Best Bet – (8) CRAFY CONQUEST – Race 10
Spot Play – (2) I'M EXCEPTIONAL – Race 2
Today's Play: Pick 4 ( races 4-7, .20 cents): 2, 5, 6 / 3, 4, 7, 12 / 1, 3, 6 / 1, 5 = $14.40
Race 1 — Maiden fillies get the card started and (8) SUPER LUNAR woke up with the class drop and blinkers last time in a longer race, leading late before getting caught. She cuts back sharply in distance so she will have to hurry. (5) FOREST VIXEN is in a different boat as she tries her longest distance yet, 6-1/2 furlongs, but she has run two good races in succession. (7) DAREDEVIL IS BACK tries Tapeta for the first time and gets a big class drop for her new trainer Pat Parente. (3) CHASING SHADOWS has been in range in her last pair of starts.
Race 2 — I will try (2) I'M EXCEPTIONAL once more as she gets blinkers for her third race after another slow start from the gate. She had some late run after going very wide off the turn in her latest. (9) BLAZING SKY's latest race is best forgotten as she was checked hard into the turn, steadied on the turn and she had no chance to recover. (3) COASTING AWAY is getting a significant class drop from maiden allowance to maiden claiming for Sam-Son Farms and she tries Tapeta for the first time. (8) TENPENNY NAIL has tried colts and a route distance since her good second place finish in a turf sprint.
Race 3 — All but one of these 2-year-olds are first time starters including (3) BABY FADE who has been working quickly while gearing up for this debut. Her dam Dun In One was quick and won both of her career races in Kentucky. (4) INSPECTOR RELOAD has also flashed talent in workouts and her sire Reload has a high rate of debut winning juveniles. (1) SHE MAKES ME TIZZY is by top sire Tiznow and she has a sibling who won as a juvenile. Her prep times have been sharp. (2) SHE AINT NO JOKE is by one of the top first crop sires this year in Practical Joke, and he is a very good debut sire.
Race 4 — This is a big field of gals going just 5-1/2 furlongs and there are many speed types in the mix. I picked (5) HAI BOBBI in a turf sprint Oct. 28 and she won at 5 to 1. She is just as good on the Tapeta and has lots of pace to run at. (6) AMERICAN TAP is on the short list even though she has been away for more than a year. A Mark Casse trainee, she showed lots of promise at the outset of her career. She may have to hurry. (2) FOREST DRIFT is probably the 'speed of the speed' and she has been blasting through fast workouts recently. (8) IMAGERY had a slow start last time when claimed but she has good form from the summer.
Race 5 — (7) OCTOBER FROST had an improved outing second time out when he stretched out to a route distance. He drops in class and adds Lasix, and his trainer Stuart Simon has a 23% win rate with 1
st time Lasix horses. (4) COO BIRD had a fast rally two starts ago in a sprint but then was in tougher last time. He will get stamina from his sire while his dam is a full sister to the great sprinter Pink Lloyd. (3) I AM RESILIENT had an improved outing in his second race and he has stamina in his pedigree. (12) MUROMEC has a tough post but a pleasing debut and his sire had plenty of stamina.
Race 6 — (3) VEERY is one of a few contenders in this maiden race. She was behind the bulk of the field early in her second career race but made a gain. (1) RECIPROCAL was in the same race as the top pick. She was 11
th early and rallied wide. (6) GAMBLE'S SILVER makes her second start off the short layoff and can be in the mix. (8) ASHBURY ran so well on the turf second time out it is hard to believe she was last in her most recent.
Race 7 — The Grade 3 Maple Leaf Stakes has been around for 120 years and it is a big test for fillies and mares at 10 furlongs. (5) LA LUNE is an invader for trainer Edward Vaughan and she is a Group 3 winner overseas. She adds Lasix for her third North American outing. It has not been a powerful year for (1) MERVEILLEUX but she does love 10 furlongs and she was doing okay before sinking in the bog in the Taylor Stakes. (2) ART OF ALMOST is at the top of her form and she has won two of her last three, pretty good for a gal who does not win often. (10) LAKE LUCERNE is by Dubawi, a world leading sire, and she was a winner at this distance on an all-weather track overseas. She appears to be improving.
Race 8 — The Grade 2 Bessarabian Stakes appears to be a two-horse race between (7) OUR SECRET AGENT, winner of the Grade 3 Hendrie last time, and the fast improving US invader (5) AUG LUTES. (1) GIDGETTA comes in from Santa Anita for her all-weather surface debut and she comes off a fast turf win. (3) SPUN GLASS could be long gone on the pace and that gives her a chance to hang on for a share.
Race 9 — (5) ANTIGONE has been busy this year and has done some great things. She has been moved to a new trainer and she tries a distance that might be tricky for her but she is on the short list of contenders. (7) CLASSY MISTRESS ran like a champ last time at Fort Erie and that was a very fast time; hard to know if she can duplicate that at Woodbine. (8) CAPABLE comes off a big win also. (1) MOONLGHT RAIN has been away for two months since she won on the class drop.
Race 10 — (8) CRAFTY CONQUEST has been so good since September and he drops in class off a strong effort in a key race. (1) EPILOGUE has gone a long time without winning but he came close last time. (10) SEAU won two straight at Fort Erie in late summer – was it the dirt or the easier competition or both? (6) SPEEDY MOONTLITE is, well, speedy and he plunges in class.
Race 11 — (7) ELITE PRINCESS tried a turf sprint off the claim but was overwhelmed by the hot pace. She drops to the bottom claiming price and will be tough to reel in. (9) MUSICALLY INCLINED has been improving since late summer and was not far off a good winner in her latest for twice this claiming price. (13) SILENT GUROO is quick and dropping in class while (11) SHISHKA comes off her maiden win and may be very confident. Also consider (2) LINDA LOVES LACE who is also plunging in class.
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Jennifer Morrison has been a public handicapper for the Toronto Star, Globe & Mail and Daily Racing Form. She is currently a writer for CanadianThoroughbred.com, Blood-Horse and simulcast host for Ajax Downs.
Photo by Mr. Will Wong
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