One of those rough weekday cards where the Internet is void of any featured runners, so a generic picture of horses dashing on Del Mar's turf course gets this spot.
Just shy of the halfway point for the 37-day meet and we have our first Hollywood Park type card with all eight races for claimers and a string of short fields to start the day.
The feature is an allowance optional claimer where none of the seven runners are in for the $40,000 tag, so there’s that, but the five-furlong turf dash appears to be chalky with a trio of short-priced stand outs.
Turf sprint specialist Nofty ventures out of Cal-bred company for just the second time in his career and is the 2-to-1 favorite off a clear win on Hollywood Park’s turf course. The 5-year-old son of Stormy Atlantic has finished in the money in 6-of-10 career turf starts and can avenge a disappointing fourth-place finish after a troubled trip in his only try over this turf course last year.
Kingpin Ryno is the 5-to-2 second choice after storming late on the cut back in his last to finish as the runner-up to the streaking Lakerville, who will be one of the favorites in next week’s Green Flash. The 4-year-old son of In Excess has finished in the exacta in 8-of-14 career starts and broke his maiden against open company coming down the hill at Santa Anita in January.
The one to catch is 3-to-1 third choice A Toe by Three, whose name is fitting considering he’s had to settle for the show in all three starts of 2012 missing top honors by a combined less than two lengths. A 3-year-old gelded son of Stormello, he broke his maiden by nearly four lengths on Del Mar’s main track last summer when in for $80,000.
We’re off to the races!
Pick 4 -
Leg 1 – Race 5 (3,4,5,6) – No. 3 Idontrollonshabbos can score right back after a resounding win over this surface against older runners on July 22. He’s continued to train well and Peter Miller can do no wrong right now.
No. 4 Pop the Cork always makes a run with seven in the money finishes from 11 careers starts, No. 5 What’s for Dinner goes as a firs-time gelding and No. 6 Run for Miles was a good second in his only try over this track last year.
Leg 2 – Race 6 (2,3,4,6,9) – Our top pick on the class drop, No. 7 Twitter Pie, was scratched, so we’re left with a spread with females that have never won twice using No. 2 Babyneedsnewshoes, No. 3 Ask Me Later, No. 4 Technicality, No. 6 Natalie’s Academy and No. 9 Mrs. Rosa.
Leg 3 – Race 7 (2,5,6,8) – Use the trio from above with No. 5 Kingpin Ryno, No. 6 Nofty and No. 8 A Toe by Three, along with No. 2 Brutally Handsome, who has run races that fit with these, but will have to overcome the nearly 12-month layoff.
Leg 4 – Race 8 (1,2,6,9) – No. 1 Resisting Arrest and No. 6 Get Goin Tizzy drop from maiden allowance debuts, No. 2 Ciao Valentina gets off the rail where she was stuck in her first two starts and No. 9 Kevin’s Kool Kat was the runner-up in a modest debut.
Recap – (3,4,5,6) w (2,3,4,6,9) w (2,5,6,8) w (1,2,6,9) – Total cost of ticket = $160
Yesterday’s Result – (-$19.15)
Total for currentDelMar meet – (+$226.30)
Total from 12/26/10 – 7/15/12 – (-$1,571.15)
Pick 5 –
Leg 1 – Race 1 (1,3,4,5) – Short fields, but by no means easy to trim down, and we begin with No. 1 Vee, No. 3 Ambitoness, No. 4 In a Twinkling and No. 5 Tripped the Light.
Leg 2 – Race 2 (1,3,5,6) – We’ll use a trio of runners that hit the wire together in their last return to make-up half of today’s field with No. 1 Star Vesta, No. 5 Roses for Joni and No. 6 Starship Flare, along with class dropping No. 3 Mia Isabel.
Leg 3 – Race 3 (1,4,6) – Another big scratch with our top pick No. 3 Achak, so we’ll use the three that have run well on synthetic surfaces with No. 1 McAllister Boys, No. 4 Jim’s Decision and No. 6 Falling Knife.
Leg 4 – Race 4 (5,6,8) – No. 6 Van Brit keeps on ticking and is due for one of her top efforts after disappointing in her last. The 10-time winner makes her first start by the sea with Garrett Gomez aboard for the first time.
No. 5 Lift Our Luck has done her best running in four tries on turf and No. 8 Glowing Spirit plummets in class and reportedly has a pair of additional local works that don’t show in the past performances.
Leg 5 – Race 5 (3,4) – Trim down to a pair to close the Pick-5 with No. 3 Idontrollonshabbos and No. 4 Pop theCork.
Recap – (1,3,4,5) w (1,3,5,6) w (1,4,6) w (5,6,8) w (3,4) – Total cost of ticket = $144
Yesterday’s Result – (+$476)
Total for current Del Mar meet – (+$17,030.45)
Total from 7/20/11 – 7/15/12 – (+$1,874.55)
Best Bet of the Day – Can now be found in the free analysis section at www.theracingedition.com along with an early Pick-4 ticket and a consensus box for the entire card.
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Good luck!
