Gulfstream notes: Track offers Rainbow Six incentive

Gulfstream is trying to keep bettors interested in its Rainbow Six wager by seeding it with guaranteed money every time the jackpot is swept by one winner. Toward that end, a $50,000 pool guarantee will be in effect when another four-day race week commences Thursday. The pool was emptied Saturday when one winner cashed for $149,050.

The Thursday sequence runs from races 4 through 9. First post is 1:15 p.m. Eastern, with the fourth race, a second-level optional claimer that serves as the nominal feature, set for 2:49.

Meanwhile, Thursday marks the start of an across-the-board purse hike that will average about 10 percent. The increase stems from the July 1 contractual resolution that ended a prolonged dates conflict between Gulfstream and Calder.

As part of the new agreement, Gulfstream is paying a $250 incentive bonus to every starter to help offset the burgeoning costs of workers’ compensation.

◗ Leading jockey Edgard Zayas took off his mounts again after riding two races Sunday because of lingering soreness from a July 13 spill at Gulfstream. Zayas had to miss the first two programs of last week before he rode a full slate of mounts Saturday, winning with one, giving him 17 wins at the new meet that began July 1.

Zayas is expected to be back at full strength this week, having been named in seven races Thursday and all 10 on Friday.

◗ The lone stakes race this coming weekend at Gulfstream is the new Eight Miles East, a $75,000 turf route for 3-year-olds and up Saturday. The next stakes date of note is Aug. 9, when a pair of $100,000 sprints kicks off the Florida Stallion Series.