DRF's Horse Racing Playbook for Sunday, August 23, 2020
1:32 WO 2nd I DANCE ALONE (#7, 6-1) is continuing his slide down the value ladder to the bottom maiden level, and may have found a field that he can topple. Holland takes over for the Owens barn. -Ron Gierkink
1:42 MTH 3rd Lots of speed in this one, which should work to the advantage of ROMAN CITY (#5, 5-1) , who is a proven closer in turf sprints; she was outrun in her first start off the short layoff last time out but perhaps she needed the race, and will take a step forward today, especially given a favorable set up. -Kenny Peck
:: Looking for Del Mar and Saratoga plays? Click here for DRF's Betting Strategies
2:10 MTH 4th SCOOP THE CASH (#5, 4-1) makes his first start for a tag and seems to land in a good spot, as W W ARCHIE is the main danger, and he's lost three straight as a heavy favorite; there's plenty of speed in this field, so he will likely need to stalk the pacesetters and make one run. -Kenny Peck
2:34 GP 6th Fully expecting MONEY COME (#1, 7-2) to stalk stalk stalk til the cows come home; yep, he's an ugly 1-for-20, but there are no great shakes in here against him, and the paper race says he'll sit that pretty trip behind some questionable speed for as long as Zayas needs him to; can default his way thru this N2L condition when facing true bottom feeders. -Marty McGee
3:06 GP 7th With so many of these 3yo turf fillies being familiar with one another, look for KAYSERI (#6, 9-2) and Camacho to settle in with a comfortable stalking trip before moving along; amends as a beaten favorite for DiBona in the same kind of spot in which she was the runner-up 3 weekends ago. -Marty McGee
:: Bet the races online with DRF Bets. New members get $250 bonus
3:39 MTH 7th QUID (#3, 10-1) had little chance to close in that slow-paced starter allowance race at Saratoga last time out but he should get a much-improved race flow in this local debut, as this is a race featuring a good amount of pace; Beyers need a boost but if he does in fact get faster splits he should be expected to take a big step forward. -Kenny Peck
3:50 WO 6th MAMBOINTHEFOREST (#1, 5-1), who never fired last time going 11 furlongs on the grass, is back at this level, course and distance at which he was a closing second July 11. -Ron Gierkink
:: Get the DRF GamePlan Playbook each day with a DRF+ Pro subscription. Purchase here.
4:55 WO 8th GIANT CRITIC (#7, 6-1) was a prominent third behind the next-out winner Native Prince in his penultimate start on the inner turf. He was softened up in a speed duel most recently in a Tapeta sprint. -Ron Gierkink
5:26 WO 9th COCONUT GROVE (#1, 12-1) is by the late/great Empire Maker, and her dam, champion Roxy Gap, took the G3 Royal North over this course. Trainer Kevin Attard has had some success with first-timers in routes. -Ron Gierkink