Roadster expected to 'dominate' Del Mar Futurity betting

Roadster drew the No. 3 post in a field of seven and was established as the 6-5 favorite on the morning line for Monday’s Grade 1, $300,000 Del Mar Futurity issued Saturday by oddsmaker Russ Hudak.

Instagrand, the talk of the backstretch since his August 11 victory in the Best Pal Stakes, was surprisingly not entered in the Futurity. He would have been the favorite.

“Now you know why I don’t think in terms of numbers until everything’s set,” Hudak said Saturday. “I would have made Instagrand the favorite and Roadster a close second. There would have been a much smaller gap between those two than there is now between Roadster and the next horse.

“It went from being a competitive race to one where one horse figures to dominate the wagering.”

Rowayton, a stablemate to Instagrand with the same owner/trainer combination of Lawrence Best and Jerry Hollendorfer, is the second choice at 3-1. Hollendorfer said that Instagrand, who is physically OK, will be pointed to the Grade I $300,000 American Pharoah Stakes at Santa Anita on Saturday, September 29.

The American Pharoah is one of five Breeders’ Cup prep races on the Santa Anita program that day.

The Futurity field from the rail: Sparky Ville (Gary Stevens, 20-1), Rowayton (Drayden Van Dyke, 3-1), Roadster (Mike Smith, 6-5), Savagery (Joe Talamo, 15-1), Spin Lightning (Flavien Prat, 6-1), Sigalert (Tyler Baze, 8-1) and Game Winner (Tiago Pereira, 4-1).