Bernier: How I'll play Santa Anita on Saturday, May 12

Saturday’s card at Santa Anita features two stakes races – one graded and one not. I’m interested in a horse in the second stakes race, so I’m hoping to be alive in a daily double linking races 7 and 8; if I get knocked out in the first leg, my horse in the second leg should be a solid price whom I can play to win.

RACE 7

I’ll use three horses without much confidence in any direction. AWESOME E K (6) possesses some early foot that should put him in good position. If Ocampo can establish an early spot, there’s no reason to believe this son of Awesome Gambler shouldn’t be in a great position to get the job done. For what it’s worth, the runner-up in Awesome Gambler’s most recent start returned to win next out with a 65 Beyer Speed Figure. TROJAN TIME (7) takes on elders for the first time and makes his second start for trainer Eddie Truman; a forward move makes this 3-year-old a legitimate player at what should be a decent price. SIERRA ECHO (5) came with a solid run in his career debut before contesting the pace in start No. 2 and fading; a return to off-the-pace tactics should do this horse wonders, and he should be viewed as a serious threat.

RACE 8 – ANGELS FLIGHT

There looks to be plenty of pace signed on, and that should play into the hooves of TRUE ROYALTY (8). True Royalty is one of two signed on for trainer John Sadler, and she’s the entrant who figures to sit off the pace and commence a serious bid rounding the far turn, finishing with a flurry. A winner at 2, this daughter of Yes It’s True returned to the winner’s circle in her first start as a 3-year-old on March 29, battling gamely between horses. The TimeformUS Pace Projector anticipates a solid pace early (the red bar would indicate an advantage for horses coming from off the pace), and that should allow True Royalty to settle early and commence a bid turning for home. If I’m not alive in the double, I’ll look to play True Royalty to win.