Friday is Opening Day at Keeneland

Live racing returns to Keeneland on Friday as the Fall Stars meet begins with a 1:05pm EST first post. Racing will be run from October 3^rd to October 25^th with a Wednesday through Sunday schedule being the norm. The opening day feature is the Grade 1 Darley Alcibiades Stakes and Saturday is a stakes cornucopia with five huge events, including Wise Dan in the Shadwell Turf Mile. Fashion Alert will look to keep her undefeated record in the Alcibiades as she’s been made the 4/1 morning line favorite and drew the rail. She was a big maiden winner at Belmont last spring and followed that up with a huge win in the Grade 3 Schuylerville in start two. It’ll be her first try at Keeneland and at two turns, but she’s got lots of early speed. With the new dirt track at Keeneland it’ll be of the utmost importance for players to watch how the track plays early on.

Wise Dan will look to keep his perfect 2014 going in the Grade 1 Shadwell Turf Mile. He scored a gutsy win last time in the Bernard Baruch at Saratoga last time out in his first start after a surgery. He just held off Optimizer by a nose and Optimizer will be in the Shadwell. Kaigun comes into the Shadwell Turf in great form and was just second in the Grade 1 Woodbine Mile, a race he just missed winning by half a length. Two year olds will take center stage in the Breeders’ Futurity and Hashtag Bourbon is one who will get a lot of play after he had a troubled trip last time in the Iroquois. He was bottled up for much of the journey and still had run once he finally got free and finished third. Bold Conquest was second that day and seemed to relish the added ground last time out. Conquest Tsunami is 4 for 4 and has been crushing his competition up at Woodbine. He broke his maiden at Keeneland, however that was over the polytrack at 4.5 furlongs.

The Grade 1 First Lady Stakes has some very talented speed horses like Discreet Marq and Dayatthespa, both of whom should be prominent early on. If the pace does boil over, perhaps Somali Lemonade, who is 2 for 4 at Keeneland could pick up some pieces. Speedster Leigh Court will look to take home the Grade 2 Throughbred Club of America Stakes. She’s got tons of early speed and was last seen winning the Grade 3 Seaway Stakes at Woodbine. R Free Roll has been on a roll as of late and took home the Grade 2 Honorable Miss at Saratoga last time out. The Grade 3 Woodford Stakes kicks off the stakes action on Saturday and drew a big field of 11 including Marchman who is already a Grade 3 winner at Keeneland.

BetPTC.com Selections for the Alcibiades (Friday)

1. Pangburn
2. Taylor S.
3. Fashion Alert

Longshot: Naval Command

BetPTC.com Selections for the Shadwell Mile

1. Kaigun
2. Wise Dan
3. Seek Again

Longshot: Sayaad

BetPTC.com Selections for the Breeders’ Futurity

1. Hashtag Bourbon
2. Conquest Tsunami
3. Firespike

Longshot: Tough Customer

BetPTC.com Selections for the First Lady Stakes

1. Somali Lemonade
2. Sassy Kitten
3. Better Lucky

Longshot: Kitten’s Point

BetPTC.com Selections for the TBCA Stakes

1. R Free Roll
2. Stonetastic
3. Southern Honey

Longshot: Janis’s Joy

BetPTC.com Selections for the Woodford Stakes

1. Marchman
2. Sum of the Parts
3. No Distinction

Longshot: Spring To the Sky

Two year olds take center stage at Belmont on Saturday

A pair of Grade 1 races for two year olds will be the centerpiece of a great Saturday card at Belmont Park. The Grade 1 Frizette and the Grade 1 Champagne are joined by the Grade 3 Hill Prince and the Temperence Hill Invitational as part of a big eleven race card. The Champagne Stakes drew a small field but a very talented group that is loaded with huge winners. Horses like Upstart, who was a big maiden winner at Saratoga and followed that up with a nice win in the Funny Cide Stakes. I Spent It won the Grade 2 Saratoga Special before finishing second last time in the Hopeful Stakes, a Grade 1 event. Javier Castellano will take the mount on Daredevil who was a big maiden winner in his career debut at Belmont Park just three weeks ago. The Frizette features Condo Commando who was a thirteen length winner of the Grade 1 Spinaway last time out and she’s a big time speedster. Cavorting is a Grade 2 winner, and unlike many of the rivals she’ll face in the Frizette, has proven that she can come from off the pace which could be a huge help for her.

Grade 1 winner Mr. Speaker looks like the top bill in the Hill Prince as he’ll try and rebound after a dull effort in the Travers. He’ll return to the turf where he was last seen winning the Grade 1 Belmont Derby. He’ll have to beat Tourist who was a very game second place finisher in the Secretariat Stakes last time out. The Temperence Hill Invitational is a marathon event at 13 furlongs and will be run as the 4^th race on the card and features past graded winners Cary Street and Slim Shadey.

