ANALYSIS

BEST BET: RACE 7, COLLEGEVILLE GIRL FIRST RACE

HAUL ANCHOR is dropping in class following a break and doing so in a race that contains other speed after trailing home the last two times he was seen over the summer, though both of those races came vs. better; found his good form to win three of his first five starts off the claim for Rudy, including a pair of triple-digit Beyers over this distance. REAL DAN is in tough here assuming some of the others show up with their best but he first this race well with his off the pace style and can run late as he drops back down in class for his return to NYRA. SO SUBLIME has been earning competitive figures recently while facing weaker rivals out of town and he has speed; projects to be under pressure from the start if he is going to be looking for the lead.

SECOND RACE

HELLBENDER switched to turf and stretched out for his second start and stalked the pace before taking over readily in the stretch, before proving to be no match for an impressive and well-bred first time starter; big threat here with a similar effort, though he may be vulnerable to one of his rivals stepping forward either first or second time out. NEURO debuted vs. HELLBENDER last month and was away fine from the gate before quickly dropping back to last and out of contention; well-bred colt can do better as he adds blinkers and Lasix for start #2. TROUBLESHOOTER an Into Mischief colt out of a dam who posted both career wins on grass and hails from the family of top NY-bred turf runner Hessonite; Clement has sent out three first tme starters on turf so far this meet and has won with all of them.

THIRD RACE

CHOCOLATE RIDE wound up in for this tag at the end of last year and won easily, and he has returned from a long layoff recently to run well in both starts, first when blocked in the stretch at Colonial and then returning to win easily last time at Laurel; has the speed to help overcome the outside draw. BRUCARITA hasn’t won a race since the end of 2017 but he has been keeping tougher company right along over the past two years and has continued to hold his own; drops and draws well on the inside as he reunites with Velazquez, who was aboard for that most recent win. MACHTREE is stretching back out off the claim after failing to make a late impact over six furlongs last month; realize his most recent win came going shorter but he is effective routing and fits well in this field.

FOURTH RACE

KINGMEISTER a half to the fleet sprinter Strike Power, who also races for these connections and who won his career debut by 8 with a 102 Beyer before becoming a Grade 3 winner in his second start; appeared to be given a nice prep when breezing behind a rival on October 20, before moving out and running him down, then came right back with a bullet five furlongs in his next breeze. OBSESSED a $330k purchase by More Than Ready debuting for Pletcher and he has been breezing steadily dating back to the summer; has a lot of grass in his pedigree being out of a dam who is a sister to Grade 1 turf winner Dublino and from the family of Matriarch winner Duda. HEMLOCK ran well enough as an MTO entrant first time out then came back to just miss in his second start, despite getting a very good trip along the rail; didn’t run as well last time but has earned a pair of Beyers in the low-70s and his experience gives him an edge.

FIFTH RACE

TEN EYCK was floundering in the restricted claiming ranks on this circuit following his dominant maiden win over yielding turf last summer, but he appears to have improved quite a bit since ship

ping to Maryland for this trainer; willing to give him the chance to bring that form back to NY after he finished a game 2nd going longer last time.

SOUTHERN BRIGADE was no factor in a pacedominated race last time but his form prior to that was solid enough to make him a contender here, and he did run well to just miss after opening a clear stretch lead over this trip back in August; steps back into the allowance ranks while picking up Rosario. QUIET OUT EAST a question mark over this distance but he did run well in his only nine-furlong attempt so far while nearly overcoming a tough trip; finally got the maiden win when dropped in for the price last month, now moves back up off the claim.

SIXTH RACE

FRENCH REEF an Irish-bred half-brother to multiple Group 2 winner and over $500k earner Permian making his career debut for Chad Brown; has looked good breezing some solo half-miles on the main track leading up to this. RAKEEZ also a firster for Chard Brown; he is a Shadwell homebred by Kitten’s Joy and is a half-brother to Alkhaatam, who began his career with some promise for these connections before missing time and returning earlier this year to win a couple of races on dirt. CASH AGAIN debuted early in the year in Florida and saved ground without making an impact at a big price; expect runners from this barn to do better on this circuit and this colt has a lot of pedigree behind him as he returns from the layoff with blinkers on.

SEVENTH RACE

COLLEGEVILLE GIRL has run three of the faster races in this field and has done so with only six starts behind her; has won three of her four starts sprinting in non-stakes company, including that last one when finishing up well to win easily over this distance. QUIETUDE’s three wins have all come over tracks with some moisture in them but they have also all come sprinting over this track and she got back to one of her better efforts last time when 3rd at a big price; needs some pace. NASTY AFFAIR needed that first start at Saratoga when breaking slowly and racing greenly and she returned to overcome a disastrous start to break her maiden second time out; has to improve but she remains lightly-raced and rates to appreciate the cut back in distance.

EIGHTH RACE

PLAYTONE ran well in each of her first two career starts while only second-best both times, and she also looked a little green in both of those races; was much more professional last time while dominating maidens on the lead with an improved figure and she does not require the lead to be effective.

TIME LIMIT has the speed to make the front here and that may be enough of an edge for filly who earned a 74 Beyer while just missing in the Seeking the Ante over the summer; goes turf to dirt and drops back in with NY-breds after proving to be no match for Grade 3 rivals on turf despite getting loose on the lead in the Matron. BIG Q closed down a contested pace in slow time to win her career debut then ran a surprisingly good race in the Grade 2 Adirondack in her second start, despite getting in very tight in the stretch; making her first start back from a break with a chance to improve.

NINTH RACE

MEAN MARY’s pedigree suggested that she would appreciate the switch to the grass for her second career start and she certainly looked like a much happier horse while dominating maidens on the lead at Keeneland with an 83 Beyer in her turf debut; takes the next logical step but will face more pressure this time. WISH UPON has come back an improved as a 5yo while winning three times and holding her own in a couple of recent NY-bred stakes behind Fifty Five in her last two starts; has excellent tactical speed and has won her last two starts over Aqueduct turf. ALTEA is 0-9 since arriving stateside for Chad Brown and has shown a tendency to hand a bit in her races, which makes her hard to take at any short price; talented enough to win and has been facing better competition than this, for the most part.

TENTH RACE

CHICLET’S DREAM has to cut back for this but she ran a winning race sprinting off the layoff this year and was unlucky not to get up as the favorite; won’t advocate too hard for her as the favorite but this is the right class drop for a filly who has run some nice races along the way. CAPE COD DIVA got the class relief she needed and easily ran down maiden claimers two back over this distance; drops back down after trying tougher and failing to make an impact in her first start with winners. TELETYPE has speed to put into play from her rail draw and she has run well in both claiming starts to date, including that easy maiden win first off the claim for Rudy; drops with speed while picking up Rosario for the first time.