Joel Rosario, seeking his third straight Del Mar riding title, narrowly escaped injury Aug. 18 in a mid-program spill, but came back in the featured seventh race at five furlongs on the grass to win aboard outsider Bailouttheminister.
Rosario, a 26-year-old jockey from the Dominican Republic, was unseated in the stretch of the fifth race, a one-mile turf event, when his mount, Ali’s Lake, suffered a catastrophic injury to her right foreleg.
Rosario was forced to miss his mount in the sixth race while being examined at the Southern California track's first aid station, where he was judged to be unhurt. Patrick Valenzuela replaced him aboard Double D’s Diamond who finished sixth.
Ali’s Lake, trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, had to be euthanized.
Bailouttheminister and Rosario went postward at 8-1 odds in the feature and reached the wire 1 ½ lengths in front of longshot Aliza’s Dream and jockey Agapito Delgadillo. Bolinas was third, with Nofty fourth in the field of eight older Cal-breds.
Bailouttheminister, owned by Theresa and Edward Denike and trained by Paddy Gallagher, was timed in :56.33 and returned $18.40, $10.40, and $6. Aliza’s Dream paid $15.60 and $6.40, while Bolinas returned $3.80 to show.
Bailouttheminister provided Rosario with his second win on the day and the 24th of the season as he moved into a tie atop the standings with Rafael Bejarano and Joe Talamo, both of whom had single winners Aug. 18.
