Mohawk Racetrack will host the North America Cup Eliminations tonight in races 3, 4 and 6. The purses are $50,000.
In Race 3, (3) Big Jim in the prohibitive 1-2 favorite in a field of seven pacers. All the bay colt has done is win 8 time in 13 starts and place or show in four of his other five outings. He has a lifetime best of 1:49.1 (at Woodbine) and a season best of 1:51 flat (at the Big M). (2) Rock to Glory is a very nice gelding by Rocknroll Hanover out of Faded Glory. He's won two of his last three (a lifetime best 1:50.1 on May 9) but finished third last week to Big Jim by five lengths. The three hole is a tough one at Woodbine (8.3 winning percentage) but shouldn't pose that much of a problem for Big Jim. (4) Powerful Mist finished third last week behind Big Jim and Up the Credit and ahead of Rock to Glory. (7) Custard the Dragon has won five of nine lifetime but of late has shown a disconcerting inability to stay on stride. He roared from the nine hole on May 21 in the Hempt Final at Pocono Downs and won going away in 1:50.2 But he's broken stride in two of his last four races.
Big Jim should win.
The Amateur Handicapper is boxing a $5 exacta with the 2 and 3.
And he's putting Big Jim on top of a $1 trifecta wheel 3 with the 2, 4 and 7.
Total: $16
Race 4 at Mohawk features two horses almost certain to be competing in the finals: (2) Betterthancheddar and (3) Up the Credit. The former is 2-1 in the morning line and the latter is 8-5. Up the Credit had an amazing race in the Somebeachsomewhere, hanging off the pace and 11 lengths back before making a fabulous move in the second half all the way into first place in 1:49. His final fraction was a blazing :26 seconds. Wow! Have to wonder how much that race took out of the colt and whether or not he'll be quite as strong this week. Betterthancheddar didn't race as a 2YO but has won two of his four races in 2011. The last two times out the colt has raced in under 1:50. Just wish he had more of a track record.
If the top pacers in this most hotly contested elimination decide to rip off another sub-1:50 then the Amateur Handicapper sees the 2 and 3 in win and place. The rest of the field will need a slightly slower race, say, 1:51 or 1:52 to get into the mix.
$5 exacta box, 2, 3.
$2 trifeca 2/3/1
Total bet: $7
The final elimination, Race 7, features two lightly races (thus far) undefeated pacers: (2) Roll With Joe and (7) Big Bad John. The latter has won a remarkable 10 of 12 and placed in both his non-wins. Wow. No wonder the bay colt, lifetime best 1:50.2, is the 4-5 favorite in the morning line. And, really, no horse has even come close during his seven consecutive wins dating back to Oct. 16 of 2010.
Three other horses in the field won races last week: (1) Mystician in the Upper Canada by nearly seven lengths; (4) Western Alumni in an $18,000 condition race; and, (5) Dutch Richman in the Cardinal at Balmoral.
$5 exacta box 2, 7
$1 trifecta 7 and 2 over the 1, 4 and 5
$1 trifecta 2 and 7 over the 1, 4 and 5
Good luck at the windows!
About The Amateur Handicapper...
In 1978, Bill Eichenberger bought a lime green Plymouth Duster and drove it off the lot in Youngstown, Ohio straight to Northfield Park outside of Cleveland. He was entranced by the vivid colors, the thunder of hooves on the track, the thrill of having a ticket in hand as they came down the homestretch. He no longer drives a Plymouth but remains in love with standarbred horses and harness racing. For 25 years, he worked as a reporter for The Columbus Dispatch newspaper in Ohio. Never shy about laying down a wager, Eichenberger has been an avid amateur handicapper for more than 30 years.
Search This Blog