Handicapper Tips & Picks

5-MIDNIGHT BLUE NOTE probably SHOULD win this but there’s no guarantee that he will. He’s been primarily a turf runner, seven of his eight wins came on grass, but this 10-year-old has had some decent dirt efforts including a third place finish the last, and only, time he ran at this level. 2-NOT VFERY GENTLE ran well to finish second in last while making his first start of the meet. He also finished second in his final race of 2022. Should be better prepared in his second race of the year. Might be able to beat top choice. The track seemed to be playing a bit more fairly yesterday but speed could still be the deciding factor. 6-COSMIC TREASURE does look like the best of the speed. His last three races were in the mud, he has three wins in six off-track races, and we just might get enough rain to help him out.

5-CALICO JOE has had a couple breaks in training one his way back to the races but his recent drills have been good. He hasn’t raced since July but his barn knows how to bring them back ready. Like that he is a waiver claim suggesting the barn doesn’t want to lose him. 7-STAN THE CAMERMAN fought hard for the lead early in last and built up a daylight lead but came up just a neck shy at the finish. He looks like he could be the best of the speed in this race but not sure the extra furlong will suit him since he tends to run out of gas. 4-SUPER CITRO battled “Stan” in last. He faded far more than his opponent but that was also the first race of his career. Could show a little more staying power in this one.

2-TEE BURNS isn’t an overwhelming choice but he has been a consistent competitor throughout his career. He’s as quick as any in here and he is able to maintain that speed throughout. 3-SNOWMOBILE has had six races. Four of them were terrible. He won the other two. His two wins came on off tracks. The other race surfaces were dry. Connections must be praying for rain. 6-RACARINO won his last two but those victories were 11 months apart. So, we know he can run well off layoffs so the six weeks between this race and his last shouldn’t bother him at all.

Could this be the day? 6-DASH TO THE CASH has had some many good races that it’s hard to explain why he’s still a maiden. But maybe this will be the day that all ends. He should relish the slightly longer distance though I think six and a half would be even better for him. There should be enough speed to set up for this fast finisher. Can fly by. 4-A P BLAZING GREEN set the early pace in his start of the meet and is likely to do so again. He ran out of gas late in that race but it was his first start in seven months. This race is longer but he should be fitter. 7-SILVER CHILLER is eligible to improve. He raced evenly in his career debut and managed to split the field. Experience helps. Could show more this time.

8-HEAVENLY TRIP could surprise. His recent races at Turfway weren’t much but he was far better when racing on dirt. He was claimed from last and he returns to a dirt track. He owns good speed and races for sharp connections. Might try to wire them. 1-BAREFOOTBOOTLEGGER hasn’t had a lot of luck in sprints but he displayed good speed in his last two routes before tiring late. The turn back in distance should leave him with plenty left for the stretch drive. 2-HATCHET CREEK just missed in a multiple-horse photo. He does own good speed but he’s just as capable when coming off the pace.

7-APOLLO U ANYWHERE could be the quickest of these. She tired badly in the mud in last but she was facing starter allowance company. She did wire the fields that last two times she ran for a nickel. Could carry her speed all the way with the drop in class. 5-SNOOTY did everything but win in last. She chased front runner First Squadron throughout in last, seldom more than a half length back, but had to settle for second…a half length back. She’ll could be chasing another speedy runner in this spot and might get the same kind of trip. Not really sure what to do with 8-NO NANNETTE NO. She has raced almost entirely on synthetic tracks, other than a terrible dirt race to start her career. She doesn’t even have dirt drills to show if she can handle this track. On the other hand, she’ll be racing for this sharp barn for the first time and she’s dropping in class.

2-VALIANTLY DISCREET does tend to tire late but once again he appears to be the best speed in the race though he could face early pressure from Russian Alphabet, a runner that had just broken his maiden in low-level maidens. “Discreet” does tend to tire late but this is his third race of the meet and he should be at the top of his game. 1-MODAZZLE is hard to gauge. All his races have been on Gulfstream’s synthetic track. He ran well enough in many of those starts but until he does it, you don’t know how he’ll fare on dirt. 4-VERRAZANOINTHESKY has to be considered. This versatile runner showed little in his first race of the meet but he did have traffic trouble. Deserves another chance.

2-DREAM KEEPER has been plagued by frequent layoffs but his barn always has him ready to race. This speedy gelding might be able to grab a fairly easy lead in this spot. He finished 10 lengths back in his first start of the meet after leading much of the way but that was still good enough for second place. With a recent race behind him, he might be ready to take it all the way. 5-BANDIT SWANSON owns decent speed but probably not enough to tackle top choice early. But he does finish well. He finished a length behind Dream Keeper in his first start of the meet but might be able to pass that runner late, especially if that rival faces much early pressure. Like the way 1-SILVER QUARTERS has been working toward his first start of the year. He has been at his best on turf and this might only be a prep for the upcoming turf season but he is capable of finishing with a rush.

9-FROST WARRIOR, with second-place finishes in her last two starts, looks like the one to beat but only because the rest of her rivals are in poor form. She’s been trying to earn her second win for a long time and there’s certainly no guarantee that she’ll do it today. 2-QUEEN OF THE NORTH might be the one to beat. She got claimed from last and makes her local debut. Her speed figures are higher than those of her rivals but those “figs” don’t always transfer well from track-to-track and surface-to-surface, thought that is one of their main purposes. We’ll see. 7-OCEAN HONEY, another recent claim, finished second in her local debut but up the track in her last. She could bounce back in her first start for this barn.