Saturday is a huge day at Del Mar. The Grade 1 Pacific Classic Stakes is the main event every summer where the turf meets the surf, and many eyes will be on the 1 1/4-mile matchup between Journalism, Fierceness, and Nysos.

However, the Pacific Classic is just one of 11 races on Saturday’s program. There are plenty of opportunities to go price-shopping, and we’ll spotlight a few of them in this article. Let’s dive in!

Race #1: #5 Artic Power (12-1 morning-line odds)

We’ll start bright and early in the opener, where I think Artic Power needed his last-out effort. He hadn’t raced since a December effort overseas, where he finished third going a mile at first asking. That’s not an easy thing to do, and when he ran in July going five furlongs, he didn’t show sprinter speed and he was never a factor.

I think he’s getting back to what he truly wants to do in the lid-lifter. He stretches out to two turns in his second start off the layoff for trainer Phil D’Amato, and running back to his debut would give him a chance in this spot (which, to be honest, seems like a fairly soft one for the level). I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets bet down a bit from the morning line, but even at 8-1 or so, I’d still like Artic Power a fair bit.

Race #5: #5 Suchet (15-1)

This is the Grade 2 Del Mar Mile Stakes, and we’ve got a classy group signed on. #4 Formidable Man and #7 King of Gosford both are Grade 1 winners, but I’m going a bit off the wall with a runner that could outrun his odds in a big way.

Suchet ran well in his U.S. debut last time out, when he made up a lot of ground and fell just a head short. I think that running style will suit him well again here, as this race seems to have plenty of early speed signed on. The faster they go early on, the better his chances figure to be.

I like Suchet a lot more than I like stablemate #8 Full Serrano, whose presence here sort of baffles me. In fact, I think it’s a bit curious John Sadler has entered both of them. Regardless, I think Suchet comes rolling late for a piece of it beneath Paco Lopez, and perhaps he gets all of it at a big number.

Race #9: #3 Coppola (10-1)

Coppola (Coglianese photos/Lauren King)

We’ll finish things off with a look at the lead-in to the Pacific Classic. This is the Grade 3 Green Flash Handicap for turf sprinters going five furlongs, and the route is the key. Inside speed has been tough to beat at the seaside oval this summer, and Coppola stands to benefit.

Coppola has won three of his last four starts at this precise five-furlong distance. Several of his races this year have been contested at 5 1/2 furlongs, and it seems like that’s just a bit too far. He wants to be on the front end going five-eighths of a mile and no longer, and I think that’s the exact trip he gets in this spot.

Furthermore, I think 5-2 morning-line favorite #10 Motorious is vulnerable. He’s raced just once since late-December, and that was going a bit longer down the hill at Santa Anita. I hate his post position, and I think he’ll be up against it given the track profile and the probable race shape. Instead, give me Coppola at double-digit odds, and let’s see how far he can lead them.