King: Beau Recall facing easier in Del Mar Oaks
In Saturday’s Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks, which won’t be remembered for its quality, my betting strategy will be simple: back the filly coming out of the best grass race. And that means supporting Beau Recall, who enters the Del Mar Oaks after finishing sixth in the Grade 1 Belmont Oaks on July 8.
The Belmont Oaks was the most significant turf race for 3-year-old fillies in North America this year. Not only was it a Grade 1, but it also attracted horses from all over the world seeking a share of its $1 million purse. And those that raced were quite good, led by winner New Money Honey, who took last fall’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.
:: Get PPs for Pacific Classic Day's mandatory pick six payout at Del Mar
Though Beau Recall wasn’t a significant factor, she lost by only 3 1/4 lengths after a cross-country ship from California.
Now, on Saturday, she has the benefit of facing easier with just two of the entrants in the Del Mar Oaks being graded winners and four runners not even having placed in a stakes.
The Del Mar Oaks is also a home game for Beau Recall, who has trained at Del Mar since late last month and worked an Aug. 13 bullet on the turf course.
Although not yet a stakes winner, she showed her quality with a series of runner-up finishes behind Sircat Sally, who had been a dominant force in this division on the West Coast before she was injured in finishing third in the Grade 2 San Clemente on July 23.
I would have preferred to have seen Beau Recall draw more toward the inside than post 12 in the Del Mar Oaks, giving her a better chance to save ground, but at least the presence of numerous speed horses should ensure she gets ample pace to set up her rally.
With 14 horses in the Del Mar Oaks to spread around betting dollars, the price on Beau Recall should be palatable.
◗ My other two plays Saturday come with an angle I have long loved: supporting a former claimer in a stakes race. Such horses, no matter how sharp their recent form, often start as overlays, with the public questioning their class to some degree.
One of those fitting this profile is Gianna’s Dream in the Grade 3 Violet at Monmouth Park. A former $15,000 claimer and claimed for $25,000 a little more than a year ago at Saratoga, she has risen to greater heights since being shifted to grass by trainer Mike Maker, winning 4 of 7 vs. weaker than she’ll face Saturday.
She has also held her own in open stakes, such as when she finished a close third at 29-1 in the Winter Memories last fall at Aqueduct. She had the lead in midstretch only to fall a length short of victorious My Impression and a half-length behind runner-up Sassy Little Lila, now a Grade 1-placed filly.
This year she appears to be on the upswing. After a fourth in the Lady Canterbury to kick off her 2017 campaign, she won a second-level optional claimer at Laurel on July 15 that was far above average for the level.
She flew in winning that race, running 1 1/16 miles in 1:39.93 and earning a career-best 89 Beyer Speed Figure – a number that puts her within range of the top Beyers of the other leading contenders in the field.
That day she came from off the pace, but in the Violet, which is void of pace, she looks to be in position to cruise to the lead, giving her every chance to pull off a mild upset.
◗ As for the other former claimer I’m eager to back Saturday, that would be Martini Glass in the $200,000 Lady Jacqueline at Thistledown.
Astutely claimed for $16,000 from her debut at Tampa in February 2016 by trainer and part-owner Keith Nations, she has since made more than $258,000 in 14 starts. Along the way she scored some starter-allowance victories, took an allowance, and twice turned in near-miss efforts when second in the Obeah Stakes and Grade 1 Delaware Handicap, both of which came at her summer base at Delaware Park.
Her last race, when she lost by only a length to champion Songbird, will obviously catch the eyes of some bettors, but I’m hopeful that perhaps others will view it as fluky after looking at her humble beginnings.