Maryland racing analyst Gabby Gaudet has thoughts on a Jackpot Pick 5 on this afternoon’s card at Laurel Park!
JACKPOT PICK FIVE
Laurel Park has a 50-cent Jackpot Pick 5 beginning with race 5. The wager has a carryover of $26,463. Post time for the fifth is 2:28 p.m.
Gabby’s Selections
- Race 5 – 2, 3, 7, 8, 9
- Race 6 – All
- Race 7 – 3, 6, 8
- Race 8 – 1, 6
- Race 9 – 4
- Wager cost: $75 ($0.50 unit)
Gabby says….
“The first couple of races in this sequence, in my opinion, are wide open. The fifth is a first level allowance going six furlongs on the main track. With nine horses, there are a lot of ways to go, and I took five of them. Certainly, #2 Dear to All (5-2) has the class to win this race, but I felt like you couldn’t single her; she’s been off since April, so you have to wonder whether she’ll need the race, and she draws the rail, which probably won’t be a great place to be. Another horse where a layoff matters is #3 D D Renegade (7-2). I think we could see her run so much better today than her last race, which was her first off a long layoff. She ran pretty well that day but sort of flattened out — it reminded me a little of Bandbox’s return race before he won the General George. An interesting longshot in here is #8 Secret Agent Lady (20-1). She has one good main track effort, when she broke her maiden — mostly she’s run on synthetic. Granted, that one win was against bottom-level maidens, but she did it easily, and she’s been working really well since she came to Bowie.
The sixth is the John B. Campbell Handicap. There are only five horses, but I genuinely think any one of them could win here. #1 Managed Account (3-5) is the class of the field, but there are a couple of concerns: the track condition is going to be a factor, I think, and Managed Account has never won on an off track. Plus, he draws the rail. And, though he figures to be the speed here, I’m not sure he’ll have things his own way. The second favorite is #5 Wild Louis (3-1). I’m tossing his last race; he’d been in really good form prior to that, and I think that on January 16, the track condition was just odd. Some horses took to it, and others didn’t. Of this group, my least favorite is #4 Behemoth (6-1), who, though he’s won around two turns and on the slop, just feels a little below these.
“I think the seventh, a first-level allowance, is another tough race. I could have gone five deep in here but limited it to three. #8 Ithastobegeorge (2-1) has the best numbers in here and has been keeping the best company, but I don’t feel strongly enough about him that he’s worth a single; it’s his first trip to Laurel and the first for trainer Tom Morley, who’s winning at an 11 percent clip. So I’m including a couple of others here.
“The eighth is another first-level allowance, this time around two turns at 1 1/16 miles. I think that #1 Gypsy Baron (5-2) is legit, and I’m using him. But he does like to be second — three straight times — and he’s stuck on the rail. I think #6 Talk Show Man (6-1) is the main threat here. I’m a little concerned that Alex Cintron has jumped ship from this horse to #2 Springcourt, but this horse is a consistent sort, and in a race where a lot of horses have questions, this might be his day.
“The ninth is the featured Grade 2 Barbara Fritchie, and while there are a lot of good horses here, I’m singling #4 My Wandy’s Girl (3-1). I’m not sure what happened in her last race, the Garland of Roses, where she ran fifth, but I think this is a race that could set up for a horse sitting just off the pace, and she has that kind of style. She was the beaten favorite in this race last year, and I think she takes it this year.
“Good luck!”
LIVE LONGSHOTS
- Race 7 — #1 Star Maneuver (12-1) — enters off a nice win against lesser, runs well on an off track
- Race 9 — #2 Flattering Bea (15-1) — deep closer who often outruns her odds in big races, has won at the distance
(Featured image, of Ben’s Cat, by Laurie Asseo.)
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