BetPTC.com Selections for the Champagne

1. Upstart
2. Daredevil
3. El Kabeir

Longshot: I Spent It

BetPTC.com Selections for the Frizette

1. Cavorting
2. Condo Commando
3. Feathered

Longshot: By The Moon

BetPTC.com Selections for the Hill Prince

1. Speaker
2. Ring Weekend
3. Tourist

Longshot: Cabral

BetPTC.com Selections for the Temperence Hill

1. Cary Street
2. Ever Rider
3. Awesome Vision

Longshot: Village Warrior

Indiana Derby tops huge Saturday night card

The $500,000 Grade 2 Indiana Derby tops a huge Saturday evening of racing at Indiana Grand. Nine runners will go to post in the Indiana Derby including Atreides who has blossomed into a superstar in South Florida. Atreides has put up three straight huge performances including a 17 length score in the Monarchos Stakes. This will be his first try against graded stakes company and he’ll have to take on Vicar’s In Trouble. Vicar’s in Trouble won the Grade 2 Super Derby last time out and prior to that was third in a very tough edition of the West Virginia Derby. He has good early speed so he should be close up early on with Atreides as well as CJ’s Awesome who could prove a pest for the top two choices. Should the pace melt down it could be the Nick Zito trainee Quiet Ruler who comes running. He’s very lightly raced and making his first try against stakes runners, but he has a good closing kick and his best race puts him in the mix.

The Grade 2 Indiana Oaks drew eleven runners including Unbridled Forever and Miss Besilu. Unbridled Forever hasn’t won since January, but she’s been keeping some of the toughest company in her age group. She finished third behind Untapable a couple times, then third behind Sweet Reason and then second behind Stopcharginmaria. So the class relief could be what she needs. Miss Besilu ran a very good third in the Grade 1 Alabama but really threw in a clunker last time in the Grade 2 Sands Point. She’ll have to get back in gear and will be making her first start at Indiana Downs.

The Indiana Derby card gets underway Saturday night with a first post time of 5:05pm EST.

BetPTC.com Selections for the Indiana Derby

1. Vicar’s in Trouble
2. Quiet Ruler
3. East Hall

Longshot: Just Call Kenny

BetPTC.com Selections for the Indiana Oaks

1. Tiz Windy
2. Unbridled Forever
3. Awesome Jill

Longshot: Soul Title

Grade 1 Santa Anita Sprint Championship is West Coast feature

Goldencents will take on Secret Circle in a match up of two of the best sprinters in the country on Saturday in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Sprint Championship. Goldencents crushed his opponents in the Pat O’Brien Stakes last time and will return to Santa Anita where he was an impressive winner of the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile last year. Secret Circle will be returning to the races for the first time since February, likely trying to get a tune up in before defending his title in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint again. Secret Circle has never been out of the exacta in his ten career starts and if he is ready off the bunch he could be tough. The Grade 3 LA Woman Stakes and the City of Hope Mile are the other two feature events on a solid Saturday program at Santa Anita that gets underway at 4:00pm EST.

BetPTC.com Selections for the Santa Anita Sprint Championship

1. Goldencents
2. Secret Circle
3. Merit Man

Longshot: Ankeny Hill

Saturday Stakes Action at BetPTC.com

Belmont

Race 4                  Temperence Hill Invitational                2:23pm EST

Race 6                  Frizette Stakes                                  3:24pm EST

Race 8                  Champagne Stakes                            4:29pm EST

Race 9                  Hill Prince Stakes                               5:02pm EST

Finger Lakes

Race 5                  Arctic Queen Stakes                           3:16pm EST

Race 6                  Leon Reed Stakes                             3:48pm EST

Race 7                  NY Breeders’ Futurity                         4:20pm EST

Gulfstream

Race 7                  My Dear Girl Stakes                            4:11pm EST

Race 8                  Armed Forces Stakes                         4:42pm EST

Race 10                Our Dear Peggy Stakes                      5:44pm EST

Race 11                 In Reality Stakes                                6:15pm EST

Indiana Grand

Race 3                  Richmond Stakes                               5:57pm EST

Race 4                  Tawee Stakes                                   6:24pm EST

Race 5                  Hoosier Breeders’ Sophomore S.      6:49pm EST

Race 6                  Gus Grissom Stakes                            7:15pm EST

Race 7                  Mari Hulman George Stakes              7:42pm EST

Race 8                  Michael Schaefer Stakes                     8:11pm EST

Race 9                  Indiana Oaks                                       8:41pm EST

Race 10                  Indiana Derby                                   9:30pm EST

Keeneland

Race 5                  Woodford Stakes                              3:25pm EST

Race 6                  TBCA Stakes                                     4:00pm EST

Race 7                  First Lady Stakes                               4:35pm EST

Race 8                  Breeders’ Futurity                              5:08pm EST

Race 9                  Shadwell Turf Mile                             5:45pm EST

Northlands

Race 8                  Duchess of York Stakes                      6:16pm EST

Santa Anita

Race 4                  LA Woman Stakes                             5:30pm EST

Race 7                  Swingtime Stakes                              7:00pm EST

Race 8                  SA Sprint Championship                      7:30pm EST

Race 9                  City of Hope Mile                               8:00pm EST

Woodbine

Race 8                  Durham Cup Stakes                                    4:42pm EST

 

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