Del Mar Racing Picks – Friday, August 21, 2020

Del Mar Racing hosts the Rancho Bernardo Handicap and nine other maiden, claiming, and allowance races on Friday, August 21, 2020.

The forecast Friday for Del Mar calls for partly cloudy skies and a 10% chance of rain, with temperatures in the mid-80s and winds around 11 mph.

Post time for the first race Friday at Del Mar Racing is 2 PM (PDT). As soon as you’ve synchronized your watch, let’s move on to my horse racing picks and tips.

This is an allowance optional claiming race for three-year-olds and upward running on turf for a distance of 1-1/16 miles. Purse is $63,000.

I’m going with the morning line’s second-favored (9/5) entry here: Murad Khan, ridden by Abel Cedillo. This seven-year-old gelding moneyed 15 of his 27 career starts, winning eight of them. Granted, the morning line favorite has a higher percentage of starts in the money, but this is about winning. Something which, by the way, the favorite hasn’t done since January 2019.

Incidentally, there’s only one long-odds entry in this race, and I’m afraid the odds are not long enough, so let’s save our longshot money.

This is an allowance optional claiming race for California-bred or -sired fillies and mares three years old and upward running on turf for a distance of five furlongs. The purse is $57,000.

I’m going to go along with the morning line on this one and back the 7/2 favorite, Leggs Galore, with Ricardo Gonzalez in the irons. This three-year-old filly finished in the money once in her three career starts, and that was a win.

The longest odds I see here with any promise of a return are 12/1, and that’s good for a show ticket on Plum Wild, ridden by Heriberto Figueroa. This five-year-old mare moneyed ten of her 14 career starts, winning one of them.

This is the Rancho Bernardo Handicap, a stakes race for fillies and mares three years old and upward running 6-1/2 furlongs for a purse of $100,000.

I’ll go along with the morning line here and bet on the 8/5 favorite, Sneaking Out, with Umberto Rispoli in the irons. This four-year-old filly moneyed nine of her 11 career starts, winning five of them.

I can’t overlook a potential surprise here with the 12/1 Mother of Dragons, ridden by Ricardo Gonzalez. This six-year-old mare finished in the money ten of her 12 career starts—and won six of them.