Delaware Park picks and horses to watch: August 29

Photo by HoofprintsInc.com.

We’ve got Delaware Park picks and horses to watch for Saturday, August 29. The card features eight races.

Race 1 — Maiden special weight

Two-year-old maidens will go five furlongs on the main track.
On the one hand, Noble Mission progeny — like #6 Noble Callisto (5-1) — only win about 4% of the time at first asking. On the other hand, trainer Ron Potts is 11-for-31 with two-year-olds making their career bow in special weight company. One of those trends will have to give in here. This PA-bred has been working well enough over the strip… Only one of these has a sibling who won at first asking; that’s #4 Aztar (3-1), a $90,000 son of Star Guitar. Trainer Camejo is 2-for-13 with 2yo debuting in special weight company, and this one has gradually been rounding into shape… His dam wasn’t much of a runner, and his only sib wasn’t, either, but #1 Sir Wellington (4-1) still cost $55k at auction; the Palace colt comes from the Robertson barn, which wins 24% of the time with 2yo first-timers… Curious to see #5 Jack Gave Back (5-1) in this spot; trainer Wilkes doesn’t ship to DEL often — just twice in five years, and those for stakes races — and this one has been training at his Churchill base. But do note that Wilkes is just a 6% trainer with first-timers…

Fillies and mares three and up will go 5 1/2 furlongs on the main track in a second-level allowance with an optional claiming tag of $25,000.
Let’s play beat the favorite. The chalk in here is #2 Blue Eyed Girl (2-1), making her first start since February, when she backed up late to finish fifth in the G3 Fritchie. It wasn’t a great group that day, but still, it is the Fritchie. In her two starts prior to that, she’d won a first allowance by three lengths and a second allowance by six. So why is new trainer Jamie Ness starting her here, in for the $25,000 tag? Certainly her form before the break would warrant a try in third-level allowance company, so… That, coupled with the presence of other speed in here that probably won’t do her running style any favors, leads us to look elsewhere… #1 Corn Off the Cob (3-1) seems to be getting good now for trainer Claudio Gonzalez; she’s won three of six and finished third in the other three. Last time out, she ripped off a seven-length win in allowance company, she loves this trip, and she figures to get a good trip off plentiful early types… Another who might get a good trip here is #6 Warm (6-1). The Magee trainee has won at this level, and after a couple of clunkers against better, she’s dropping back into the kind of company where she’s competed before. Demand value, but she can compete here.

WAGERS