Bullet Drill looking for a repeat

Bullet Drill rallied into an honest and contested pace to win going 5 1/2 furlongs in a $25,000 claimer on June 25 at Emerald Downs. It was his first start at the current meet and, with plenty of speed to set him up again, he could repeat. The Frank Lucarelli-trained 5-year-old is coming back for the same price Wednesday and should not mind the slightly longer distance in the six-furlong sprint, which drew eight horses.

The highly competitive event is slotted as the ninth race on a 10-race card that begins at 2:15 p.m. Pacific.

Bullet Drill is a four-time winner, with all his victories coming at Emerald. He went into his latest race following an unsuccessful stint at Golden Gate Fields, where he raced five times, with a third-place finish in a $12,500 claimer being his best performance.

Showing an affinity for the local surface, he settled early and, despite going five wide on the turn, got up to edge Freiburg by a head in his return.

It was his first race in just less than two months. With a sharp race plus a couple of decent interim works, he appears to be primed for another big effort with Javier Matias retaining the mount.

Freiburg is again among Bullet Drill’s opponents on Wednesday. Freiburg also was trained by Lucarelli in his narrow loss. Lucarelli wheeled him back in a $10,000 starter with a $15,000 claiming option on July 16. Again, he just missed, losing by a neck to Wheel Rally.

The 5-year-old Kentuckybred was claimed by trainer Candice Cryderman, who was acting on behalf of John Parker and Maggie and Mike Pimental.

According to Daily Racing Form’s Formulator, Cryderman has an 18 percent strike rate and $1.29 return on investment with claimed horses running back the first time.

Similar to Bullet Drill, Freiburg has won only at Emerald, where he’s been victorious five times. His latest win came in a $25,000 claimer on Sept. 20, when he completed a hat trick for Lucarelli.

He is versatile and should get a nice trip from a forward position with Gary Wales riding.

Grinder Sparksaglo, a 15-time winner, finished third after taking a clear lead into the stretch in Bullet Drill’s race. He was up against it when he came back in a $50,000 optional claimer on July 15. However, the Robert Baze-trained 9-year-old held on well after dueling in the 5 1/2-furlong dash won by Take Charge Deputy. The runnerup was multiple stakes winner Barclay, who won the Grade 3 Longacres Mile in 2018.

Other speed will not make Grinder Sparksaglo’s task easy. Nonetheless, he is certainly capable of winning if he shows up with his best stuff.

Tumac Mountain set the pace and gave way grudgingly when he finished a head behind Freiburg on July 16. Trained by Jose Navarro, the 5-year-old gelding by Atta Boy Roy could be sitting on a big effort in the third start of his form cycle. Just a couple of wins from 22 starts is a bit of a concern, though.

The Lucarelli-trained Legitimate Cause should be rolling late.