Del Mar Daily Notebook

DEL MAR DAILY NOTEBOOK

MONDAY, AUGUST 15, 2005

by Brian P. Turner

A field of six, including one coupled entry, went to the gate for Monday's

7TH race, an optional claiming event for Cal-breds, three-years-old and up,

going six furlongs on the main track. Excess Temptations (In Excess [Ire]) and

Excess Taxes (In Excess [Ire]), the coupled entry, were sent to the gate as the

heavy favorites. In an interesting side note, not only does the pair share

ownership, but they are also full brothers.

Unfortunately for chalk players though, the brothers "Excess" laid off the

pace early and could not make up ground on the front running SLIDE HOME (Western

Fame) who guided the field through early fractions of :22 and :44 3/5 before

digging in gamely late to hit the wire three parts of a length in front.

Maximum Heat (Mr. Expo) followed the front runner from start to finish and

crossed the wire in second, a nose in front of Martinblestme in third.

The race produced some interesting payoffs due to the fact that a bundle was

dropped on the entry to show. When neither one of them hit the board, it

produced some very nice show pay offs for the three runners that did. Slide Home

paid a respectable $14.60 for the win but his show pay off was an even nicer

$19.60. Maximum Heat paid $14.60 for the place but his show pay off was $25.80

and Martinblestme paid an even $32.00 for crossing the wire in third.

Seven of the eight races on Monday's card were main-track sprints and horses

on or near the pace won six of them. The other race on the card was a turf route

which was won by a runner coming from off the pace.

Jockey Patrick Valenzuela was out of town over the weekend riding in the

Arlington Million (G1) on Saturday and in the West Virginia Derby (G3) on

Sunday. During that period of time, his healthy lead in the jockey standings

completely evaporated as Garrett Gomez and Victor Espinoza took full advantage

of the situation to create a log jam atop the rider standings with Gomez gaining

a one-race lead and Espinoza moving into a tie with Valenzuela for the second

spot. Now, unfortunately for Valenzuela, he will be forced to sit out a

suspension this week that will run Monday through Saturday which could cause him

to lose some serious ground in the standings.

Gomez picked up a win today, giving him 27 for the meet. Espinoza picked up a

win as well and has taken sole possession of the second spot with 26. Valenzuela

is in third now with 25.

As for the trainers, Jeff Mullins picked up a win on the day to once more

regain the lead in the trainer standings over Bob Baffert by a score of 13 to

12. Doug O'Neill is in third with 10.

Horses to Watch

3RD - RENA DE SONORA (Rubiano) was making a move on the rail and from off the

pace when she hit the stretch and found herself behind a wall of horses. Jockey

Corey Nakatani waited patiently for a hole to open and once it did, the chestnut

quickly regained her momentum and burst to lead, hitting the finish line a half

length clear of the field.

6TH - IT'Z ALL MINE (Belong To Me) unleashed a new dimension to her game in

this maiden special event by rallying from last and closing with a nice turn of

foot through the stretch to hit the wire 3 1/2 lengths in front. The chestnut

has been showing improvement with each start and could prove to be tough to

handle when she steps up to the next level.

Outlook for Wednesday, August 17

A field of 11, including three who are also eligible, is entered for

Wednesday's Green Flash H. for three-olds and up going five furlongs on the

grass. MIGHTY BEAU (Rainbow Prospect) will be returning to North America after a

couple of lackluster efforts in Europe. Prior to that though, the gelding had

been in good form which included a victory in the Aegon Turf Sprint S. (G3) at

Churchill Downs on Kentucky Oaks day.

Standing in this way will be ELUSIVE DIVA (Elusive Quality) who will be

making her first start since taking the Las Cienegas H. (G3) at Santa Anita in

April. The filly is a perfect two for two on the grass and could make things

interesting for the boys if she is ready to go after the lay off. Trainer Art

Sherman's SIREN LURE (Joyeux Danseur) is another interesting possibility in the

field as he is three for three at the distance and has won four of his five

starts on the grass. The bay is coming off of a victory in the Robert K. Kerlan

Memorial H. at Hollywood on July 10.

Wednesday's forecast calls for cloudy skies in the morning giving way to

mostly sunny skies in the afternoon and highs in the low to mid 70s.

Wednesday's Best Plays

1ST - BLAZE IT (What A Spell) will be dropping into starter allowance company

after a solid second-place effort last out to the talented Cougar Mtn Lodge

(Comic Strip) in the Graduation S. here at Del Mar on July 27. The two-year-old

colt has a solid advantage of more than six points in the BRIS Prime Power

category and his BRIS Speed Ratings are at the top of the field. Blaze It's

Early BRIS Pace Ratings indicate that he should have things his own way on or

near the lead early which should leave him enough left at the end to hit the

wire in front. Gomez will be getting the call on the mount, only adding to the

things to like.

4TH - R. H PERFECT STORM (In Excess [Ire]) will be getting another chance on

the "Best Plays" list despite the fact that she let us down with a second-place

finish in her last start. The dark bay has a BRIS Prime Power advantage of over

eight points and a solid advantage in the BRIS Speed Rating category. Her BRIS

Pace Ratings indicate that she should be on or near the pace early with plenty

left in the tank at the end. Though she will be trying a route for the first

time, her pedigree indicates that she should be okay with the new task and

trainer Jeff Mullins is a solid 26 percent in the "1st at Route" trainer

category. The four-year-old filly disappointed last time but she has a solid

chance to make amends here.