Belmont Park, Race 7, Coverage begins at 4:10 P.M. ET

Wednesday, June 25: Race of the Day, Belmont Park,  Race 7, 1 Mile. 1st Level Allowance, plus claiming. 3 year old only. Purse: Purse $77K. 

A sizable purse is on the line for a solid group of 3-year olds routing at Belmont Park.  The scheduling and distance of this race are an ideal for the start of a Travers Stakes campaign, so we could very well see someone of note emerge from this group.

  • Venetian Mask (#2, 5/2) starts off an dominant seven furlong maiden score at Parx.  A son of Pulpit, out of a Carson City mare, this horse should fit the distance perfectly. He’s been training well and adds Rosario.  Legitimate, but this is a deep field.
  • Protonico (#6, 4/1) who joins the Pletcher barn after a brief two-year old campaign that showed promise.  Pletcher is taking the blinker offs — always a sharp move.  A strong win here off the layoff could have Protonico pointed towards the Travers.   Always worth a paddock look of the layoff and trainer change.
  • Big Guy Ian (#3, 6-1) has done very little wrong in his career.  He ran decently in the famed February 22nd allowance at Gulfstream in which Constitution beat eventual Belmont Stakes winner Tonalist and Wood Memorial winner Wicked Strong.  Possibly prepping for later today — seems to want longer.  Could see him down the road.
  • All My Memories (#4, 8-1) came into his own last race for Jason Servis, winning impressively over this track.  There’s no reason this one can’t win today and could offer great value for those who bet longshots.
  • Magic Cash (#5, 6-1) comes into the Tony Dutrow barn.  A son of Tapit out of a Storm Cat mare, this horse could be a star.  Training lights-out at Fair Hill, he’d still need an improved performance to win here, but that’s not an unreasonable task.
  • Lietenant Seany O (#1, 3-1) has been finishing second for the Jacobson barn as of late.  Solid, but Jacobson’s runners typically lose form the more they run.  With a tough field here, I’d think he’ll be overbet.

What I’m thinking of betting:

I’ll take a good look at Protoncio and listen to @maggiewolfndale’s analysis, especially with the layoff and trainer change.  The potential is sky-high with this one.   There are still lots of chances, so I’d need to see a decent price of around 4-1 to win.  All My Memories is also probably worth a small bet — especially through multi-race exotics — over 10-1 to win.

 

Belmont Park, Race 4, May 23 @ 2:40 ET

Race of the Day, May 23

Belmont Park, Turf, Maiden Claiming $65K, 1 1/16 miles, Purse: $50K

FOUR QUESTIONS

Four questions for the 4th at Belmont:

1. Will In Speight Ofital  like the turf?  He has some nice back performances on the turf, including two second place finishers.  It was a long time ago, but the prowess could very well be there and puts him in the mix.

2. Will Romans Paradise improve again?  He’s coming off the best race of her career, and on paper, looks poised to improve again with a class drop.  If he does, she may be very hard to beat.

3. Will Ahead of the Curve appreciate the class relief and will it be enough? His trainer excels with this top of drop.  If he’s sharp at this level, he still might be slower than either Corinthian Summer or Romans Paradise.  So, he’ll need to perform well and also have the other not perform well.

4. Does Corinthian Summer have an excuse for that last race?  He had trouble and was steadied in the stretch, but only lost by 1 length. Still, it was a slow race overall, and he’ll likely need to find a new turf top to win.

Tune in on twitter at 2:40 ET (11:40 PT) @alldayracing.  See you then!

 

Belmont Park, Maiden Claiming, 2:22 P.M.

Race of the Day, May 7, 2014

Belmont Park (Elmont, NY), Race 3, Maiden Claiming $20K

2:22 P.M. EST, 6 1/2 furlongs, 3&up.  Purse:  $35K

Welcome back to beautiful Belmont Park, a racetrack which we will stop often during the summer.  Great racing at all levels.  Today, we’re focused on a group of maiden claimers running a slightly longer sprint in 6 1/2 furlongs.  Every horse in this race can be purchased for $30K — interested? Go see the racing secretary!

The even-money morning line favorite is Master Yank (#6, 1-1).  He’s making his NY-debut, after two races in South Florida.  The most recent effort was in a Maiden Claiming event ($35K) in which he finished a strong front-running second on a speed favoring Gulfstream track.  Now, about 5 weeks later, the four-year old gelding made his way to Belmont.

