God's Tipster's Saturday Saratoga Picks: Five races, including the Grade 3 Sanford Stakes sprint for 2yos
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Friday’s Race Recap from Saratoga:
(All odds US)
Replays for yesterday’s races from Saratoga can be found here:
Saratoga:
Race 3: 6th@ 5.60/1
Race 4: 1st@ 2.40/1 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Race 9: 5th@ 2.20/1
In Race 3, Uragano was bumped at the start and was never able to make much headway thereafter. In Race 4 we rebounded as Just Like This, who was also bumped at the break, stalked the early pace and drew off to win by 8 1/2 lengths in the stretch for an emphatic score. In Race 9, Set Piece lagged well behind and was taken to the inside in the stretch where he closed well but encountered a wall of traffic and didn’t escape til it was too late.
We’ll move back to Saratoga for Saturday’s races. Fast and firm conditions beneath partly sunny skies are expected.
Let’s get started !
Saturday at Saratoga:
Race 3: Succulent - 1 pt win (US Morning Line Odds 20/1)
Maiden runners bred in New York State race a mile and a sixteenth over the grass to begin our day. There are no real standouts of the ones most of the public handicappers are talking about. Succulent enters here after two failed runs sprinting on the turf. On the surface those races don’t look very good but she’s actually had tough trips and rallied late in both with snappy final fractions. This one’s dam, Ouchy Night showed the ability to stalk with some success when stretched to similar distances over the lawn (albeit without a win on turf) but she does have a sibling who went 4 for 11 over the surface and ran her career top speed figure at a similar distance. Upset possibility!
Race 4: Eagle in Love - 1 pt win (US Morning Line Odds: 5/1)
Claiming runners race a mile and an eighth here. Our even money morning line favorite is Higher Quality who was absolutely dreadful last time out when facing better. He rightly drops in class but I’m not sure I want him here after seeing that start. Eagle in Love pressed a fast early pace last time when facing a similar group to the one he faces today. He dispatched of two other speed runners and wasn’t able to hold off Bold Victory for the win but was easily able to hold off Red Revolution, who was the stone closer of the field and is another he’ll face today. Blinkers come off for a 24% winning trainer.
Race 5: Cut the Cord - 1 pt win (US Morning Line Odds: 15/1)
Turf runners go a mile and a sixteenth in this allowance race for horses bred in New York State. It’s a pretty evenly matched field when you look at the runners who have raced over the surface and nosed one another out already. Cut the Cord is intriguing to me. He’ll make his ninth career start but it’ll be his first start on grass for trainer Jeremiah Englehart who is 2 for 2 already in this short Saratoga meet. Cut the Cord is out of the dam - Cable who raced almost exclusively on turf and won the first two starts of her career in turf in impressive fashion and placed in multiple graded stakes on the grass. This one’s a half to three other turf winners and looks like he’ll offer value as the new face in this group.
Race 9: Fort Ticonderoga - 2 pts win - BEST BET. (US Morning Line Odds: 2/1)
Allowance runners go a mile and an eighth on the inner turf. Last July, Fort Ticonderoga debuted in an off the turf race and finished up strongly despite not racing over his preferred surface. He got that chance almost a year later and blew the doors off a maiden field which included an odds on runner for Chad Brown who was racing unopposed on the lead. Fort Ticonderoga imposed his will and drew off and it was another 3 lengths back to the third horse. Stakes look to be in this one’s future as he’s a full brother to a stakes winner on the lawn and has two half siblings who were also stakes placed over the lawn.
Race 10: Forte - 1 pt win (US Morning Line Odds: 5/2)
We’ve got a full field of 12 headed to post for the Grade 3 Sanford at 6 furlongs for two year olds. Trainer Todd Pletcher has two in here but Forte really looked the goods winning first time out at .20 cents on the dollar. He won that day by nearly 8 while being eased up. Most in here have early speed but tend to tire out late while this one seemed to keep going finishing up in 12.17 seconds flat for his final 8th of a mile. An impressive final split for a debut runner. Beat him to cash.
Best of luck to everyone playing Saturday’s races from Saratoga!