Del Mar Daily Notebook

DEL MAR DAILY NOTEBOOK

SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2005

by Brian P. Turner

A field of nine went to the gate for Sunday's featured $300,000 Bing Crosby

H. (G1), for three-year-olds and upward going six furlongs on the main track.

Multiple Grade 1 winner Pico Central (Brz) (Spend A Buck) was sent to the gate

as the favorite but, unfortunately for chalk players, languished at the back of

the pack early and never once showed any real interest in running. One could

almost expect that the six-year-old horse wouldn't be completely cranked up as

this was his first start since competing in the Dubai Golden Shaheen (UAE-G1) in

March but to see him cross the finish line in last was definitely a bit of a

surprise.

In the end, the day belonged to GREG'S GOLD (Lake George), who pulled off the

upset by stalking the pace early and closing with a nice turn of foot up the

rail to hit the finish line 1 1/4 lengths in front. The Cal-bred was taking a

major class jump as he had just cleared his N1X condition against open company.

Trainer David Hofmans obviously had the four-year-old gelding ready to go though

as he handled a very respectable field of stakes horses.

Battle Won (Honour and Glory) put in a solid performance considering he was on

the pace throughout, contesting early fractions of :21 2/5 and :43 3/5 . The

dark bay fought gamely to the end but could not hold off the late charge of the

winner and was forced to settle for the place. It was another two lengths back

to a fast closing Taste of Paradise (Conquistador Cielo) in third.

There were six sprints on the main track today and horses on or near the lead

won five of them. As for the two main track routes, both were won by horses on

or near the pace. Also on the day, there were two routes races contested over

the Jimmy Durante Turf Course with a horse coming from just off the pace winning

the first one and in the other the winner came from well off the lead.

After going winless Saturday, Patrick Valenzuela picked up two winners on

Sunday and Victor Espinoza picked up one, so the pair are once more in a tie atop

the jockey standings with 12 winners each. Garrrett Gomez went winless on the

day but is just one off the pace with 11 winners for the meet.

As for the trainers, Jeff Mullins picked up a win on the day to give him a

little breathing room in the trainer standings as he now has eight winners thus

far. Bob Baffert picked up a win on the day to move him into a tie for second

with Doug O'Neill. The pair have six winners each.

Pick 6 players will definitely have something to look forward to on Monday as

there will be a carryover of $213,997. Of the six races encompassing the wager

Sunday, five of them were won by horses with double digit pay offs. AIR ACE

(Forest Camp), in the 6TH, was the only favorite to make it into the winner's

circle.

Horses to Watch

4TH - BELONG IN BEAUTY (Belong To Me) was really gaining ground on the

leaders in this six furlong maiden special event when she was forced out way

wide on the turn. The three-year-old filly carried on gamely afterward but she

had lost far too much ground to run down the leader and was forced to settle for

third, beaten by only 1 1/2 lengths.

6TH - Air Ace made his two-year-old debut for trainer Bob Baffert a winning

one as he vied for the lead throughout, contesting early fractions of :21 4/5

and :44 2/5, and dug in gamely at the end to hit the finish line three parts of

a length in front.

Tomorrow's Outlook - Monday, August 1

A field of 12, including two who are also eligible, is entered for Monday's

featured 1 1/16 miles optional claiming turf event. The race carries an $80,000

claiming price but none of the three-year-olds fillies that encompass the field

are entered for a tag. SINGHALESE (GB) (Singspiel [Ire]) is one among the field

to keep an eye on as she will be running at her lowest level since coming to

North America.

The forecast for Monday calls for partly cloudy skies and highs in the mid-70s.

Monday's Best Plays

5TH - R. H PERFECT STORM (In Excess [Ire]) will be trying the main track for

the first time in this Cal-bred maiden claiming event and trainer Jeff Mullins

wins 25 percent of the time in the "Turf to Dirt" trainer category. Though the

races came on the turf, the four-year-old filly's BRIS Speed ratings are at the

top of the field and she holds a nearly 10 point advantage in the BRIS Prime

Power category. A look at the BRIS Pace ratings indicate that she should be able

to clear the field and have things her own way on or near the pace, leaving

jockey Tyler Baze with enough left in the tank at the end to get R. H Perfect

Storm to the wire in front.

7TH - Singhalese could prove to be a tough customer in the day's feature as

she will be dropping out of graded stakes competition and into optional claiming

company. The chestnut is coming off of a respectable third place effort in the

American Oaks (G1) and should find the company here much more to her liking.

Given that her last two starts came at nine furlongs and 10 furlongs

respectively, Singhalese may also appreciate the cut back to 1 1/16 miles as her

lone career victory came at a mile. The filly also holds a solid advantage in

the BRIS Prime Power category and her BRIS Speed ratings are at the top of the

field.