Split Time, who won the Bay Ridge in December, today runs in the Heavenly Prize Invitational.
Split Time, who won the Bay Ridge in December, today runs in the Heavenly Prize Invitational.NYRA / Chelsea Durand

Horse Racing: McMudder sheds some light on Sunday’s race cards

Races at Aqueduct and Laurel Park

OOPS. Mick is sending out his apologies for putting the wrong race number on a race yesterday. Today, Mick will try harder to make sure he not only picks winners but he picks them in the right races!

But more importantly . . . welcome to daylight savings time. Make sure you get your bets in on time.

Picks for March 10, 2019:

Warmer but a chance of rain. If it remains light then expect fast but later in the day may get dicey.

Aqueduct Race 3
Optional claimer for 3-year-olds at 7f. This is a group of three-year-olds that seem to be slightly below those that appeared in the Gotham yesterday but since most are out of barns represented yesterday, the guess is that they all belong here. 5-Direct Order from the Jason Servis barn tried tougher the last two in Stakes company but comes down to softer company and gets to stalk from the outside post to boot. Look for Manny Franco to sit this one off the pace and run them down late.
$10 W/P/S 5-Direct Order

Aqueduct Race 8 Heavenly Prize Invitational
4-and-up older fillies and mares at 8f. 3-Divine Miss Grey was given a rest following her excellent 10 race campaign in 2018. Trainer Danny Gargan showed her into the winner’s circle in this race last year and, if she is ready, a return trip is in line. The big risks will be the 4-year-olds that are moving up in the ranks after running mostly with 3-year-olds last year. 6-Sara Street is interesting because she has run big figs on both fast and off tracks and distance doesn’t seem to matter. Top connections and like all Godolphin horses, she is regally bred. The other 4-year-old that grabs the attention is 7-Split Time, the apparent lesser of the Linda Rice trainees here. Mick doesn’t trust 1-Sower at this distance and neither should Linda Rice so the guess is that Junior Alvarado got the choice and went here. The pedigree is suspect for 8f but the record isn’t. Linda Rice at 12/1 is worth a bet virtually every day of the year.
$10 W/P/S 7-Split Time
$2 Exacta box 3,6,7
$0.50 Trifecta box 3,6,7

Laurel Race 4
$5K n3 for 3-and-up fillies and mares at 8f. It’s all about form and playing the hot horse here. 6-Louise lost her first 15 races but has won her last 2. She gets a shorter field this time and there is no true early speed in here so look for a third similar race -- go to the lead and stay there. The one concern is the long lane at Laurel for the one-turn mile. She needed to be driven to get home last time so look for Ricky Chiappe to try to leave a little more in the tank to keep this higher level at bay.
$10 W/P/S 6-Louise

Laurel Race 5
$5K n2 for 3-and-up boys at 6f. 3-Dark Ops is an anathema. He either wins by double digits or loses by double digits. Which horse shows up today? Playing the odds, go with the losing version. Instead look for 9-Arrivederci from the Hugh McMahon juggernaut to bounce back from an off track loss last out. The maiden breaker 2 back was solid and this is a similar field.
$10 W/P/S 9-Arrivederci

And now for some quickies . . .

Aqueduct Race 2
$14k n3 older fillies and mares at a mile. 2-Sweet August Lady is a stand out in this race. Try not to bet too much because Mick doesn’t want the odds to go too low. Not a mortal lock but pretty close.

Laurel Race 1
Maiden $10K for fillies and mares at 8 ½f. If the race in this slot yesterday was a Derby prep, this is just about as far removed from a Derby prep and still be talking thoroughbreds as you can get. 1-Hey Mabel has been knocking at the door and today looks to be as good as any other to break through.

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