How to bet Del Mar's $590,935 mandatory-payout Pick 6 carryover

Get ready! Sunday is closing day at Del Mar, which means the massive $590,935 carryover in the Rainbow Pick 6 is due for a mandatory dispersal.

Let’s take a race-by-race look at the sequence for the 20-cent wager, which kicks off at 5:02 p.m. ET. Then we’ll assemble a ticket on a ~$40 budget:

Race 4: Maiden Special Weight (six furlongs)

#5 Newgrange (3-1) has been training up a storm for trainer Bob Baffert, who strikes at a 36% rate with horses debuting in maiden special weights. The son of juvenile Grade 1 winner Violence will be ridden by John Velazquez (a 30% winner teaming up with Baffert over the last two months), so we’ll take a shot singling Newgrange to start the Pick 6.

Race 5: Maiden Special Weight (one mile on turf)

#3 Shut Up Michael (4-1) finished third in his debut at Sandown Park in England, an encouraging performance suggesting the son of Galileo can make some noise in his U.S. debut for hot trainer Phil D’Amato. #1 Dancing Rinca (4-1) and #8 Crosby Beach (8-1) are the only others we’ll use.

Race 6: $50,000 Starter Allowance (one mile)

#2 Solo Animo (4-1) has posted solid Brisnet Speed ratings on both dirt and turf, and graduated in a $50,000 maiden claimer last out, suggesting the D’Amato trainee is a logical win threat. But morning-line favorite #3 Cosmo (5-2) is surely the horse to beat in his first dirt start since finishing third in the 2020 Los Alamitos Derby (G3).

Race 7: Matriarch S. (G1, one mile on turf)

Trainer Chad Brown has won three of the last four renewals of this prestigious prize for fillies and mares, including the 2020 edition with #3 Viadera (5-2). The defending Matriarch heroine is a logical contender on Sunday, though she’s been beaten twice this season by her Grade 1-placed stablemate #6 Regal Glory (9-5), the other mare we’ll use in this small but competitive field.

Race 8: $50,000 Maiden Claiming (six furlongs)

#6 Heaven’s Music (5-2) has finished second three times over this class level, but he’s not the fastest horse in the field. #4 Fowler Blue (2-1) posted a higher Brisnet Speed rating when fourth in a maiden special weight during the Santa Anita spring meet, a race won by future Del Mar Futurity (G1) runner-up Finneus. Fowler Blue has been freshened and gelded since July, and looms as a formidable contender for trainer Luis Mendez, a 36% winner with horses dropping from maiden special weight to maiden claiming company.

Race 9: $40,000 Allowance Optional Claiming (1 1/8 miles on turf)

A bevy of evenly-matched fillies and mares will face the starter in the Pick 6 finale. You can make a case for many of them, so we’ll spread deep with #1 Met in Miami (8-1), #2 Hollywood Girl (6-1), #3 Charges Dropped (4-1), #5 Zydeco Mama (6-1), #7 Tony Ann (7-2), #8 Kleen Karma (10-1), #11 Rose’s Crystal (8-1), and #13 Unicorn (6-1). If we make it this far, we’ll have every chance to close out with a winner.

20-cent Rainbow Pick 6: 5 with 1,3,8 with 2,3 with 3,6 with 4,6 with 1,2,3,5,7,8,11,13 ($38.40)

Good luck!