PARX PICKS AND HORSES TO WATCH: NOV. 17

Street Band
Street Band upset the 2019 Grade 1 Cotillion Stakes at Parx Racing . Photo by Allison Janezic.

Parx Racing has a 10-race card on tap for this afternoon. Post time for the opener is 12:25 p.m., and we’ve got Parx picks.

How’d we do last time at Parx?

RACE NUMBERCONTENDERSCOMMENTS
Race 74-9-2-6Everybody in this $10,000 claimer has questions to answer and/or holes in their form, so you’ll probably be looking at decent odds with most every runner. We’ll take a bit of a swing with #4 Fran’s Worrier (8-1) — but if you do, as well, make sure you get square odds. This four-year-old saw a three-race win streak snapped last out, but a couple of factors make us think this may do more to darken his form than call it into question. For one thing, it was his first start in over two months, and for another, it came over a wet-fast surface he may not have liked. In the race, he actually made a good middle move into third, just a length off the lead, leaving the furlong grounds but tired thereafter. He can step it up today… We assume #9 La Waun (5-2) will go off the favorite in here; this guy is two starts removed from a Grade 3 start (albeit at 69-1) and has consistently been pumping out mid-70s Beyer figs that would compete with these. But it seems notable that after a win for $15k, he’s coming East and dropping in for lesser, and it’s also worth noting that some horses don’t take to the Parx surface. We’ll wait and see on this one… #2 They Shot Sunny (5-1) makes his first start in the Jamie Ness barn, which wins at a 24% clip first off the claim… #6 Loan Me Your Ear (8-1) may not be good enough, but at least there are no form questions to answer: he’s won two straight over the strip…
Race 92-1-6-7Our top choice in this contentious affair is #2 Septimius Severus (7-2), who obliterated state-bred allowance rivals last out. Breaking from the rail, he’ll try to take ’em all the way and may be the most likely of several speed types to do it… The Jamie Ness-trained entry of #1 Shanghai Superfly and #1A I’m Busy (5-2) both rate a big shot here, though with Frankie Pennington named on both, it seems likely one will come out of the race. The former just missed at this level last time out, while the latter showed a new dimension when overcoming traffic trouble rallying from off the pace to win easily against lesser… Jockey Ruben Silvera rode I’m Busy to the win last out but today lands on #6 Ark in the Dark (5-1), a speedy sort who’s run competitively against similar and catches perhaps a bit softer field than usual today… #7 Powerfully Built (9-2) loves this six-furlong trip (six of eight in the exacta) and enters off a decisive win against lesser. His recent allowance tries certainly fit with these…

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