BANKROLL

BANKROLL: $1,168.83

I co-host a weekly podcast called “Drank’n Champagne,” which is available through the On the Wrong Lead network on YouTube and wherever you listen to audio. Generally speaking, we dive into an assortment of racing and gambling matters, and we analyze a multi-race sequence (during the meet at the Spa, we’ve looked at late Pick Five sequences on Friday cards).

It’s been a blast doing this for the last few years, and the OTWL guys have become good friends (they were at my wedding and were responsible for a tie clip commemorating something they really, really wish I’d shut up about!). If you’re not subscribed, go find us and give the shows a listen.

THURSDAY’S RESULTS: Tamino was wide throughout in the second and lost interest. I, meanwhile, lost $28.

FRIDAY’S PLAY: I’ll focus on the fourth and try to beat #2 ISLAND TOWN, who hits me as a vulnerable favorite. My money goes through #5 UNAUTHORIZED and #7 METATRON, as they’ll be on top of $3 exactas that include those two, #1 NASH POTATOES, and Island Town underneath. In addition, I’ll play $3 doubles starting in the fourth with those two and finishing in the fifth with #2 GOOD AIM, #4 ROYAL RESERVE, and #8 FIRE MARSHAL.

TOTAL WAGERED: $36.

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SARATOGA SELECTIONS AND ANALYSIS

Best Bet: Venetta, Race 9
Longshot: Unauthorized, Race 4

R1

Wynstock (MTO)
Cugino
Right to Vote

#3 CUGINO (8/5): May be favored in an optional claiming event that looks much more like a stakes race. He won the Grade 2 Red Smith late last year, and he had every right to need his last-out effort at Colonial. If he’s sharper here, he could be tough to top; #5 RIGHT TO VOTE (5/2): Is a perfect 3-for-3 at the Spa and comes in after two wins in a row. This is a class test for him, to be sure, but he may still have room to move forward. If that improvement materializes, he could prove to be a stakes-quality horse; #1 TIZ DASHING (2-1): Has been running against the likes of Deterministic and Mi Bago in his last several starts. This isn’t the class relief his connections were probably hoping for, and he’s 0-for-4 over this turf course, but he does have back races that more than fit with this group.

R2

Dr. Kraft
Shadow Dragon
Quick to Accuse

#5 DR. KRAFT (3-1): Stretches out for this event out of the Wilson chute and also gets to run with Lasix for the first time in a while. The seven-furlong trip last time out may have been a bit too short for him, and he sure looks like the main early speed. If he’s able to get comfortable up front, he could prove hard to catch; #4 SHADOW DRAGON (7/2): Goes first off the claim for a barn that does well with new acquisitions. He’s another runner with some early speed, and his 14 top-three finishes in 19 starts at this one-mile distance hint that this is what he wants to do; #1 QUICK TO ACCUSE (5-1): Hasn’t won in quite a while, but he’s another with extensive experience at the stakes level and has collected some big checks pretty recently. The local mark is concerning, but he draws well and has done some of his best work going eight furlongs.

R3

Moonlit
Jadorlinija
Hypnotica

#3 MOONLIT (8/5): Is one of two Miguel Clement trainees in this event, and this is the one I prefer. Both cut back from nine furlongs to run here, but she adds blinkers and Manny Franco, and both are changes I like quite a bit; #2 JADORLINIJA (2-1): Is the second Clement-trained runner, and she’s had a few wide trips. She gets a favorable inside draw here, which could help her top a stablemate that beat her by a half-length last time out; #7 HYPNOTICA (4-1): Doesn’t draw well here, but she did take a step forward going long last time out. She goes back to the dirt for Chad Brown, attracts Flavien Prat, and comes in off of a solid half-mile drill several days ago.

R4

Metatron
Unauthorized
Island Town

#7 METATRON (9/2): Is protected from being claimed in his first start since December, and I love when connections take advantage of that rule. This gelding has fired three straight bullets at Fair Hill, Prat hops aboard, and I think there’s plenty to like; #5 UNAUTHORIZED (8-1): Takes a big drop in class to run here after fading to finish last against optional claiming foes. He’s had issues at the gate a few times, but his races two and three back at Oaklawn weren’t bad, and he comes in off of a bullet drill of his own; #2 ISLAND TOWN (2-1): Earned the diploma last time out at Churchill and runs for strong connections, but I have some doubts. He broke his maiden for a $100,000 tag last time out, so what’s he doing running for about a third of that price after some slow workouts at Turfway Park?

