Handicapper Tips & Picks

There are no sure things in racing but I would think that if you are playing the Place Pick 8, you could be pretty confident that 7-BLESSED ANNA could be a single. She’s been in great form and meeting a field of runners who are not. Going back a year, she failed to finish in the money only one time in her dirt races. Her new barn has sent out nothing but live runners and her rider, tied for the lead, was the leading rider last meet. 5-DIALED INNA might be the only one capable of offering a legitimate challenge. She didn’t run well on synthetic track in last but she was making her first start since September and her first start for this barn. Finished in the money in all four of her local dirt starts. We’ll see if she can bounce back from her dull effort. 4-HOT DAME didn’t like the company she faced or the company she kept in her last two at Fair Grounds. In her first start there she didn’t beat a horse. In her second, her last, she refused to race. But she has done very well here in the past. Changed barns after that last disaster. Would imagine that she’ll be sent right to the lead. Has a chance to wire them at a huge price.

Competitive race for a low-level maiden claimer. 3-TRIBEST might be the quickest of these. We know she’s fit because she was racing all winter. She has been tiring late but the cutback in distance could work in her favor. 5-WRITTEN CONSENT has managed to finish second in five of her 13 races. She’s one of the few in here that seems capable of making a late move. All the speed could come back to her. 2-BOYCE’S BANDITA finished second in her lone race. That happened downstate last June. She has changed barns since. Has been working well for her comeback. Could vie for the lead.

Wide open race. Can make a case for, and against, every member of this field. Taking a flyer with first timer 3-IRISH COAST. Love the steady workout pattern. His rider and trainer teamed up for a longshot victory last weekend. Might be able to do it again. 1-SHARP STICK ships in from the tough Oaklawn meet. Turns back in distance for his first local start of the year. He had some success here last year while meeting maiden specials. Might earn his diploma in this easier company. 4-THE RIDGE is a Rivelli trained first timer with Loveberry in the irons. That duo has teamed up for a lot of wins in the past. This one hasn’t been working especially well but wouldn’t count him out.

5-POSITIONDUMANI displayed good speed in her first start of the meet but she had been off for 10 months and that layoff took its toll. She’s moving from state breds top open company today but also going from allowance to claiming. She should have benefitted from that recent trip. Could be more effective late in this one. 2-PINK LADY LU SHA is fresh off a maiden score in New Orleans. That was her first race for this trainer. Like that she comes from off the pace in a race filled with speed. It should be noted, however, that her best two races came on off tracks and it will be dry and sunny this weekend. Don’t really know what to do with 4-JERSEY JET. She ran well in both starts but both were four furlongs and the last was in August. She hasn’t been working fast but you have to believe she’ll be ready for her talented connections.

There was little chance that 3-PLAY TWENTY was going to beat Lily’s Woofy on opening day but she did beat the rest of the field. “Woofy” came right back to win again. This mare has only one to beat to the lead. Guessing she’ll be a close second early but take over by the time they turn for home. 4-GO STORMIN GIRL, like most, needed last. She wheels back quickly. Has six wins and 10 other in-the-money finishes on this track. Think she’ll make a run at them late. 1-SHEZ RECKLESS certainly needed last after eight months off. She ran for a waivered claim in that last race so they could get a race into her but now drops to a level where she’ll be more competitive and could be poised to surprise.

5-CHARTED almost looks like standout status. This gelding ran well every time he took on company at the right level. Ignore his last dull effort at Turfway. He’s dropping to the right level and returning to the right surface. 7-LARRY’S LUNCHBOX and 6-RAISERICHIESRANSOM both chased Purple Octopus to no avail in last but they did manage to finish second and third in that race with less than a length separating them. Both are eligible to improve without that “monster” in the field.

7-HEART OF HANISCH tired after displaying brief speed in last in Louisiana. However, she was running for the first time in 20 months and probably returning at a level too high. Drops to meet easier in her local debut. Races without blinkers for the first time which could allow her to relax a bit more and save something for the stretch run. 1-OPALINE returns from a nine-month layoff. She drops a notch. Races for the top barn. Figures prominently. 5-SEQUAYA beat only one in her last start but think she was only racing to tune her up. Drops to meet easier company. She had some competitive races against runners like these her last summer. Could awaken at a square price.

3-ACTION SEEKER has been in great form for a long time. He finished out of the money only once time in his last 12 starts. Speedy runner just missed in his last at FG, racing at this level and distance. He’s going to have plenty of company trying for the lead in this one but think he’s fit enough to outlast them. Guessing 4-ATKINS will be the main competition. He finished well behind top pick in last in Louisiana but he was claimed from that race by a barn that sports a lofty 32% win average with their first-time claims. He has been more of a sprinter through his career but gets the right rider to get him to relax enough so he has plenty left for the stretch run. 9-RED HORNET is hard to figure. He has the “figs” that suggest he could be the fastest in the field but those numbers were earned on turf. He ran on dirt only twice, including his last start. He was favored in that race, his local debut, but lost all chance when he stumbled so we really have nothing to measure his dirt ability. Guess we’ll see.

9-BOLTORO looks like the one to beat. She ran primarily on turf and synthetic tracks but she did race in two dirt routes last year in Louisiana and finished second in both. She’s fresh off a narrow loss in a mile and a half race in Florida so the distance of this race should not be an obstacle. 6-MISCHIEF MY WAY has the pedigree to be a good one. She beat only one rival in her lone start, a maiden turf race at Fair Grounds, but she had a ton of trouble at the start and simply never recovered. Think she’ll have an entirely different outcome today. 8-STARINA hasn’t done better than split any field but she’s probably taking on a bit easier group of maidens in her local debut. 10-TWAS LOLA drew a tough post for her debut but she does race for the top barn and she gets a sharp rider in the irons.