Diodoro set for big day at Northlands

Trainer Robert Diodoro is off to a hot start at the Northlands Park meet with six wins from 20 starts. If the Daily Racing Form handicappers are correct he will add to those totals in a significant way Friday. The DRF has made Diodoro's horses the consensus pick in the five of the eight races carded. He will saddle the probable favorite Shakenwithanolive in the feature race, a 3 1/2-furlong classified allowance race for fillies and mares that drew five horses.

Shakenwithanolive is coming off of a third-place finish in the $27,000 Princess of Palms at Turf Paradise April 3. She tuned up for her Canadian debut with a sharp four-furlong move in 47.40 seconds over a track rated good on May 11.

"It's nice to get off to a good start," said Diodoro. "It helps that a lot of the horses I'm running have been racing over the winter. Shakenwithanolive has trained well here and I expect her to run a good race."

With her excellent speed Shakenwithanolive should be tough to catch if she breaks alertly from the rail with Jorge Carreno aboard.

Tricky Temper appears to be the main threat. Trained by Kelly Grieves, Tricky Temper runs well fresh and has two wins from three starts at the distance. Last year she won her first two races: a first level allowance race going 3 1/2 furlongs on May 3, and the six-furlong Mount Royal June 7. In both races she went right to the lead. Over the past three years Grieves has won with 29 percent of his horses returning from a layoff of 180 days or more.

Curls and Pearls, Bodgits Lady, and Minimus round out the field.