Del Mar claimers are changing hands rapidly this meeting and that will continue for the rest of the stand.
There are basically two things that are hard to hold onto at the seaside meeting: hundred-dollar bills and Del Mar claimers. Bettors should be fully aware of which horses have been the most coveted and if they went from an unsuccessful barn to a successful one or vice versa.
From the Del Mar opening day on July 15 through August 13 there were 123 total claims at the famous beach venue. The total amount of the claims was $2,929.500.
When we are young, being popular seems important, but as life rolls out real decisions change that dynamic except when talking about popular Del Mar claimers. Every season, it’s harder to keep Del Mar claimers in any particular barn than it is to beat Serena Williams at tennis when she is at the top of her game. There have been some very coveted runners so far so let’s take a look at some that should come back and run huge when they next appear.
Four trainers put in a claim for My Samurai Warrior on July 15 and Chris Hartman won the ‘shake’. A claiming shake involves Del Mar claimers when more than one trainer puts in a purchase slip, or a claim, for a horse. My Samurai Warrior was claimed from Mark Glatt, who has been winning races in bunches and Hartman has won with 26% of his first off the claim runners in the last 5 years.
My Samurai Warrior was impressive, winning on July 15 and the place horse was 5 lengths clear of his nearest rival. If My Samurai Warrior returns in a sprint for $32,000 or $40,000 claimers, he’ll be super tough.
Plastered, an appropriately named runner for the crazies betting Del Mar claimers this meet, made her California debut on July 21 at Del Mar and she promptly made the lead and then kept on going. She was no secret either, as 14 trainers put in a claim for this youngster.
Eddie Truman, who has been winning races in California for decades, won the shake and you can bet he’ll bring this filly back in an appropriate spot. A good placement would be at a mile or a mile and a sixteenth in another claimer or maybe a $40,000 starter race.
Jonny’s Choice, a 7-for-32 racer, was claimed by Jeff Mullins on July 29 when he won a 12-way shake. Mullins gave him a race on August 11 when he put the gelding into a protected $16,000 starter race on grass. This veteran has a super stalk and pounce style and this runner will be dangerous sprinting or routing vs. $10,000 claimers next out.
The filly Fruity is a popular lady. She was claimed at Santa Anita on July 9 and then was purchased in her very next race on August 7 at Del Mar. Matthew Chew, who was in care of the equine stock for the great movie Seabiscuit, won the 10-way shake for the filly. This miss is versatile, she can win on turf or dirt and the way she closed to win on August 7 suggests she will adore the mile distance.
A runner that deserves to be followed intently is Pay or Play. She was bet like a good thing at 8-5 in her racing debut at Del Mar on August 3 but lost her best chance when off slowly. Tim Yakteen put a claim in for her and won a 5-way shake for the privilege of training this filly. The youngster has a future. She had trained forwardly for her first race and she has a right to have a nice career as her dam is a sibling to the Grade 2 winner and over $450,000 earner Sky Cape.
The key to scrutinizing Del Mar claimers is evaluating which barns they exit and who will be the new conditioner.
When a runner like Amberella goes from the barn of Alfredo Marquez to the shedrow of Roberto Diodoro, bettors have to pay attention.
Marquez has only won one race this year while Diodoro has won with 26% of his starters this year and opened up Del Mar winning with 3 of his first 20 runners.
7/15/2016-9/5/2016, 11/10/2
