Horse Racing

TODAY AT DEL MAR

By Richard Eng

Post Time 2:05 p.m.

Race 1 – 6 1/2 furlongs, Purse $25,000, Maiden claiming $20,000, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up

2 Tarheel Babe – Was well bet in debut, then got bounced around early and never recovered; fresh second start might surprise here.

6 Naughtical – Tepid favorite as none of these look very enticing; Jeff Metz takes the weight off with bugboy Vinny Bednar.

Long Shot – 3 Mile High Bunk

Race 2 – 6 1/2 furlongs, Purse $40,000, Claiming $25,000, 3-year-olds and up

6 Gnarly Dude – Claimed off an even effort by trainer Bill Morey; key vote for me is he hires top rider Garrett Gomez.

4 Magic Beam – Sleeper was claimed by Bill Spawr off a sharp win; possible horse for course as he’s won both of his starts at Del Mar.

Long Shot – 1 Format V

Race 3 – 1 1/16th miles (turf, rail at 7 feet), Purse $70,000, Maiden special weights, Cal-breds, 3-year-olds and up

1 Affrettando – Been unlucky to not win one of his last two starts; saves all the ground, again, under Garrett Gomez.

2 Raya Roja – Rafael Bejarano replaces Joe Talamo who opted for Toomanylucky’s; ran OK in last and is improving with each start.

Long Shot – 6 Toomanylucky’s

Race 4 – 6 furlongs, Purse $40,000, Starter allowance $40,000, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up

3 Granny Calling – Showed gameness as a ship and win horse last time; Jack Carava spent more time with her, she should improve.

1 Miss Lady Ellen – Doug O’Neill has an uncoupled entry so caveat emptor; was sharp in debut win and is protected tonight.

Long Shot – 9 Candy and Thunder

Race 5 – 1 mile (turf, rail at 7 feet), Purse $71,000, Optional claiming $40,000, 3-year-olds and up,

1 Robbie’s War – Was in the fight till the end last time; third start off a 9-month hiatus could be his best.

6 Gab Power – Can’t pick him on top as he lacks a killer instinct; still it would be dumb to leave off your vertical bet tickets.

Long Shot – 10 Alley Hondro

Race 6 – 5 1/2 furlongs, Purse $70,000, Maiden special weights, 2-year-olds

10 Manando – Another one of Bob Baffert’s fastest babies in the world; suspect the tote board will be singing a chalky tune.

5 Forest Boy – Did everything but win in a very impressive debut second; if he improves one step he’ll be hard to handle.

Long Shot – 1 Distintiv Passion

Race 7 – 6 1/2 furlongs, Purse $71,000, Optional claiming $40,000, 3-year-olds and up

4 Nextdoorneighbor – Chased a very good Jimmy Creed in last; no such animal like that in here as Bob Baffert found a softer spot.

6 Royal Meridian – Was much the best in an easy win last time; steps up to face tougher but he is in rare form right now.

Long Shot – 1 Stoneside

Race 8 – 1 1/8th miles, $300,000 Del Mar Oaks (turf, rail at 7 feet), Fillies, 3-year-olds

8 Eden’s Moon – She looks like lone early speed, the best bet in horse racing; set fast fractions in the San Clemente and kept on going.

2 Lady of Shamrock – Logical chalk will need some help up front softening up Eden’s Moon; has a powerful late kick though.

Long Shot – 1 Indigo River

Race 9 – 1 mile, Purse $24,000, Claiming $16,000, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up

12 Dynamic Diva – Last race if repeated is fast enough to beat these; Rafael Bejarano is getting a lot of choice mounts this meet.

5 Smil’n From Above – Ran like a short horse last time off a 5-month hiatus; expect more speed and an agressive ride by Joe Talamo.

Long Shot – 14 Bila Shaka

Race 10 – 1 1/16th miles, Purse $24,000, Claiming $10,000, 3-year-olds and up

7 Coluda – Speedball tactics just missed last time out; suspect Martin Garcia will send again and hope to hang on this time.

5 Falcon Rock – He clearly has lost his edge to father time; might have skipped but Rafael Bejarano took the call for Simon Callaghan.

Long Shot – 6 Temerity

Best Bet – 8 Eden’s Moon (race 8)

Del Mar Friday – Picks/Winners/Mutuels, 12/2/$12.60; Long Shots, 7/2/$20.20; Best Bet, 1/1/$4.40

Del Mar Totals – 371/95/$618.80; Long Shots, 190/24/$230.40; Best Bets, 21/12/$48.20

SIMULCAST PLAY OF THE DAY – #6 Questing (5/2) in race 10 at Saratoga. For scoring purposes, we’ll make a hypothetical $2 win, place and show bet, $6 total. On Friday, Moment in Dixie ran second at Saratoga paying $3.30 to place and $4.20 to show. Stats – 127/91/$781.60; Follow him on Twitter: @richeng4propick