Analysis & Selections By: Dean Keppler @Keppskorner
BEST BET: 1-Sharp Ride (Race 7)
Race #1: Selections: 2-4-3
2-Splendora hasn’t been seen in 10 months since finishing second in his debut to multiple graded stakes winning-filly Kinza but has trained splendidly in recent weeks, including three consecutive bullet drills. 4-Dashingly makes her third start of the form cycle today for trainer John Shirreffs and exits a sharp second-place effort behind the Baffert Uncle Mo filly Seismic Beauty on August 30. Baffert’s other filly is 3-Halone. This daughter of Justify was trounced in both starts last fall but has also trained well for her 3-year-old unveiling and is eligible to be a much-improved gal.
Race #2: Selections: 5-3-10
5-Rexford co-tops the field’s best last grass Beyer and makes his second start off the bench today for conditioner Phil D’Amato. A recent “best of 23” main track five-furlong bullet drill in :59.1 on Oct. 13 indicates he is cycling back into top form. 3-Kid Azteca returns to turf for his third start of the form cycle for trainer Peter Miller and has run well over this SA grass course. 10-Mas Rapido (GB) finished a good second on Oct. 4 and now moves up in class while making his second start off the Papaprodromou claim.
Race #3: Selections 3-1-6
3-Big Gain returns as a first-time gelding off the Sept. 13 Peter Miller claim, and this barn is 9 for 26 (35%) with a positive ROI with first-off-the-claim dirt runners at Santa Anita. 1-Last Call Paul makes career start number 17 this afternoon but has managed to finish second in his last four main track sprint starts for Knapp. The gelding will find a $50k Maiden Claiming field he can handle on one of these afternoons. Blinkers off 6-Artist Point makes his third start of the form cycle today and has run well at this level in all four career starts.
Race #4: Selections: 7-6-3
7-Cupid’s Crusader didn’t show much in the prior two turf tries, but in his defense, those efforts came last year and he was rank and unsettled in both subpar performances. The 5-year-old gelding makes his third start of the form cycle today on his return to grass and is eligible to work out a favorable off-the-pace journey with a top turf pilot. Class-dropping 6-Sanger ran a better-than-looks fifth in his most recent start on August 30, and a pair of runners have returned to win from that race. 3-Forty Niner Gold has good early speed and drops in for a claim this afternoon after finding the waters too deep on Sept. 29. He’ll likely take these as far as he can on the front end.
Race #5: Selections: 9-4-6
The son of G1 winner Liam’s Map 9-Irish Rebel arrives on the scene with flashy a.m. drills for conditioner Ryan Hanson, and this jockey-trainer combo has had some success when teamed up with debut runners. The negative is that this sire gets an ordinary 9% with juvenile debuting prodigy. 4-Maximus is by Maximus Mischief, who won his PARX debut by an impressive 8 ¾ lengths with a lofty Beyer figure. 6-Missle Cruiser has something that several of these colts don’t, which is prior racing experience. The Street Sense gelding finished an even fourth in his Sept. 28 debut but is likely to move forward off that effort.
Race #6: Selections: 4-8-3
A pair of recent close-up finishes stamps 4-Lil Richards Bello as the horse to beat in this one-mile $25k claiming turf event. He exits a Del Mar Sept. 1 grass route– as does several others returning here—off a decent third-place effort, and a pair of runners have returned to win out of this affair. Blinkers on 8-Evening Sun drops to a career-low claiming tag for Mullins and makes his second start off the eight-month freshening. Class-dropping 3-Bee Catcher is 0 for 14 on the Santa Anita sod and 2 for 32 overall but usually fills out the underneath exotics for those trifecta and superfecta players.
Race #7: Selections: 1-5-8
The 4-year-old filly 1-Sharp Ride goes two sprints to a route this afternoon for conditioner Dean Pederson and has run like a horse that should enjoy the stretch-out. 5-Stop Digging finished a good second in a sharp effort on the stretch-out on August 29, and that event produced a pair of next-out winners. 8-Asada Fries goes turf to dirt and stretches back out today while making her second start off the six-month layoff. She finished a close-up fifth in her most recent turf sprint try three weeks ago and is likely to move forward off that effort.
Race #8: Selections: 8-10-11
A strong runner-up debut finish by 8-Margarita Girl behind 2 for 2 G2 winner Non-Compliant makes this daughter of Twirling Candy tough to pick against at short odds in the Sunday nightcap. She ran extremely well in her well-backed unveiling, earning a strong (79) Beyer. She’s bred to handle grass fine. 10-What About Q was a much-improved second when switched to turf off the two-month freshening on Sept. 27 and is a logical threat with a similar effort. 11-Schilflied flashed decent early foot and tired to fifth in an OK Del Mar debut try on August 17. That event has produced a pair of next-out winners, and this gal switches to the meet’s leading rider for career start number two on the cutback in distance.
