortably sat the filly in behind the leader Pushiness, then around the turn Tamara perked her ears up and easily passed the others to take the lead and pull away from the field, Mike Smith had geared the filly down at the wire. “What can I say. She’s very special,” said Smith.

This marks the first Grade 1 winner for Bolt d’Oro as a stallion, who himself won the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity in emphatic fashion and was one of California’s best two-year-olds in recent memory. He won his first three starts including the Grade 1 Frontrunner with a 103 Beyer. Bolt d’Oro has sired such graded winners from his first crop as Major Dude (G2), Instant Coffee (G2), and Boppy O (G3). Tamara has gotten his second crop off to a roaring start for the promising young stallion.

Beholder is a one-of-a-kind mare who took her connections on the ride of a lifetime, winning three total Breeders Cup races, four Eclipse Awards and a total of 11 Grade 1 wins. Arguably, her most captivating win came in 2015 when she dominated the G1 Pacific Classic by 8 1/4 lengths at Del Mar to become the first female winner of the race, nearly breaking the stakes record. Beholder is also the dam of G3 winner Teena Ella, by War Front, who won the Señorita Stakes at Santa Anita earlier this year. Her yearling colt by Curlin sold for a jaw-dropping $4,000,000 at the Saratoga Yearling sale in July of 2023. Beholder is a half-sibling to reigning four-time consecutive Champion General Stallion Into Mischief.

Bred and campaigned by Spendthrift, Tamara will be pointed to the $2 million, Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Santa Anita in November, where she is expected to be one of the favorites in the race.