Rainbow 6 Carryover Tops $4.3 Million for Friday’s Program; Mandatory Rainbow 6 Payout Set for Saturday

Mandatory Rainbow 6 Payout Set for SaturdayJourneyman Reyes Wins First Race in North AmericaSilks Opening Early Saturday for Dubai World Cup Program– There was no unique winner of the 20-cent Rainbow 6 on Thursday, leaving a jackpot carryover of $4,341,678.15 for Friday’s 10-race program. First race post time is 12:35 p.m.A total of $667,575 was wagered Thursday into the Rainbow 6, which had multiple tickets sold with all six winners each worth $16,248.88.Since last being hit for $76,799.38 by one lucky bettor on Jan. 13, the popular multi-race wager has gone unsolved for 51 consecutive programs. The largest payout of the current Championship Meet, which opened Dec. 5, was $262,634.84 on Jan. 7.The Rainbow 6 produced a record payoff of $6,678,939 for a Palm Beach bettor on May 25, 2014, breaking the previous mark of $3,591,245.44 set by a New Jersey bettor on Feb. 22, 2013.The carryover jackpot is only paid out when there is a single unique ticket sold with all six winners. On days when there is no unique ticket, 70 percent of that day’s pool goes back to those bettors holding tickets with the most winners, while 30 percent is carried over to the jackpot pool.Friday’s Rainbow 6 sequence covers Races 5-10, with an approximate fifth race post time of 2:35 p.m.If the Rainbow 6 continues to go unsolved, there will be a mandatory payout on March 26.Journeyman rider Leonel Reyes picked up his first North American win when he rallied 3-year-old filly Virgen Morena ($14.60) to a 5 ¼-length victory in Thursday’s eighth race, a $19,000 maiden claiming event going one mile on the grass.Reyes, 29, attended the Simon Bolivar jockey school in Venezuela, where he led the rider standings at Valencia Racecourse nine times and was a two-time national champion, winning nearly 1,400 races.Trained by Juan Andres Rodriguez, Virgen Morena was Reyes’ 32nd mount since making his U.S. debut at the Championship Meet Feb. 21. He had finished second four times, most recently aboard Pekinesa on March 20. The winning time was 1:36.13.Reyes came to the United States on the advice of Gulfstream-based trainer and Venezuela native Jose Garoffalo. He named countryman Javier Castellano, the three-time defending Eclipse Award winner en route to his fifth straight Championship Meet title, and fellow Gulfstream rider Joel Rosario as his biggest influences.“It was my dream to ride in the United States,” Reyes said through his interpreter, Gulfstream Park clerk of scales Victor Sanchez. “I’ve always dreamt of winning races here and I hope that there’s more to come.”Silks, Gulfstream Park’s simulcast facility, will open at 8:30 a.m. Saturday to accommodate the Dubai World Cup racing program from Meydan.Gulfstream will pick up the card in progress starting with Meydan’s third race, the $1 million Dubai Gold Cup (G2), which has a scheduled post time of 8:55 a.m. EST. The $10 million World Cup (G1) is set to go off at 1 p.m. EST.Three of the 11 horses in the World Cup have spent the winter in South Florida: Keen Ice at Gulfstream Park for trainer Dale Romans, Frosted at Palm Meadows for trainer Kiaran McLaughlin, and Mshawish at Palm Beach Downs for trainer Todd Pletcher.Jockey Edgard Zayas was aboard two winners Thursday, Chepstow ($15) in the second race and Let Love Rule ($18) in the ninth. Corey Lanerie also posted a riding double, bookending the card with My Celeste ($19.60) in the opener and Set Out ($18.80) in the finale. Trainer Juan Andres Rodriguez saddled back-to-back winners with Virgen Morena ($14.60) in the eighth and Let Love Rule.$4,341,678.15