Suggestive Boy capped his career in Argentina with a 2 1/2-length win in the Jockey Club (Group I) last October.
Solid racing rolls into the second week at the sea with stakes action at a mile on the lawn in the $85,000 Wickerr where a pair of South Americans re-unite on U.S. soil.
Off an impressive runner-up effort in the Shoemaker Mile (Grade I) when making his first start in the U.S., Suggestive Boy is the 9-to-5 favorite stepping out of top class races for the first time since debuting in a maiden event in Argentina last March. The 4-year-old Argentine-bred son of Easing Along went on to compete in five Group 1 races in his native land with four wins, including wearing down Key Decision in the 2000 Guineas.
After winning just twice from nine starts in Argentina, Key Decision rebounded from a poor U.S.debut in May by using his front-running style to wire a group of allowance optional claimers at Hollywood Park last month. A son of Not For Sale also bred in Argentina, today’s 4-to-1 fourth choice came up short in six Group events back home, but did finish ahead of Suggestive Boy when they met for the first time in the Gran Criterium (Group I).
Making his first start of the year, Midnight Interlude is the 3-to-1 second choice for Bob Baffert and Rafael Bejarano. Last year’s Santa Anita Derby (Grade I) winner on dirt, the 4-year-old son of War Chant concluded his 2011 campaign with four turf efforts, winning the Tsunami Slew at Hollywood Park before sandwiching a near-miss effort in the Del Mar Derby (Grade II) with four-place finishes in the La Jolla Handicap and Oak Tree Derby.
Venomous is winless in ten straight starts, but is still given love on the morning line as the 7-to-2 third choice. The 4-year-old British-bred son of Red Ransom relocated from France at the end of 2011 and showed a strong late kick to miss by just half a length in the Oak Tree Derby (Grade II), but it’s been downhill from there with no better than a fourth-place finish in four subsequent starts.
Last year’s Wickerr champ returns as a 12-to-1 outsider, with Calimonco looking to fire in his first off the layoff again for John Sadler. The 6-year-old son of Storm Cat makes his first start in two months after scoring off a brief layoff in last year’s edition and winning the Sid Finch at Santa Anita when fresh earlier this year.
We’re off to the races!
Pick 4 -
Leg 1 – Race 5 (2,4,5,7) – No. 2 Miss Communication and No. 7 Stanwyck appear formidable in this maiden female allowance, but we’ll add both No. 4 My Trick Gal, the “other” Mitchell making her second career start, and No. 5 Music Thunder, who returned to the Poly with a bullet work six days ago.
Leg 2 – Race 6 (1,4,9,11,12) – Spread five deep with non-winners of two lifetime using No. 1 Lorenbray, No. 4 Technicality, No. 9 A Natural, No. 11 Sunshine High and No. 12 Hout Bay.
Leg 3 – Race 7 (2,7,9) – Use the pair from Argentina with No. 2 Suggestive Boy and No. 7 Key Decision, along with last year’s champ No. 9 Calimonco.
Leg 4 – Race 8 (1,4,7,8,9) – Five $40,000 Cal-bred maidens close the show at six furlongs on the main track with No. 1 Enduring Promise, No. 4 Bev N Bud, No. 7 Run’n On Residuals, No. 8 Candy’s Sunrise and No. 9 Mary Helen’s Storm.
Recap – (2,4,5,7) w (1,4,9,11,12) w (2,7,9) w (1,4,7,8,9) – Total cost of ticket = $150
Sunday’s Result – (-$45.70)
Total for current Del Mar meet – (+$63.50)
Total from 12/26/10 – 7/15/12 – (-$1,571.15)
Pick 5 –
Leg 1 – Race 1 (5,6) – After scratches we’re left with just four 2-year-old fillies making their debut for an $80,000 tag and No. 5 Bares Tripper has been training solidly for 20% first-time trainer Peter Miller. Her sire, Sky Mesa, gets 16% debut winners and Miller and Garrett Gomez have been lighting it up together the past two years to the tune of 40% locally and 33% overall.
Double up with No. 6 Catrageous, out of the precocious sire Tale of the Cat, who has sent nearly 25% winners over this Polytrack.
Leg 2 – Race 2 (3,6,7) – No. 7 Divas and Diamonds improved dramatically in her second career start on the drop in class and looms tough back at the same claiming level.
No. 6 Serious has trained forwardly and can give Gomez and Miller a sweep of the early double.
No. 3 Citizen Bernstein deserves another chance moving to a surface he could relish after regressing in his second career start.
Leg 3 – Race 3 (3,4,5,6,7) – Another five-pack with female claimers going a mile on the main track for a $20,000 tag using No. 3 Belle Gallantey, No. 4 Tripped the Light, No. 5 Inner Groove, No. 6 J and S Express and No. 7 Really Elegant.
Leg 4 – Race 4 (1,2,6,7,8) – Five is the number of the day with No. 1 Octane, No. 2 Malibu Knight, No. 6 Iaquinta, No. 7 Lakerville and No. 8 Close to the Edge.
Leg 5 – Race 5 (2,7) – Narrow it down to the likely pair of No. 2 Miss Communication and No. 7 Miss Stanwyck.
Recap – (5,6) w (3,6,7) w (3,4,5,6,7) w (1,2,6,7,8) w (2,7) – Total cost of ticket = $150
Sunday’s Result – (+$4.80)
Total for current Del Mar meet – (-$479.20)
Total from 7/20/11 – 7/15/12 – (+$1,874.55)
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Good luck!
