Del Mar Pick 6 carryover for Wednesday of $265,129
The Del Mar Pick 6 has been quite elusive lately as there have been numerous carryovers. Well Sunday was no exception, as nobody pieced together all 6. So Wednesday’s card of racing will feature a carryover of over a quarter million dollars. The Pick 6 sequence covers races 3 through 8 and post time for the third race on Wednesday is 6:09pm EST.
Royalty for Life goes all the way in the Hambletonian
Royalty for Life and Brian Sears wanted the lead in the Hambletonian, as they shot out fast from that inside gate and managed to outduel Smilin Eli to get to the point. After putting up a strong opening quarter mile in 26.40 seconds, Royalty For Life (BetPTC.com 2nd Selection) just kept on going and never looked back, opening up to win by three and a quarter powerful lengths, stopping the clock in 1:52.20. Smilin Eli was second all the way around and held onto that second spot by a nose over Corky (BetPTC.com Top Selection) who finished up in third. Royalty for Life was the fastest qualifier as the three elimination heats took place earlier on in the card.
Brian Sears not only won the Hambletonian on Royalty For Life, but he took the Hambletonian Oaks with Bee a Magician (BetPTC.com Top Selection). Bee a Magician was fifth early on, but Sears pulled out on the backstretch and quickly rushed up to gain command as they went up the backstretch. Bee a Magician was just far too much racehorse though for these runners, as she cruised to a very easy three and a quarter length win, stopping the clock in 1:51.80, faster than the Hambletonian runners. Classic Martine (BetPTC.com 3rd Selection) finished in second, ahead of To Dream On who ran third.
Departing dominates the West Virginia Derby
Departing and Robby Albarado departed from the rest of the field on Saturday as they poured it on down the stretch to win the Grade 2 West Virginia Derby by almost nine lengths. Sent off as the 7/5 favorite, Departing (BetPTC.com 2nd Selection) was seventh early on as Ruler of Love (BetPTC.com Longhsot) went out to set the early fractions. Departing started to pick off runners going to the far turn and then catapulted to the lead as they came to the quarter pole, and once they straightened away it was just a question of how far they were going to win by. The margin ended up being eight and three quarter lengths, as Ruler of Love held onto the second spot. Overanalyze (BetPTC.com 3rd Selection) finished up in third, with Betweenhereandcool (BetPTC.com Top Selection rounding out the superfecta.
Taptowne (BetPTC.com 2nd Selection) took advantage of a garden trip to get up and win the WV Governor’s Stakes. Sent off as the 6/5 favorite, Taptowne stayed right behind the long shot leader Whatthecatdrugin early on. As they went to the quarter pole, Calvin Borel gave Taptowne his cue and they were off to win by two lengths in the end. Russell Road (BetPTC.com Top Selection) was second all the way around to Jasizzle (BetPTC.com 2nd Selection), but because Jasizzle veered in so sharply at the break, Russell Road was put up to first in the Robert Byrd Memorial. Ms. Anna Destiny and Ricardo Santana scored a mild upset when they won the WV Secretary of State Stakes, pouring it on late to beat Flattering Bea by four lengths.
Lady of Fifty gets her Grade 1 win in the Clement L. Hirsch
Lady of Fifty has been a regular in the Southern Cal Distaff division for a while now, but she moved to the upper echelon on Saturday when she rallied down the far outside to get up and win the $300,000 Clement L. Hirsch. Sent off at odds of 10/1, Lady of Fifty was eighth for much of the race and was seventh in mid-stretch as it was a real scramble for the final furlong. But jockey Corey Nakatani kept her out in the clear and she had all the momentum late Lady of Fifty powered home to win by a length and a half in the end. More Chocolate (BetPTC.com 2nd Selection) got up to finish second, just ahead of Byrama (BetPTC.com 3rd Selection) who had to wait for room until it was too late.
Alpha Bettor wins the Seagram Cup
Alpha Bettor had to overcome Ultimate Destiny getting an unfair advantage at the start, but still managed to beat that horse and all his other six rivals to win the $150,000 Seagram Cup. Sent off as the 7/2 third choice, Alpha Bettor settled in mid-pack early on as Ultimate Destiny went to the lead. Ultimate Destiny maintained that lead into the stretch, but Justin Stein and Alpha Bettor had all the momentum late as they rallied to get up and win by three quarters of a length. Ultimate Destiny finished up in second. The stewards ruled that Ultimate Destiny got an unfair start and he was declared a non-starter. Awesome Overture was the new second place finisher with Peyton the new third place finisher. On Rainbow Bridge won the Nandi Stakes as the favorite earlier on in the card.