HORSE RACING
TODAY AT DEL MAR
By Richard Eng
Post Time 2 p.m.
Race 1 - 6 1/2 furlongs, Purse $51,000, Maiden special weights, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up
Royal Reason - FTS from Angelo Tekos has been working up a storm; Corey Nakatani is showing signs of life.
Storm the Church - Like the turn back in distance; should be dead fit for this under hot riding Tyler Baze.
Long Shot - Candace Gold
Race 2 - 5 furlongs (turf), Purse $57,000, Optional claiming $40,000, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up
Once Upon a Grace - Typical U.S. debut, slow early, fast late; had trouble late or could have been closer.
Gold Goddess - May have bounced in last after a huge race two back; offers big value if she can rebound.
Long Shot - Stash
Race 3 - 1 1/16th miles, Purse $35,000, Claiming $25,000, 4-year-olds and up
Joshua's Dream - Fanned very wide both turns and still kept coming; claimed by the maestro Jerry Hollendorfer.
Skippy Due - Solid second in last off a 2-month hiatus; has proven to excel over the synthetic surfaces.
Long Shot - Sensational Score
Race 4 - 6 furlongs, Purse $51,000, Maiden special weights, Cal-breds, Fillies, 2-year-olds
La Nez - Second best twice in a row; solid improvement in last, similar try is fast enough to win this.
Miss Georgie Girl - FTS is a kin to the very talented Georgie Boy; like that Garrett Gomez takes the call.
Long Shot - Word Association
Race 5 - 1 1/8th miles (turf), Purse $65,000, Optional claiming $62,500, 3-year-olds and up
Gothic Samurai - Was forced on the lead by slow pace in U.S. debut; can definitely sit and make one run.
Blue Chagall - Had a horrendous trip in last; it was one of the few bad rides at Del Mar by Tyler Baze.
Long Shot - Great Siege
Race 6 - 6 1/2 furlongs, Purse $16,000, Claiming $10,000, 4-year-olds and up
Bewitching Bartok - Fresh face facing many long in the tooth claimers; has back class to handle these.
High Investment - Upset chance in the most wide open race on the card; expect a cavalry charge to the wire.
Long Shot - Ballistic Heat
Race 7 - 6 1/2 furlongs, Purse $51,000, Maiden special weights, 2-year-olds
Marcello - Was overshadowed in debut by uncoupled stablemate Tiny Woods; expect big improvement tonight.
Poker Trick - FTS was training in Florida before shipping to SoCal; horses are running for Doug O'Neill.
Long Shot - Pulsion
Race 8 - 1 1/16th miles (turf), $150,000 La Jolla Handicap, 3-year-olds
I'll Show Them - Has looked extra special in winning both career starts; big class rise to run in stakes.
Rendezvous - Ran good, but not good enough in last; his best races have all come over the grass course.
Long Shot - New Bay
Race 9 - Purse $37,000, Claiming $32,000, 4-year-olds and up
Smooth and Savvy - Perfect entry, one speedball and the other a late closer; should see a wicked fast pace.
Gandolf - Big rider switch to Joel Rosario for the money shot; chased my top choice last time out.
Long Shot - Yes It's a Cat
Race 10 - 6 furlongs, Purse $19,000, Maiden claiming $25,000, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up
Anundeniablyhappy - There is a lot to be said for saving ground; inside, grinding trip under Joe Talamo.
Kay S - Looks best on paper but figures to be extremely wide; look for Victor Espinosa to send hard early.
Long Shot - Mar Fina
Best Bet - Marcello (race 7)
Del Mar Friday - Picks/Winners/Mutuels, 17/3/$16.80; Long Shots, 9/1/$8.00; Best Bet, 1/0/$0
Del Mar Totals - 306/77/$540.60; Long Shots, 160/16/$185.80; Best Bets, 16/6/$26.20
SIMULCAST PICK OF THE DAY - #3 Lauro (10/1) in race 10 at Saratoga. For scoring purposes, we'll make a hypothetical $2 win, place and show bet, $6 total. On Friday, Ruff and Ready ran out at Saratoga. Stats - 121/96/$714.30
