Horse Racing: Today at Del Mar, Aug. 24
TODAY AT del mar
By Richard Eng
Post Time 2:05 p.m.
Race 1 - 5 1/2 furlongs, Purse $24,000, Claiming $10,000, 3-year-olds and up
2 Legal Separtion - Sliding down the claiming ladder to this new low class; John Sadler dropping horses to win the trainer title.
10 Hustlin Nu - Won first off the claim for Doug O’Neill; note he drops in class off the win, not goes up in class.
Long Shot - 12 It Doesn’t Add Up
Race 2 - 7 furlongs, Purse $25,000, Maiden claiming $20,000, 3-year-olds and up
7 Tap It In - Ron Ellis running out of bullets to get off the goose egg; may be his best chance yet to win a horse race.
11 Sir Searsucker - Mike Mitchell drop down gets a top rider in Garrett Gomez; lot of trainers are dropping stock before Fairplex.
Long Shot - 4 Candy Sweetheart
Race 3 - 1 mile, Purse $20,000, Claiming $8,000, 3-year-olds and up
1 Black N Beauty - More John Sadler love; he is dropping down horses left and right trying to win races and the trainer title.
6 Royal Import - May have needed the start off a 4-month hiatus; key vote comes from Rafael Bejarano riding right back.
Long Shot - 4 Only the Gold
Race 4 - 1 1/16th miles, Purse $75,000, Maiden special weights, 3-year-olds and up
5 Imperial Fortune - Bob Baffert colt did everything but win last time; figures to be a short price once again.
1 Crucero - Even more John Sadler; could he win an equador by the 4th race?, we’ll find out soon enough.
Long Shot - 8 Airfoil
Race 5 - 1 mile (turf), Purse $43,000, Starter allowance $40,000, 3-year-olds and up
11 - This One’s for Mel - Must draw in off the also eligible list; if he does he’ll be double tough with Garrett Gomez up.
5 Bipartisan - Is winless on grass but shows some promise; good value at 8/1 in a possible wake up spot.
Long Shot - 7 Sinfully
Race 6 - 6 furlongs, Purse $75,000, Maiden special weights, 3-year-olds and up
3 Scarly Charly - Been away 8-months for Janet Armstrong; like that Gary Stevens returns, he’s been riding great in comeback.
9 Wild Dude - Been away 10-months for the maestro Jerry Hollendorfer; the tote will tell you how live he is.
Long Shot - 6 Cat Burglar
Race 7 - 6 furlongs, Purse $77,000, Optional claiming $25,000, Cal-breds, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up
4 Noise of the Crowd - The maestro Jerry Hollendorfer off the claim is extremely dangerous; hires the main man Rafael Bejarano.
9 J and S Express - Had a horrendous trip in last, from start to finish; Vann Belvoir tries another pilot in Joe Talamo.
Long Shot - 1 Tribal Spy
Race 8 - 1 3/8th miles (turf), $200,000 Del Mar Handicap, 3-year-olds and up
7 Vagabond Shoes - Subtle class relief from the grade 1 Eddie Read for this; the marathon distance is a gallopers race.
6 Fire With Fire - Neil Drysdale barn has heated up all of a sudden; he has an uncoupled entry here so caveat emptor.
Long Shot - 1 Lucayan
Race 9 - 6 1/2 furlongs, Purse $43,000, Claiming $25,000, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up
7 Brooklyn Rose - Ran awful in last first off the claim by Bob Hess; big class drop can only help the cause.
6 Inner Groove - Tepid chalk in the hardest race on the card; key vote comes from Garrett Gomez taking the call.
Long Shot - 9 Woebegon
Race 10 - 7 furlongs, Purse $25,000, Maiden claiming $20,000, 3-year-olds and up
10 Warren’s Tyler S. - Leap of faith that Rafael Bejarano can get the job done; tiny edge in a slowpoke field.
7 The Gatekeeper - Tepid chalk in a very pedestrian field; John Sadler could be completing a big night, but maybe not.
Long Shot - 8 Grand Gambler
Best Bet - 5 Imperial Fortune (race 4)
Del Mar Friday - Picks/Winners/Mutuels, 13/4/$21.40; Long Shots, 6/3/$28.80; Best Bet, 1/1/$4.00
Del Mar Totals - 460/108/$797.20; Long Shots, 223/34/$370.80; Best Bets, 26/6/$24.40
SIMULCAST PLAY OF THE DAY - #8 My Happy Face (3/1) in race 9 at Saratoga. For scoring purposes, we’ll make a hypothetical $2 win, place and show bet, $6 total. On Friday, Judy the Beauty was scratched at Saratoga. Stats - 141/92/$749.30; Follow him on Twitter: @richeng4propick
