Del Mar Futurity

Wednesday's $250,000 Del Mar Futurity (G1) is the closing-day feature, and a

field of 13 is set for the seven-furlong contest. Unbeaten SALUTE THE SARGE

(Forest Wildcat) is the most accomplished juvenile, winning the Hollywood

Juvenile Championship S. (G3) and Best Pal S. (G2) in his last two outings, but

the Eric Guillot trainee isn't getting any respect. Regular rider Michael Baze

departs to ride a maiden winner, and Del Mar's linemaker installed him as the

6-1 co-third choice on the morning line. We like him.

Salute the Sarge broke his maiden in impressive fashion, closing strongly to

win going away by a half-length at 10-1, and he proved ultra-game when capturing

the Hollywood Juvenile Championship at 6-1. Overlooked as the second choice in a

four-horse field last time, Salute the Sarge posted a workmanlike score

in the Best Pal, but he still took care of business in registering the

one-length decision. We'll look for improvement off that effort. The bay colt

shows two solid morning drills since the August 12 Best Pal, including a

six-furlong bullet move in 1:11 2/5 last Wednesday, and he owns a seasoning edge

over most of his rivals. Salute the Sarge will have enough pace to set up his

winning rally.

KANAN DUME (Malibu Moon) rallied well to win by a neck when making his career

debut on July 18, and the Richard Mandella trainee is a candidate to make it two

in a row. The rail isn't the best spot to be at

this distance on Polytrack, but Kanan Dume can use his speed to gain a good spot during the

early stages of this heat. We were impressed by the way he finished last time,

and we'll give the chestnut the best chance to derail our top selection.

DRILL DOWN (El Corredor) will retain Baze following his 2 1/4-length maiden

score over the Polytrack on July 28. Making his second career start, the Michael

Machowsky charge earned a field-best 95 BRIS Speed rating and a 101

Late Pace number. The dark bay colt looks very promising and is favored at

7-2 here, but he will making his stakes debut in a large field against more

experienced foes. We expect to see a good showing from Drill Down, but we'll tab

him to come up a little short.

LEONIDES (Richter Scale) scratched out of a scheduled appearance in the Best

Pal, but he appears to be training forwardly for this appearance. Conditioned by

Vladimir Cerin, the bay colt was a good-looking debut winner at Hollywood and

just missed when finishing second by a nose in the Hollywood Juvenile

Championship. He's an obvious contender if he takes to the Polytrack in the

afternoon.

E Z'S GENTLEMAN (Yankee Gentleman) is another one to consider for the top

three. After taking a tour of the Del Mar oval in his career bow, the bay closed

strongly to win his second career start last time, netting a 108 Late Pace

number. His late kick could serve him very well on Wednesday, and E Z's

Gentleman could provide a spark for Ron McAnally, who has had a slow meet

(two-for-48).

OVEREXTENDED (Monarchos) is winless from three starts, but he's turned in

solid efforts to hit the board in his last two outings. The gray colt will find

the sledding more difficult in this spot, but the uncoupled O'Neill runner

remains an intriguing candidate for the exotics at long odds.

GEORGIE BOY (Tribal Rule) drilled a five-furlong bullet in preparation

for this start and could show speed from the start in the Futurity. A

three-length winner of the Graduation S. two back, he sustained his speed versus

Salute the Sarge last time but still managed a respectable runner-up placing.

He's eligible to keep improving for Kathy Walsh and might hang on for a minor

award here.

SKY CAPE (Najran) finished a decent third behind Salute the Sarge and Georgie

Boy last time, and the Kristin Mulhall pupil figures to be running late in this

spot. He'll need to step up his game to be a serious factor, but we wouldn't be

surprised to see him get involved in the stretch as he continues to improve.

DIXIE CHATTER (Dixie Union) is stuck on the far outside in his first start

against winners. We'll give him a race at this level.

WHATEVER WHENEVER (Delaware Township) owns a stakes win at Santa Rosa and is

very quick, but we anticipate the pace taking a toll on this front runner. GOOD

MAN DAN (Proud Citizen) exits a runaway wire-to-wire score over the track, but

he'll likely face much more pressure this time around. We'll give him a race.

DREWTHEGENTLEMAN (Yankee Gentleman) was claimed for $80,000 in his winning

debut at Del Mar but will break from an outside post. We can't recommend his chances. FORD ISLAND

(Thunder Gulch) exits a third versus maiden claimers and looks overmatched here.