A field of six will line up in the $200,000 Hall of Fame (G2) at Saratoga on Friday. (© Cheryl Quigley | Dreamstime.com)
A compact field of six will line up in Friday’s feature at Saratoga, the $200,000 National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame (G2), contested at 1 1/16 miles on the inner turf course.
The Chad Brown trained Bobby’s Kitten is the 7-5 morning line favorite but is coming off a subpar effort last out in an eighth place finish in the Belmont Derby (G1). The colt did win the Penn Mile two back and broke his maiden over the Spa turf here last summer.
Brown shortens him up from 1 1/4 miles to 1 1/16 miles, which looks like a better distance for the son of Kitten’s Joy, but the price is going to have us looking for more value for the top spot.
There are options for non-chalk players, including recent allowance winner Give No Dollar (3-1) who came off a seven-month layoff with a good-looking win for trainer Graham Motion.
Bashart (4-1) is making his second start off the layoff for the Christophe Clement trainee. The colt won the With Anticipation (G2) and ran second in the Bourbon (G20 last year.
I am going to look for a bit more value with Long On Value. The Bill Mott trainee may end up offering the best value in the field here if he goes off near his 5-1 morning line.
Let’s head out to the Spa for Friday’s featured race of the day:
Saratoga Race 9 The National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame (G2) Post time 5:15 ET
5 Long On Value 5-1
1 Give No Quarter 3-1
7 Bobby’s Kitten 7-5
6 Bashart 4-1
Long On Value finished ahead of a couple of these he faces again today when running a good second in the manila at Belmont Park. The colt tracked the pace along the inside, was shut off by a foe nearing the 5/16’s losing his momentum briefly, came back with a wide run and finished up with a good late run, coming up a length short of getting to the winner.
Two back the colt was a good second in the Arlington Classic (G3) over turf labeled as good. The winner of that race was Istanford, who bounced back from a seventh place finish in the Regret (G3) with a victory in the San Clemente Handicap (G2) at Del Mar on July 19. The colt looks headed in the right direction form wise and looks as like his name suggest will be the value of the race.
Give No Quarter came off a seven month layoff with a good looking win against Alw-1 optional claimers at Belmont Park, drawing clear to win by 3 ½ widening lengths. The colt was making his first start on turf after starting his career off on the fake stuff. He broke his maiden over Tapeta at Presque Isle by 22 ½ lengths and then was eased and sent to the sidelines in the Grey (G3) at Woodbine over poly.
His trainer Graham Motion is having a strong meeting (7 for 29) including wins by Daring Dancer in the Lake George (G2) and Stars Above Me in the Coronation Cup. The barn is 25% winners with runners making their second start off a +180 day layoff.
Bobby’s Kitten is the morning line chalk and is looking to bounce back off a dull effort in a sixth place finish in the Belmont Derby (G1) last out. Two back the colt won the Penn Mile and he showed plenty of promise as a juvenile, wining the Pilgrim (G3) and running third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1).
He fits well here with his best but has not given it in two of his last three starts. He is in good hands with Chad Brown who has overcome his slow start at the meeting and has now won seven races from 37 starters.
Wagering:
WIN: Long On Value to win at 7-2 or better.
EXACTA: 1,5 / 1,5,6,7
TRIFECTA: 1,5 / 1,5,6,7 / 1,3,5,6,7
Michael Dempsey’s Early Saratoga Special $89.95
Michael’s Saratoga Report includes his selections, analysis, fair odds line, and wagering recommendations. Mike has been handicapping the New York Racing circuit on a daily basis for nearly three decades. Get the entire meeting for just $89.95!
