Maryland racing analyst Gabby Gaudet has thoughts on a Pick 5 on this afternoon’s card at Pimlico!
PICK FIVE
Pimlico has a 10-cent Jackpot Pick 5 beginning with race 6. Post time for the seventh is 3:30 p.m.
MJC analyst Gabby Gaudet will share her longshot and exotic plays with The Racing Biz each Saturday. Photo courtesy of the Maryland Jockey Club.
Gabby’s Selections
- Race 6 — 1, 6, 7
- Race 7 – 8, 9
- Race 8 — 1, 6
- Race 9 — 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, 11
- Race 10 — All (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
- Wager cost: $36 ($0.10 unit)
Gabby says….
“Race 6 is a six-furlong sprint for $25,000 claiming maidens. Obviously #1 Cottonwood Will is 3-5 in here, and, in his first start for trainer Kieron Magee off the claim, he could run off the screen. He’s shortening up, too, which might help as he’s had a tendency to hang late at longer distances. But it seems like trainer Rodney Jenkins thought he needed more ground, not less, so I feel like this horse could be a little vulnerable. If he is, I like either #6 Rock ‘n Roman or #7 Ulysses S. Grant in here. Rock ‘n Roman gave a good try three back against similar, and the winner repeated. And, yes, Ulysses S. Grant was vanned off in his last, but they’ve given him time off, he gets blinkers, and he gets serious class relief after running against some good maiden special weight fields.
“The seventh is a starter allowance for fillies and mares on the grass, and I have two of them. I really like #8 Toni With an I in this spot, though I don’t know how much of a price you’ll get on her. She has a ton of turf breeding, and has been running against better than these. If she takes to the turf — which I would expect — she will be tough here. I think #9 Mellieha Bay also rates a shot here; she won an allowance race nicely in her only try on turf, and two of the horses she beat came back to win next out.
“The eighth, a starter allowance sprint on the main track, looks to me like a two-horse race. I think #1 Sam’s Sonic’s last sprint — a second in maiden special weight company in which he beat Kennesaw Mountain, who’s now won three straight — was plenty good enough. And trainer Hamilton Smith has been doing well lately. If he fires off the long layoff, he’ll be tough. Still, I think #6 Miners Quest is my top pick here. He seems to have some rough trips, but his recent form is really good.
“The ninth is where we start going deep. It’s an allowance sprint on the turf, and I took six of the nine expected to race if it stays on. Several of them are fairly obvious, but I also took a couple shots. For example I think both #2 The Bop Express (20-1 morning line) and #10 Calliope (10-1) are horses that have had some good races sprinting on the grass, and I think both are probably going to be overlooked a little bit in here.
“Finally, in the tenth, a second allowance for three year-old fillies, I’m hitting the All button. There’s a 4-5 favorite in here, #3 Lady Paradime, and while I don’t think you can toss her, it’s also easy for me to see the racing shaping up in a way that gets her beat. For example, what if #2 Star Omega gets loose on the lead in a short field? She might not come back. And I’ve always thought that # 5 Brown Rice would like two turns, which she gets for the first time on the dirt.
“Good luck!”
(Featured image, of Ben’s Cat, by Laurie Asseo.)
