It is Saratoga Showcase Day with six stakes on tap. (© Cheryl Quigley | Dreamstime.com)
Travers Day has come and gone, but the Spa is putting on a good show on Sunday with Saratoga Showcase Day, which features an 11-race card for New York breds with six stakes on tap.
The richest of the six stakes is the $250,000 Albany Stakes for three-year-olds who will go 1 1/8 miles on the main track. The race drew a field of eight led by Captain Serious, the 9-5 morning line favorite.
The Michael Hushion trainee is perfect in three starts against state breds and is coming off a pair of solid efforts against graded stakes company. The colt was second in the Dwyer (G3) behind Kid Cruz and then in his last outing was third in the Amsterdam (G2).
The stakes action starts in the second race with a compact field of five juveniles going 6 ½ furlongs in the $200,000 Funny Cide. Bustin It (2-1) is coming off a win in the state bred Rockville Centre while Upstart (8-5) was an impressive maiden winner for the Rick Violette barn.
The $150,000 West Point drew six and a main-track-only runner and will go as race four on the card. The 1 1/16 mile test on the inner turf drew a strong group including the comebacker King Kreesa (2-1) who makes his first start since running 12th in the Hong Kong Mile (G1) at Sha Tin in December.
The $200,00 Seeking the Ante will close out the early Pick 5 and drew a field of six two-year-old fillies that will go 6 ½ furlongs on the main track. James Jerkens, coming off a good Travers where he ran one-two with V.E. Day and Wicked Strong has the one to beat in Hard to Stay Notgo (9-5).
The seventh race on the card is the $150,000 Yaddo and Dayatthespa (7-5) scratched out of Saturday’s Ballston Spa (G2) and is hoping for firmer footing. The Chad Brown trainee is the defending champion of the race.
She will run into a tough one in Discreet Marq (6-5), who was a game third in the Diana (G1) in her last outing.
The $200,000 Fleet Indian goes off as the eight race with a field of nine going 1 1/8 miles on dirt. The top three finishers of the New York Oaks will battle again. That race was won by Flipcup (3-1) who came out of the race to run a good second at Woodbine in the Eternal Search.
It is Pacific Classic Day and my Best Plays Report includes my six strongest plays from the track along with six from the Spa.
The Grade 1, $1 million Pacific Classic will be broadcast live on the NBC Sports Network at 8:00 p.m. ET. Check out Bleacher Report for my analysis and selections for the race.
Let’s head out to Saratoga for Sunday’s featured race of the day:
Saratoga Race 10 The Albany (Post time 6:04 ET)
6 Captain Serious 9-5
7 So Lonesome 10-1
2 Little Daddy 4-1
4 Empire Dreams 3-1
Analysis: Captain Serious is back with state breds here after a decent effort in a third place finish in the Amsterdam (G2) going 6 1/2 furlongs. His only route came two back in the Dwyer (G3) where he set the early fractions and could not hold off Kid Cruz late while drifting out in a runner up finish, beaten 3/4 of a length. The racing surface that day was not kind to speed.
This gelding won his first three starts, all against state breds including taking the seven furlong Mike Lee. The Hushion barn is 20% winners moving runners from sprint to route. He looks capable of handling nine furlongs against this group.
So Lonesome chased the early pace and weakened to finish sixth last out on turf in the Hall of Fame (G2). His last two wins have come on turf including taking the state bred Virgo Libra last November, but he did break his maiden over the dirt here last summer in his debut. He has been facing mostly tougher and ran pretty well two back in a third place finish in the Manila on turf at a mile.
He has plenty of pedigree to handle nine furlongs on dirt, by Awesome Again out of a General Meeting mare. Bush is having a slow meet (1 for 14) and is 0 for his last 19 moving runners from turf to dirt.
Wagering
WIN: #6 to win at 8-5 or better.
EX: 6,7 / 2,4,6,7
TRI: 6,7 / 2,4,6,7 / 1,2,4,6,7
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