Bernier: Del Mar pick three play for Friday, Aug. 1

Friday’s card from Del Mar is another card that I don’t find myself enamored with anything in particular. Nothing really jumps off the page to me, but I’ll put together a small pick three play consisting of races 2-4.

Race 2
* Not only does Wonderful Union possess some of the best Beyer Speed Figures in the field, but he also figures to be the controlling speed. The 0-for-3 career record on synthetic doesn’t make me feel especially good, but at the end of the day these are cheap horses that have shown an inability to pass horses in the past; I want the horse they’ll need to pass in order to win.

* In a sequence where I’m not in love with anything, it doesn’t make much sense to go fishing for things just for the sake of going fishing. Wonderful Union is the only horse I’ll be using here.

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Race 3
* I’m going to go in the complete opposite direction compared to the opening leg of this sequence. I’ll be using every runner from this race in some capacity, simply because I don’t trust anyone in a group of $20,000 maiden claimers.

* Storm the Heavens exits a promising second at Los Alamitos, a race in which he was more than three lengths clear of the third-place finisher. If he can take a minor step forward off that effort, he’s a logical win candidate.

* Tribal Mystery Man flashed nice speed in his synthetic debut here at the beginning of the Del Mar meeting going seven furlongs, and on Friday he’ll cut back to 5 1/2 furlongs. Should he break sharply and secure the lead, he could be the one they’ll have to run down late.

* Forest Romance has taken money in each of his two career starts, and while there has only been minor progression during said efforts, I’m willing to give him another shot to graduate.

* I’ll use the rest of the runners in the third race as “B”s in DRF TicketMaker

Race 4
* Pulmarack went off as the betting favorite in his debut here at the beginning of the meet and ran rather greenly.
Jerry Hollendorfer adds the blinkers to this horse on Friday in an effort to sharpen him up. I anticipate this to work wonders and think he’s the likeliest winner.

* Other horses I’ll include on my tickets are Guy Code, Spring for It, and Matty’s Tribal.

Here are the plays: