1/30: Aqueduct (7th-10th); Santa Anita ($177k DBL C/O)

Day 3 of NHC and coverage goes live at 3:30pm ET until the Champion is crowned..LISTEN LINK: http://stevebyk.com/listen-live-siriusxm/

AQUEDUCT

POST-SCRATCHES

4th: 136th Withers (G3), 3yo, 8.5f (P3, DD)

Will grudgingly acquiesce to likelihood of Flexibility repeating success of Jerome here with Sunny Puzzle giving away recency. Cards of Stone will SCR, so some (but far from all) of the anticipated pace pressure dissipates. One unknown here is the upside of Adventist who laughed at foes in 6f MSW debut and is built on pedigree to carry speed into the added ground. Dam Sharp Minister (Deputy Minister) was …

AQUEDUCT

POST-SCRATCHES

1st: NY-MSW, 3yo-F, 5.5f (P5, P3, DD)

Wide open P5 sequence to start a really outstanding afternoon of racing nationwide ahead of evening’s Eclipse Awards. Sequence offers a seemingly manageable 7x8x7x8x11 skein before SCR’s. Off/on rain looks likely..

Though Dilger barn not known for first out success, Gonna Find Her, a half to Clark Brewster/Steve Asmussen quickish Banana Thief, need not be much to win on debut..

Best Value: #6 Gonna Find Her 5-1 4th
Next Best: #7 Freudsalm 6-5 WON ($3.70)
Exotics Use: #5 Eastern Mischief 3-1 5th
Super Add: #4 Good Laugh 8-1 2nd

2nd: CLM, 4+, 6f (P4, P3, DD)

Most Likely: #3 Attractive Ride 5-2 2nd…

I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays and had a successful year playing the horses. I don’t think it’s a stretch to suggest that for those of us that were too young to appreciate the remarkable Triple Crown exploits of the 70’s, 2015 was as dramatic, historic and singularly enjoyable season as we’ve experienced. It was a special privilege to be in position to try and chronicle it for ATR listeners and I’m not sure how easy it will be to surpass the year’s highlights. My position is that the game remains far more vital and vibrant than its’ loudest critics want you to believe and I think this past year went a long way towards confirming that. Let’s build …

Very irksome miss in the Aqueduct C/O P5 Friday which returned nearly $1,000, as decision to cut budget from $136 to $96 proved fateful. Initial full approach utilizing complete A-B-C plays included Quibbler as an A in the first leg, but in trying to keep the investment under $100, I crippled a backup ticket that had a successful A-A-A-A-C punch.

This topic gets right back to the conversation I had with Andy Serling Tuesday on ATR where we broached the budget issues on P6’s. When constructing plays in the analysis, I never want to suggest outlandish budgets that will be a stretch for the average player and a $100 cap seemed right and reasonable for this opportunity.

The A-B-C plays did catch …

AQUEDUCT

POST-SCRATCHES

1st: NY-MCLM/$25k, F&M-3+, 1m (P5, P3, DD)

$163k P5 C/O starts here..

First NYRA P5 C/O could generate pool approaching $1,000,000 and despite reasonable field size sequence of 7x6x6x10x7, looks VERY slippery. First leg invites heavy reliance on Wild Image SCR’D, but how confident should you be in 5yo mare with very little speed? Adds blinkers and comes back 2nd/layoff with work in between..

Most Likely: #5 Bubbe Zena 6-1 3rd
Best Value: #1 Nagging Gigee 10-1 6th
Next Best: #3 Quibbler 5-2 WON ($5.30)

2nd: CLM, F&M-3+, 6f (P4, P3, DD)

Another spot that suggests opp to focus on heavy fave with Midnight Champagne (3-5) undeniable as speed …