King: How I'd play Del Mar on Saturday, Aug. 16
Although most horse-racing fans focusing on the Saturday card at Del Mar will be eagerly anticipating the featured eighth race, the Del Mar Oaks, it is the fifth race that this horseplayer is most targeting.
A first-level allowance at a mile with a split condition for horses who have raced for a $40,000 tag in 2013-14, it seems well suited to Zimmer (#2, 9-2), a seven-time winner who ran through his allowance conditions long ago and is eligible for this race by having raced for the $40,000 claiming price.
He won for $40,000 two starts ago going down the hill and then most recently was second in a one-mile race over this course for a $40,000 tag July 20.
Working in his favor is a draw in post 2, which should allow him to settle in a favorable stalking position along the inside – the kind of trip his chief opponents are unlikely to experience. Most of them are drawn outside, putting them at risk of a wide trip.
In the end, that may prove the advantage Zimmer needs to pick up the victory.
Race 6
Hauler (#5, 8-1), a first-timer in race 6, is another intriguing value play. A son of Super Saver, the leading first-crop sire in North America, he sold for $325,000 at auction this year – before anyone knew how well progeny of Super Saver would perform.
Fattening his price to 8-1 on the line is probably the fact that trainer Mike McCarthy is 0 for 8 on the year, but don’t expect those cold numbers to last. McCarthy was a longtime Todd Pletcher assistant and won many races when looking after horses for his old boss.
It was McCarthy, in fact, who was around Super Saver at Pletcher’s Kentucky division before and after the horse won the 2010 Kentucky Derby.
The works from Hauler appear strong, though all things being equal, it would have been nice to see works over the Del Mar surface. He ships in from his San Luis Downs base.
Hauler is strictly a value play, with Kantune being the most logical winner after a runner-up finish in his debut, and with Bob Baffert debuting a son of Curlin in Abusive Power and John Salder running a first-timer by Tapit named Pappou.
Race 8
The Del Mar Oaks looks like Sea Queen’s to win. One of the top 3-year-old turf mares on the East Coast, she faces what seems a soft California cast.
Sea Queen (#10, 5-2) could have drawn better than on the far outside, but she seemingly has enough tactical speed to adjust. Focus on her heavily in the gimmick wagers surrounding the Del Mar Oaks, the eighth on the 10-race card.