Nevada Beach bests British Isles in Native Diver S. (G3)

Nevada Beach returned to his winning ways with a hard-fought victory in Saturday’s Native Diver S. (G3) at Del Mar, the second graded stakes win this year for the 3-year-old Bob Baffert-trained colt.

After facing one of the deepest fields in the history of the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) on Nov. 1, Nevada Beach was the odds-on favorite in the 1 1/8-mile Native Diver. He sat third for most of the trip, ultimately making his move for the lead with three furlongs to go. Turning for home, he was head-to-head with British Isles, and those two battle the rest of the way, with Nevada Beach edging away late to win by a half-length.

“He is a big horse, he is a train,” said winning rider Juan Hernandez. “He got the job done though. I want to give my thanks to the owners for giving me the confidence. He may want to run a little more distance, he galloped out of the race well.”

Winner of both the Goodwood S. (G1) and Los Alamitos Derby this year, Nevada Beach is 4-1-0 in six starts and has earned $426,500 for owners Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman.