America’s Best Racing and handicapper (and avid gambler) Monique Vág team up to provide horseplayers with their best bets of the weekend. Vág will identify her top picks as well as at least one longshot play of the weekend, a nice opportunity to swing for the fences on a win bet or to take a shot with a show bet. She also will occasionally look for strong exacta plays for the weekend or try to spot a nice opportunity for other wagers. Saturday, Jan. 2
Tag: Horse racing news
Equibase Analysis: Parnelli Poised For Upset In Sham Stakes
Five horses will line up for Saturday's Grade 3, $100,000 Sham Stakes at Santa Anita Park, one of the first Road to the Derby points races of the New Year. Bob Baffert, who won the race last year with Authentic, saddles a pair in Life is Good and Medina Spirit, both of which are making their second career starts and won their debut efforts convincingly. Similarly, trainer John Shirreffs saddles last out maiden winner Parnelli and G1 American Pharoah Stakes fourth place finisher Waspirant, who broke his maiden prior to that. Uncle Boogie rounds out the field, coming into the race off a second place finish in the G3 Bob Hope Stakes.
With only five entered, this kind or race will be one in which tactics are everything. Additionally, with three of the five (Life is Good, Medina Spirit and Uncle Boogie) stretching out in distance and trying two turns for the first time, the pace could be faster than average. Life is Good earned the best Equibase Speed Figure in the field, 106, winning his one and only race by nine lengths leading from start to finish. However, he ran the first six furlongs in :44.8 which, if repeated in the Sham likely means he would be vulnerable to being passed late.
Parnelli led from the start and through the opening half-mile in his first two races at a mile, missing by a neck in the latter of the two races with a very strong 105 figure on par with Life is Good. Then in his most recent start, Parnelli relaxed in third in the early stages, about one and one-half lengths from the leader, before drawing off to win by nearly six lengths. Therefore it stands to reason Parnelli might be the one closest to Life is Good in the early stages and if indeed that colt goes too fast early, Parnelli is the one to pass Life is Good and win the Sham Stakes.
Medina Spirit earned a 99 figure winning his debut three weeks ago, at the distance of five and one-half furlongs. Although improvement can be expected off the experience of that debut, it may be a lot to ask to stretch out two and one-half furlongs (more than a quarter mile) and run as well compared to horses with experience at the distance like Parnelli or a horse like Life is Good who also can improve and who earned a figure seven points higher in his debut.
Uncle Boogie won his debut at five and one-half furlongs in October, as impressively as either Medina Spirit or Life is Good, but only earned a 79 figure. However, he improved to 84 in his second start (when the runner-up) then repeated that 84 figure effort when rallying from sixth to second in the Bob Hope Stakes in mid-November. Likely to be last of the five in the early stages, if the early pace is contested and much faster than average, Uncle Boogie could be passing them all for the upset win.
Waspirant rounds out the field, having won at this mile trip in August in his second career start with an 81 figure, then a non-threatening fourth in the American Pharoah Stakes at the end of September. It's a tough question to ask a horse to come back off three months in a route against horses who have shown to be faster and which have run much more recently.
Win Contenders, in preference order:
Parnelli
Life is Good
Sham Stakes – Grade 3
Race 8 at Santa Anita
Saturday, January 2, 2021 – Post Time 7 PM E.T.
One Mile
3-Year-Olds
Purse: $100,000
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Top Win Contenders in 2021 Sham Stakes
Five horses line up for the $100,000, Grade 3 Sham Stakes at Santa Anita Park on Saturday, one of the first Road to the Kentucky Derby points races of the New Year.
TVG’s Year In Review Special To Focus On Impact Of COVID-19 On Horse Industry
TVG will premiere a special feature on Saturday afternoon which will focus on the impact COVID-19 had on the global horse racing industry and the united efforts by TVG and the entire industry to continue to bring horse racing to fans. The award-winning network's coverage this weekend will also include two Kentucky Derby prep races – the $150,000 Jerome Stakes from Aqueduct on Friday and the $100,000 Sham Stakes (Grade 3) from Santa Anita on Saturday alongside stakes races from Gulfstream Park.
The 2020 retrospective will air at approximately 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT on Saturday. To watch a one-minute preview, click here.
The first Kentucky Derby prep race of the year will be held at Aqueduct on New Year's Day with the $150,000 Jerome Stakes for 3-year-old hopefuls going one mile. Swill, tabbed as the 7-5 morning favorite for trainer Brad Cox, will take on four rivals with jockey Kendrick Carmouche in the irons. The bay son of Munnings was last seen finishing fourth in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (G2) at Churchill Downs. The Jerome Stakes offers 10-4-2-1 Kentucky Derby points to the top four finishers.
On Saturday, Todd Schrupp, Christina Blacker and Britney Eurton will be live on site at Santa Anita for a nine-race card featuring two graded stakes races – the $200,000 San Gabriel (G2) and the $100,000 Sham Stakes (G3). The Sham Stakes will feature a field of five newly minted 3-year-olds who will be competing for points towards a spot in the Kentucky Derby (G1) including two for trainer Bob Baffert – Medina Spirit and Life is Good. Baffert won this race in 2020 with Authentic who went on to win the Kentucky Derby (G1) and Breeders' Cup Classic (G1). The Sham Stakes (G3) offers 10-4-2-1 Kentucky Derby points to the top four finishers.
Gulfstream Park has an eleven-race card featuring five stakes races scheduled for Saturday. The featured tenth event, the $100,000 Mucho Macho Stakes, has drawn a field of ten 3-year-olds including graded stake winner Mutasaabeq for trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey Luis Saez. Owned by Shadwell Stable, the son of Into Mischief will switch back to dirt after a tenth-place finish in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1).
In addition to opening weekend from Santa Anita, Aqueduct and Gulfstream Park, TVG will be featuring racing from Fair Grounds, Tampa Bay Downs and more. Fans can tune in on TVG, TVG2 and the Watch TVG app which is available on Amazon Fire, Roku and connected Apple TV devices.
The post TVG’s Year In Review Special To Focus On Impact Of COVID-19 On Horse Industry appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
