Del Mar Daily Notebook

DEL MAR DAILY NOTEBOOK

MONDAY, AUGUST 21, 2006

by Brian P. Turner

A field of eight went to the gate for Monday's 7TH race, an allowance/optional claiming

event for three-year-olds and upward going five furlongs over the Jimmy Durante

Turf Course. ELLWOOD AND JAKE (Mr. Greeley) bounded out of the gate and onto the

lead but was forced to fight for the advantage through an opening quarter that

went in :22. Once the field hit the stretch, the dark bay still had plenty left

in the tank and widened his advantage through the stretch drive to hit the

finish line 1 1/2 lengths in front.

The three-year-old colt broke his maiden on the lawn at first asking back in

May and followed that up with a solid third-place effort also on the grass. In

his first try on the main track, he didn't fare too well as he finished a well-beaten eighth but followed that up with a respectable second-place effort on the

main track in an event that had been originally scheduled for the turf. A return

to the grass proved to be exactly what he needed to get him back into the

winner's circle.

Witness This (Gold Fever) put in a game effort to pick up the place, a

half-length in front of Los Solano (GB) (Selkirk) in third.

There were three sprints contested on the main track Monday with horses on or

near the pace winning two of them. As for the three main track routes, two were

won by horses on or near the pace. The 7TH was the lone turf sprint. The only turf route on the card was won by a front runner.

Victor Espinoza booted home a pair of winners on the day and still leads the

way in the jockey standings with 42 for the meet. Martin Garcia added two to his

total as well and remains in second with 29. Alex Solis had no mounts on the day

but remains in third with 25.

Doug O'Neill saddled a winner on the day to expand his lead over Jeff Mullins

in the trainer standings and now has 16 for the meet. Mullins didn't send out

any runners today but remains in second with 12. Mike Mitchell added one to his

total today with Ellwood and Jake and moved into a tie for the third spot with

Bob Baffert and Brian Koriner. The trio has eight winners each.

Pick Six players get ready as no one put all the pieces of the puzzle

together today which leaves a carryover of $132,830 for Wednesday's card.

Horses to Watch

2ND - WILL (Red) looked good in this eight-furlong state-bred

allowance/optional claiming event. The gray lay well off the pace through early

fractions of :22 1/5 and :45 3/5. Once the field hit the stretch, the

five-year-old gelding began to gain ground on the front-runners before taking

the lead and pulling away for a solid 2 1/2-length victory.

7TH - Ellwood and Jake looked good in this allowance/optional claiming event and could

be a threat to repeat if his next start comes on the grass.

Outlook for Wednesday, August 23

A field of 10 has been entered for Wednesday's 7TH race, an

allowance/optional claiming event for three-year-olds and upward going eight

furlongs on the lawn. TEXCESS (In Excess [Ire]) will be trying the lawn after

finishing fifth last out in the San Diego H. (G2). If he can carry his main

track form over to the grass, he definitely stands a chance.

UNFURL THE FLAG (Bertrando) is coming off a nice effort in the Wickerr H.

here on July 29 where he tried to pull off the victory on the lead only to tire

late and cross the finish line in third. The bay is capable of moving forward in

his second try over the lawn. ART MODERNE (Woodman) rallied from well off the

pace to miss by a length last out against similar. The chestnut should have

plenty of pace to set up his late kick and the presence of Corey Nakatani in the

saddle definitely doesn't hurt.

Wednesday's forecast calls for partly cloudy skies with highs in the low 80s.

Wednesday's Best Plays

3RD - STEVIE D (Paxos) could be sitting on a nice effort for trainer John

Sadler in this 1 1/16-mile Cal-bred maiden special weight event. The chestnut's

performance in his last start was much better than it appears on paper as he

happened to cross paths with a freak in MASTER JAMES (Bertrando) who covered six

furlongs in a very impressive 1:08 4/5. Though Stevie D finished third, beaten

by 11 3/4 lengths, the BRIS Speed rating he posted makes him extremely

competitive with this field. The three-year-old gelding is near the top of the

field in both BRIS Prime Power and BRIS Class rating and it appears that he

should be more than capable of stretching out to a route.

6TH - Master James should dominate this state-bred optional claiming event.

The three-year-old colt posted an unbelievable 108 BRIS Speed rating in his

aforementioned victory and his BRIS Pace ratings indicate that he should have

things his own way on or near the lead early and be able to cruise to the wire

for an easy victory. The bay tops the field in BRIS Prime Power by six points

and is also near the top in BRIS Class rating.