Smiling Tiger’s Dr. No No Wins $125,000 I’m Smokin S.

DEL MAR, Calif. (Sept. 8, 2023) — Brown, Klein or Lebherz’s Dr. No No made the lead inside the eighth pole, then just hung on by a whisker to capture the 34th edition of the $125,000 I’m Smokin Stakes for Golden State Series-eligible 2-year-olds at Del Mar Friday.

The photo-finish camera showed Dr. No No, a Kentucky-bred son of California stallion Smiling Tiger, and rider Ramon Vazquez a nose best at the end of the six-furlong feature, just holding off fast-closing Mici’s Express, who is owned by Thomas Halasz.

“He got to lay outside and stalk them around there,” said trainer Brian Koriner. “At least there were enough horses up front with the speed horse so we didn’t have to do all the work. He broke a little more sharp than I thought he would and he was a lot closer than I thought he would be. That’s why I was worried about the horse that ran second, because he nabbed us two races back on the wire the same way. Lucky we held on today because my horse matured a little bit.”

“No, I didn’t have any special instructions from him (trainer Koriner),” said winning rider Ramon Vasquez. “He just said you know how to ride him; he gave me confidence that way. When we ran the race, I found a good spot behind the speed and waited. Then when it came time, my horse went. It was a good race.”

Dr. No No was bred by PT Syndicate #1 and he was produced by the winning Run Away and Hide mare, Enayat Alsalam. He is a half-brother to the multiple stakes-placed filly Sell the Dream.