Despite the low morning-line, Master Yank is only one of several contenders in this race. Pillar of Strength (#4, 4-1)showed well last time out — running faster than Master Yank’s last out.  He has a style that should be favored by his first trip over the Belmont surface.  In Speight Ofitall (#3, 8-1) has outside connections, but certainly has the speed to compete.  Tony D (#2, 5-1) has run fast enough — it’s simply a question of whether he brings his best today.  Golden Doc (#7, 6-1) gets another start in the Davidson barn.  Another improve makes him a contender, and, at any rate, a speed factor.

Questions:

  1. How much better is Master Yank than the rest of the field?
  2. Will Pillar of Strength improve on the Belmont surface?
  3. Will Golden Doc be a speed factor?

Analysis:

Master Yank is a terrible favorite as he doesn’t even own the highest last race speed figure.  Pillar of Strength seems to be the best bet to come off the pace duel of Golden Doc and Master Yank.  There’s risk all around here though — even Nicholson (#5, 10-1) has an outside shot — so make sure that you get a price on your pick.  For those in the Pick 3 or Pick 4, I’d try to beat Master Yank here and would be willing to go wide to do it.

Postscript:

Master Yank looked vulnerable and he was.  He finished an off-the-board 4th, behind an impressive performance from much-the-best winner Pillar of Strength.  Golden Doc showed pace, but finished last.  Nicholson and In Speight Ofitall rounded out the trifecta.

Races like this happen across America all day and every day.  The public —- while better than you on average — make mistakes on favorites like this often. Having the courage to go against horses like Master Yank makes the difference between winning days and losing days.  Besides, it’s much more fun!  See you tomorrow.

Belmont Park, Maidens, May 1, 2014

Belmont Park (Elmont, NY), Race 1, Maiden Special Weight

Post Time: 1:20 EST   Purse:  $75,000

We’ll kick the week off back at our favorite track, Belmont Park.  It’s been a long winter, and we know were free when Big Sandy opens once again.  Great horses, deep fields, fair tracks, and when the weather permits, the best turf racing in the U.S.

We’ll look at race 1 at tight, compact field of 7 betting interests (one coupled entry — you get two horses for the price of one) going the one-turn mile.  It’s exceptionally deep and suggests that some trainers have been aiming for the opening of Belmont.  It kicks off the 50 cent Belmont Pick-5, perhaps my favorite wager in the country.

Who is running in this race?  

Maidens — horses that have never won a race.  Someone is going to get that win today!

There are multiple levels for maidens.  This is the highest.  Usually, there is a notable break between contenders and non-contenders in these races — more so than in other levels, and you can eliminate contenders.  Here we can only eliminate one horse — Royal Roxie (#3, 20-1).  The Right Bird (#6, 12-1) is still quite the outsider, and would needs serious regressions to end up on top.  Outside of these two, we go five deep, a precarious start to the Pick 5.  Go deep, or you may go home early.

Questions:

  • How will Make it Anywhere (#2, 3-1) return from the layoff?  She has the fastest dirt speed — at this distance and at this track — of any horse in the field.  But her last effort — on turf — was lackluster.
  • Will Mei Ling (#4, 4-1) improve again — returning to a route — to begin to justify her $500K purchase price?
  • How much will Kate Greenaway (#5, 6-1) improve going a longer distance and making her second start of her career?

Analysis:

No reason to chase a favorite here — whether Guilty Verdict/GasparillaInn (if both go) or Make it Anywhere.  Make it Anywhere has a question that doesn’t justify a low price.  Questions aren’t a problem; the low return is!  I like to look for horses with questions — these are the only ones that you can get a good return on.  When I expect those questions are likely to be answered with good performance, I bet.

Either Mei Ling or Kate Greenaway or are better choices.  Both are likely to improve going a longer distance. Cape Song looms a big force in this race, but the price will likely be reflective of the speed and Clement brings them back ready.

I’d have a tough time going not going 5-deep to feel really safe here on a pick-5 here, if there was a substantial investment at risk. And that could really blow up the ticket, depending upon your views ahead. That said, sharp players may be able to gain real value by keying on one horse in this race, and using your money to go deeper in the other legs (which will be uncovered because other players have gone deep here.)  Pressed, I’d go with Kate Greenaway, especially floating around 6-1.

Good luck today!  I’lll be back later to recap what ACTUALLY happened in the race.

POSTSCRIPT:  Mei Ling justified that purchase price and showed that she may be ready for a move up to stakes company in the near future.  She improved again, took control early, and was so much the best today at 7/2.  Not bad, but there was still a good amount of risk for that price. Kate Greenaway looked ok, but the price wasn’t really anything (3-1) given the inherent risk in betting a not fast enough horse.  Cape Song needed this race. Hope you’re alive in the Pick 5, and see you tomorrow!