R5

Fire Marshal
Royal Reserve
Good Aim

#8 FIRE MARSHAL (4-1): Showed some speed in his debut for a trainer whose horses tend to need a race to get going. Prat rides back at second asking, and I’m expecting a step forward given the experience edge he has over most of this group; #4 ROYAL RESERVE (8-1): Sold for $325,000 at auction earlier this year and has reason to be precocious. He’s a full brother to a debut winner, and being by Central Banker, he’s got a right to be a pretty solid turf horse; #2 GOOD AIM (4-1): Is kin to a stakes-winning sprinter and attracts Jose Ortiz when he may have had several options. Second dam Joint Return was also a very classy runner, and while Presque Isle form sometimes doesn’t travel to Saratoga, he does have a few workouts that hint he may have some talent.

R6

Margie’s Girl (MTO)
Golden Siren
Determined Scholes

#3 GOLDEN SIREN (5/2): Helped set the pace in her debut last month before settling for second behind a good-looking winner. On paper, she looks like the main early speed in this two-turn inner turf race, and that’s always a positive; #2 DETERMINED SCHOLES (5-1): Is an Irish-bred that sold for a pretty penny overseas, and for good reason. She’s kin to English stakes winner Lava Stream, and second dam Montare was a Group 1 winner in France who threw Group 1 winner Journey, among others. The only hesitation here is that this isn’t exactly a “win early” pedigree; #6 DOVES AND HAWKS (9/2): Sold for $300,000 at Keeneland last year and is another bred to love the lawn. This daughter of Twirling Candy is out of a mare that’s a half-sister to Grade 1-winning surfer United and two other stakes winners. The tag team of Chad Brown and Flavien Prat also merits respect.

R7

Georgia Magic
Yo Daddy
Solo Venturi

#6 GEORGIA MAGIC (4-1): Has gotten very good very fast for Steven Schauer, having won two in a row by a combined margin of nearly 11 lengths. This is a step up in class, but he looks like he could be the main early speed. If he gets comfortable, he could get brave; #9 YO DADDY (7/2): Was able to run with Lasix last time and was run down late in a race that seemed to fall apart up front. He’s clearly a better horse with that medication, and he should be able to sit his desired stalking trip given the relative lack of early speed inside of him; #7 SOLO VENTURI (3-1): Comes off the bench for his first start since March, when he was third in the Grade 3 Challenger at Tampa. That two-back optional claimer victory came against a stakes-quality field, and he’s been working consistently in Kentucky for Will Walden ahead of his return.

R8

Roman Grace (MTO)
One Last Knock
Ratu Jawa

#1 ONE LAST KNOCK (4-1): Ran a solid third last time out behind Oscar’s Encore, who came back to run well against stakes foes last weekend. This feels like a softer spot, and her tactical speed may mean she gets an ideal position early on beneath Kendrick Carmouche; #4 RATU JAWA (15-1): Scratched out of a stakes race and merits a look at a big price. She wasn’t beaten much by my top pick last time out, and that came on a day where she had trouble out of the gate. If there’s a battle up front, she could come rolling late; #2 STAR OF LIFE (8-1): Makes her North American debut for Mark Casse after running in England and Italy. I’m not quite sure what she’s been running against, but her works seem solid enough, and I’m just not sold on #3 BOSTON’S PHINEST (7/5), who seems like a very vulnerable favorite coming up out of state-bred competition.

R9

Venetta
New York Special
Iron Orchard

#3 VENETTA (5/2): Feels like one of only a few doing what she actually wants to do in the Fleet Indian. She stretched out to two turns with aplomb in the New York Oaks at Finger Lakes, while many of her rivals are trying something completely new with this nine-furlong distance. She’s already proven going this route, and she may still have room to get better; #6 NEW YORK SPECIAL (12-1): Was third in a two-turn stakes race on turf last time out, so at least we know the distance shouldn’t be a problem. She may prefer the grass, but her first-out effort on the main track at Aqueduct wasn’t bad, so perhaps she’s one to look for at a price; #4 IRON ORCHARD (3-1): Won the Grade 1 Frizette last year but has been struggling to find that form ever since. Her fourth-place finish in the Johnstone wasn’t awful, and she does have the speed to be prominent early, but I’m not convinced this route is really what she wants.

R10

Promise Me Amelody (MTO)
Ganderella
Fifty Shades Free

#1 GANDERELLA (5-1): Came back off the bench and ran a solid third at a big price in a similar spot last month. This barn got off the duck Wednesday, and a step forward second off the bench could give them a chance at another score in a wide-open Friday nightcap; #4 FIFTY SHADES FREE (6-1): Is one of two Jorge Abreu trainees in this spot, and she could be well-meant in her debut. Her dam is kin to multiple graded stakes winner Hot Summer, who’s thrown six multiple winners from as many foals to race, and Prat seeing fit to ride hits me as a vote of confidence; #7 AMAZING GRACER (4-1): Was second in the race my top pick exits, and Manny Franco rides back. She’s found trouble on several occasions, but she got a clean trip last time, and another one could give her a shot to earn the diploma.