Friday’s Best Bets and Quick Picks: Pick 6 carryovers at Colonial Downs, Del Mar

Handicapper J. Keeler Johnson shares best bets and quick picks for Friday, Aug. 21 at Ellis Park and Century Mile, along with horses to play in Pick 6 carryovers at Colonial Downs and Del Mar.

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• Late Pick 5 Insurance at Colonial Downs: Opt in to receive up to $50 back on your Late Pick 5 wagers at Colonial Downs if you have four out of five winning legs, each racing Friday in August.
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Today’s TwinSpires tournaments include:

• $83 Saratoga Bet and Set Feeder to 8/23 Saratoga SSBC Qualifier
• $50 Ellis Park Challenge
• $140 Ellis Park Feeder to 8/28 Saratoga SSBC Qualifier
• $400 Saratoga Bonus Feeder Friday to 8/22 Saratoga KDBC/BCBC Qualifier
• $150 Saratoga Challenge
• $40 Saratoga Challenge
• $40 Charles Town Challenge
• $96 Charles Town Feeder to 8/27 Saratoga SSBC Bonus Feeder

Best Bets and Quick Picks

Ellis Park: Race 2: $50,000 Maiden Optional Claiming (six furlongs on dirt, 1:19 p.m. ET)

#11 Elewene (2-1) showed promise when debuting in a $50,000 maiden optional claimer for fillies sprinting 5 1/2 furlongs at Ellis Park. She rated in third place behind a quick pace before advancing to finish second, beaten only a neck while earning a flashy 84 Brisnet Speed rating nine points higher than the par winning number for Friday’s conditions.

Trainer Dale Romans wins at a solid 19% rate with second-time starters, so there’s a good chance Elewene will step forward and graduate on Friday, even while squaring off against male rivals. Let’s place a large win bet on the bay filly, then key her over first-time starter #9 Full Access (10-1) in a small exacta.

Selections

• #11 Elewene (2-1)
• #9 Full Access (10-1)
• #1 Junction (10-1)

Wagers

• $35 to win on #11 Elewene
• $5 Exacta: 11 with 9
  Total: $40

Century Mile Thoroughbred: Race 4: Princess Margaret S. (six furlongs on dirt, 9:45 p.m. ET)

#6 Centella (1-5) won her first two starts against males at Century Mile, taking a 4 1/2-furlong maiden special weight by 1 1/4 lengths before wiring the 5 1/2-furlong Kindergarten S. by 4 3/4 lengths. Those wins yielded Brisnet Speed ratings of 87 and 78, the two highest numbers in the Princess Margaret field.

Centella looks mighty tough to beat on Friday, so we’ll single her to start a daily double and key her over Kindergarten runner-up #5 Beyondthesun (5-1) in an exacta.

Selections

• #6 Centella (1-5)
• #5 Beyondthesun (5-1)
• #4 Northlander (10-1)

Wagers

• $20 Double: 6 with 5
• $20 Exacta: 6 with 5
  Total: $40

Century Mile Thoroughbred: Race 5: Canadian Juvenile S. (six furlongs on dirt, 10:15 p.m. ET)

#2 Bakken Town (4-5) is the heavy favorite after finishing third in the Kindergarten S., but his racing record so far suggests six furlongs might be farther than he wants to run.

#5 Let’s Get Rowdy (4-1) is a son of Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Mandaloun out of a mare by acclaimed sire Medaglia d’Oro, so there’s plenty of stamina in his pedigree. He finished only a neck behind Bakken Town when fourth in the Kindergarten and may turn the tables while stretching out over six furlongs.

We’ll bet an exacta accordingly.

Selections

• #5 Let’s Get Rowdy (4-1)
• #2 Bakken Town (4-5)
• #1 Mexican Lucky (3-1)

Wagers

• $20 Exacta: 5 with 2

Carryover Watch

Colonial Downs: Race 4: $6,702 Pick 6 carryover (2:04 p.m. ET)

The Friday card at Colonial Downs includes a $6,702 Pick 6 carryover.

Arguably the hardest leg of the sequence to handicap is Race 5, a maiden special weight for two-year-old fillies racing one mile on turf. The 10-horse field includes six first-time starters, so there isn’t much form to analyze.

None of the experienced runners bring especially compelling form to the table, so we recommend trying to beat them with the first-time starters. But which ones?

Trainer Cherie DeVaux has gone 2-for-5 (40%) at Colonial this meet, so her well-bred filly #10 Beautiful Harper (5-1) must be used while shipping in from Kentucky. #7 Waves of Success (6-1) is another logical player for trainer Michael Stidham, a 16% winner with horses debuting on turf and a 21% winner at Colonial this meet.

We’ll round out our Race 5 selections with #2 Flamenco (9-2). A daughter of Justify and a half-sister to Del Mar Oaks (G1) winner Spendarella, Flamenco is bred to excel on turf, and she has the hot jockey/trainer duo of Jorge Ruiz and Graham Motion in her corner.

Del Mar: Race 3: $30,900 Pick 6 carryover (6:02 p.m. ET)

If you’re planning to chase Friday’s $30,900 Pick 6 carryover at Del Mar, we’re going to recommend a slightly creative single to build tickets around.

In Race 3, the opening leg of the sequence, we like #7 Hurricane Way (3-1), the second choice on the morning line.

Race 3 is a $25,000 claimer for horses who have never won two races. #2 Lucky Lucky (2-1) is a logical favorite in the five-furlong grass dash; last time out, he finished second (beaten only half a length) in a $25,000 claimer sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs over the Santa Anita turf course.

But that effort yielded a modest 79 Brisnet Speed rating, a number Hurricane Way has exceeded on many occasions.

Hurricane Way showed decent form against tougher competition on turf back in 2024 and 2025. He finished second in a six-furlong maiden special weight at Santa Anita and third in a one-mile $50,000 starter optional claimer. He also won a $40,000 maiden claimer racing one mile on dirt. Along the way, he earned a bevy of Brisnet Speed ratings in the 80-89 range.

Unfortunately, Hurricane Way went to the sidelines after April 2025, and he didn’t race again for 15 months. But since returning to action, he’s performed well. He finished second by a head in a $20,000 claimer dashing 5 1/2 furlongs at Los Alamitos, then tackled a six-furlong $32,000 claimer at Del Mar and ran third with a career-best 92 Brisnet Speed rating.

Those two efforts came on dirt, but switching to turf shouldn’t be an obstacle for Hurricane Way. Trainer Mark Rheinford strikes at a 33% rate with horses running back for the third time following a layoff, so we anticipate Hurricane Way will deliver a winning run on Friday.

Good luck!