GENTLEMEN TURNS IN A GOOD MILE WORK FOR PACIFIC CLASSIC

Hollywood Gold Cup winner Gentlemen, who won his first North American race at Del Mar last year, put in a sharp mile workout Monday morning over the seaside course's main track as he continued training toward the track's prime event of the season, the Grade I, $1,000,000 Pacific Classic to be run on Saturday, August 9.

The 5-year-old chestnut son of Robin des Bois traveled the mile in 1:38 4/5 handily.

Gentlemen, owned by Gilberto Montagna, Aldo Soprano, Juan Jose Varsi and R.D. Hubbard and trained by Richard Mandella, led a three-horse Mandella sweep in the Gold Cup at Hollywood Park June 29, and was third in an earlier Mandella three-horse sweep of the Santa Anita Handicap March 2. It's expected he'll be the favorite in the 1 1/4-mile Pacific Classic, which figures to draw Mandella trainees Siphon, who won the Big 'Cap and finished second in the Gold Cup, and Sandpit, who finished second in the Big 'Cap and third in the Gold Cup.

Siphon breezed a mile on Sunday in 1:39 1/5. Sandpit worked six furlongs on the grass on Thursday, and may skip the Pacific Classic for the Arlington Million August 24 at Arlington International Race Course.

SEVEN EXPECTED FOR RAMONA HANDICAP, MAYBE EIGHT FOR EDDIE READ

Del Mar's two premier grass races of the meeting -- the Ramona Handicap for fillies and mares on Saturday and the Eddie Read Handicap on Sunday -- are shaping up as solid competitive events for the seaside track. Each race carries Grade I status, a purse of $300,000 and a distance of 1 1/8 miles over the Jimmy Durante Turf Course.

Expected for the 40th running of the Ramona, which will be the feature on Saturday's 10-race card, are Barnes and Prestonwood Farm's Auriette, trained by Martin F. Jones; Sidney H. Craig's Different, trained by Ron McAnally; Gary A. Tanaka's Donna Viola, Ben Cecil; Allen E. Paulson's Escena, Bill Mott; Bill M. Thomas' Real Connection, Mel Stute; Kenis and 3 + U Stable's Wheatly Special, Jack Van Berg; and Cohen and Red Baron's Barn's Angel Face, Darrell Vienna. The last named was listed as a "possible" by trainer Vienna Monday morning.

Both Donna Viola and Angel Face worked over the turf Monday morning, with the former breezing a half-mile in :49 3/5 and the latter clocking five furlongs in 1:03 handily.

The possible entry into the Eddie Read of Michael Tabor's sensational grass runner Marlin has set Del Mar's backstretch abuzz, but Monday trainer D. Wayne Lukas would say only that he was looking very strongly at the possibility of running in the Read. Marlin won Hollywood Park's Sunset Handicap on July 20, and an announced goal is to run in the Arlington Million. Lukas said he probably would decide on Tuesday if Marlin would tackle the Read.

At this point, without a definite commitment from Marlin, the field looks as if it could shape up this way: Evergreen Farm's El Angelo, trained by Jenine Sahadi; Juddmonte Farms' Expelled, trained by Robert Frankel; Horizon Stable, Jarvis and Stronach's Helmsman, Wallace Dollase; Sheikh Maktoum's Labeeb, Neil Drysdale; Horton, Merhab and Nance's Naninja, Mike Mitchell; Cohen and Red Baron's Barn's Perim, Darrell Vienna; the Herbert Allen Estate's Smith, Rick Mettee.

Working over the turf course Monday morning were El Angelo, 1:02 breezing for five furlongs; Labeeb, 1:17 3/5 handily for six furlongs; and Perim, 1:17 2/5 handily for the same distance.

CARAVA REPORTS BING CROSBY WINNER FIRST INTENT IN GOOD SHAPE

Trainer Jack Carava, still basking in the afterglow of his first stakes win at Del Mar, said Monday morning that First Intent, the winner of Sunday's $172,000, Grade III Bing Crosby Breeders' Cup Handicap, came out of the race in fine shape and would be pointed toward the Grade III, $100,000- added Pat O'Brien Handicap on August 16.

"The horse came back in good shape, ate up last night and came back sound," Carava said.

Of his first stakes win at the seaside course, Carava said: "I really haven't run in many stakes here. I think last year was my first year to run in stakes here. I had a couple of seconds and thirds last year. Yesterday was a good day for me. I had a second in an earlier stake [Message of Honey in the Fleet Treat, an overnight stakes race].

"Our plans now are to run in the Pat O'Brien and see what happens. Every time he runs it's a treat to watch for us. It's like a bonus. He owes us nothing. It makes it a lot easier for the owners when they claim a lot of claiming horses and one of them turns into a stakes winner."

The owners are Michael and Loretta Lima of the Lima Family Trust, and they claimed the horse nearly two years ago from the Bob Baffert barn.

HOLLENDORFER HOPES FLEET LADY CAN SPEED INTO MAJOR STAKES

With a sensational victory behind her in Sunday's $85,000-added Fleet Treat Stakes, an overnight event at Del Mar, Golden Eagle Farm's Fleet Lady may be headed for bigger and better stakes dates. And trainer Jerry Hollendorfer is hoping that's the way she's going.

"We hope she can develop into a nice stakes filly," Hollendorfer said. "I haven't made a complete plan yet, but I think we'll look for a flat mile next time. I think she'll stay here. She liked this track last year and I was hopeful she would run well over it this year, too."

Fleet Lady scored her maiden victory at Del Mar September 8 of last year.

TWO-FOR-ONE MUSIC TREAT AWAITS FANS AT FIRST "JAZZ AT DEL MAR"

Jazz fans will be treated to a double play Wednesday night as "Jazz at Del Mar" opens its 1997 season with not one, but two, bands. The Wednesday night fixture in the Plaza de Mexico opens its seventh season with guitarist Jeff Golub and Avenue Blue and NovaMenco, a San Diego-based band made up of five brothers.

On six consecutive Wednesdays, Del Mar patrons will be able to hear jazz performers in free concerts that are scheduled to begin shortly after the day's final race. The second presentation of the season, on August 6, will bring internationally known pianist David Benoit.

SHORE LINES -- Del Mar has put up big numbers during the first five days of its 43-day meeting. Average daily handle from all sources has been $11,241,612, up 8.6 percent over the same period last year, and average daily attendance has been 33,512 at Del Mar and its Southern California satellites, which is an increase of 5 percent over the same period last year ... Trainer Richard Mandella, who has perhaps the finest stable in the handicap division, will be the guest Thursday from 11 a.m. until noon in the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club's hosted chat room on the track's internet site. Mandella will be available to answer questions and chat on general Thoroughbred subjects. The site's address is WWW.DMTC.COM. ... Jockey Kent Desormeaux will be absent at Del Mar this weekend, as he rides Formal Gold in the Whitney Handicap at Saratoga on Saturday and Free House in the Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park on Sunday. ... Apprentice rider Ryan Barber has taken on Jim Pegram as his new agent, replacing Richie Silverstein.