Handicapper Tips & Picks

2-CRAZY HEART has been training forwardly for his first start of the year. He displayed good speed in his lone start last year. Blinkers on should help to enhance that speed. Might not get caught. 6-GOOD YEGG drops into maiden claimers for the first time since early in his career. He’s still a maiden at the age of eight but he took nearly three years off and when he came back in the middle of last year, he was much improved but racing over his head. The drop could have him in the perfect spot. 5-OLIVERIO completes the sprint-route-sprint cycle. That’s often a winning tactic. He owns decent speed and could display more staying power with the cutback in distance.

3-GRAND ILLUSION isn’t a strong choice but he could be the one to beat. He broke his maiden in his final start of 2024 when dropped to a bottom-level claimer. Today he takes on winners for the first time while also making his first start for a new barn. He’s been training well. The fact that he’s racing on a waiver claim lets you know the barn doesn’t want to lose him. 1-LITTLE STEVEN raced all winter long so conditioning shouldn’t be an issue. He’s had 26 starts with only the one win but he has finished in the money in six of his previous seven local starts. This is undoubtedly the easiest field he has ever faced. 2-MOONRISE DRIVE never raced on dirt but his speed figures seem to imply that he’s one of the faster members of this field and since he’s shipping in from Florida after making four starts this year, he should be totally fit.

1-LA CLASICA moves up in claiming price but this Louisiana shipper might put away the rest of the speed and finish with something left. 3-LION’S LAW tuned up with a race last week. She doesn’t exhibit a lot of late run but her one-paced style of runner could leave her the last one left when all the rest hit the wall. 5-CRÈME DE CASSIS looks like the quickest of these. She tends to badly run out of gas however and not sure she can last on the lead in her first start in a year. 

1-CHRISTMAS PRESENT might need the race and his new barn is off to a slow start but virtually any of his races from last year would beat any of the races from any of his rivals in 2024. But only one slow drill in preparation for this race could leave him highly vulnerable. Slim pick. 5-DEVIL’S RED turns back in distance. He’s been mostly racing in routes and most of his races have been on turf but he won two of seven at this distance and finished in the money three other times. 4-DRAGON DREW tired badly in his first start of the meet but he had dueled hard from the start in that race. He should have a much easier time getting to the lead today. Might not get caught.

1-GO STORMIN GIRL ran out of conditioning in her first start of the meet but that race likely gave her the “bottom” she needed. She’s always been highly successful on this track. Expecting a much better effort today. 3-PRANCIPANTS, the eldest in this old timer’s race, has been pretty successful here in the past. She’s making her fourth start of the year. Makes her first start for a barn that wins with 35% of runners starting for this trainer for the first time. Might be ready for these. 4-APRIL’S GEM might be only tuning up for turf but she does have some local dirt success.

No standouts in this race. Any can win. But, going to take a shot with 6-BEADS. She displays speed at times but think she could turn out to be the best closer in a field that contains quite a bit of speed. 4-LITTLE DIXIE deserves consideration but she didn’t race for a year and when she came back for last at Turfway, she finished 10th. She can improve off that trip but there’s no guarantee. 3-LEMON BOMB has been claimed from her last three races. She finished third in last here, obviously for a different barn. Seems likely to get the early lead with the stretch in distance. Might stay there. 

Guessing nobody claimed 8-ELECTRIC CHARGE for $4,000 from last because it was the end of racing in Illinois for five months and he wasn’t going to be a valuable commodity on another circuit. He barely lost that race. Like the way he’s been working toward his first start of 2025. His barn and rider are off to good starts. Guessing he’ll fly by late. 6-SLAVA UKRAINI should get to the lead. Don’t think he will be unchallenged but he should be far fitter after dueling for the lead for much of his first start of the meet. Might put them all away today. 4-REGIMENTAL took a couple months off after three starts in New Orleans. He certainly figures here but don’t like the way his speed figures decreases with each passing start in those Louisiana races. However, his barn and rider have been red hot.