Nita Winner’s Pure Tactics, piloted by Del Mar’s leading rider thus far this summer, Flavien Prat, forged to the front in the final stride to win the featured $86,350 Wickerr Stakes by a head over pacesetting Winning Prize Wednesday.  

 

In a blanket three-horse finish, longshot Wilkinson was only a nose farther back in third place in the field of ten horses going a mile on the infield Jimmy Durante Turf Course. Fourth was Global View. Scratched from the original field was Play Hard to Get.

 

Pure Tactics, trained by Doug O’Neill, raced in mid-pack in the early stages of the contest, found room between rivals to enter contention in the upper stretch and responded gamely in the final sixteenth to overhaul a courageous Winning Prize, who was ridden by Martin Garcia.

 

Pure Tactics, a Texas-bred son of Pure Prize, ran the distance in 1:34.78 over a firm grass surface and returned $9.40, $4.80 and $4.20 while scoring his tenth victory in 25 starts. First money of $51,060 increased the six-year-old’s earnings to $431,106.

 

Winning Prize paid $4.40 and $3.20, while Wickinson returned $8 to show.

 

With no perfect tickets, Thursday’s Pick Six will have a carryover of $52,158.

 

Wednesday’s attendance was 11,311.