HORSE RACING

TODAY AT DEL MAR

By Richard Eng

Post Time 2 p.m.

Race 1 – 5 1/2 furlongs, Purse $63,000, Maiden special weights, Fillies, 2-year-olds

6 Lady Fairbanks – Showed large improvement in second career start; good post to stalk the pace and pounce late.

1 Sister Moon – FTS from the heavy duty John Sadler barn; watch the tote board for additional clues.

Long Shot – 4 Candy and Thunder

Race 2 – 6 furlongs, Purse $37,000, Claiming $25,000, 3-year-olds

5 Liberal Arts – Ran well at Del Mar last summer in career debut; well primed to run a big race tonight.

8 Polly’s Dancer – Claimed by Mark Glatt and raised in class; like that he hires hot riding Joel Rosario.

Long Shot – 7 Cat in the Forest

Race 3 – 6 1/2 furlongs, $150,000 Rancho Bernardo Handicap, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up

6 Tanda – Joins the barn of Mike Mitchell; that’s reason enough to give this gal a second look.

5 Irish Gypsy – Bob Baffert filly is the deserving favorite; tactical speed to lead or follow close up.

Long Shot – 4 Mildly Offensive

Race 4 – 1 1/16th miles (turf, rail at 7 feet), Purse $65,000, Optional claiming $80,000, Fillies, 3-year-olds

4 Rosehill Dew – Figures to be a square price despite the class relief; Brice Blanc will sit a trip and fire late.

1 Butterfly Beach – Ground saving trip for the chalk can spell the difference; Garrett Gomez is riding in top form.

Long Shot – 9 Wallstreeter

Race 5 – 6 furlongs, Purse $30,000, Claiming $16,000, 3-year-olds and up

5 Gallatin’s Run – Another Mike Mitchell charge can get the job done; sliding down the claiming ladder.

3 Afleet Deal – Has been one of the busiest horses in the claim box; runs good every time despite the barn switches.

Long Shot – 1 Close to the Edge

Race 6 – 1 mile (turf, rail at 7 feet), $100,000 Solana Beach Handicap, Cal-breds, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up

1 Halo Dolly – On a 4 race win streak in NoCal; she can handle the class rise in this non graded stakes race.

5 Caitie’s Secret – Speedball tries a stakes for the first time; Joel Rosario figures to put her on the engine.

Long Shot – 6 Warren’s Jitterbug

Race 7 – 6 furlongs, Purse $24,000, Claiming $16,000, Fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up

2 Warren’s Idol – Showed the ability to rate and finish in last; bugboy Flores gives the filly a 10 pound advantage.

9 L’Enchanteresse – Poor start last time cost her all chance; if P Val can get her out of the box, look out.

Long Shot – 5 Limerick Lane

Race 8 – 1 1/16th miles (turf, rail at 7 feet), Purse $65,000, Allowance 3-year-olds and up

1 Renegade Storm – Big finish in last was a stride short; saves all the ground today under Rafael Bejarano.

7 Oilisblackgold – Logical chalk gets class relief from the grade 2 San Diego; third start off a 5-month hiatus.

Long Shot – 8 Royal F J

Race 9 – 6 furlongs, Purse $24,000, Maiden claiming $20,000, 3-year-olds and up

5 Boomtown – This is an awful field so his speed tactics may hold up; value with underrated connections.

9 Pushbackjack – A ship and win candidate from Emerald Downs; adding blinkers on, is very live in a good spot.

Long Shot – 7 Warren’s Wild Thing

Best Bet – 5 Liberal Arts (race 2)

Del Mar Saturday – Picks/Winners/Mutuels, 19/4/$21.20; Long Shots, 9/1/$7.20; Best Bet, 0/0/$0

Del Mar Totals – 400/91/$615.00; Long Shots, 194/28/$365.00; Best Bets, 22/8/$49.60

SIMULCAST PLAY OF THE DAY – #3 Silver Screamer (5/2) in race 8 at Saratoga. For scoring purposes, we’ll make a hypothetical $2 win, place and show bet, $6 total. On Saturday, Running Tap won at Saratoga paying $3.00 to win, $2.20 to place and $2.10 to show. Stats – 138/88/$707.60