King: Granny’s Kitten attractive at 6-1 in Belmont Derby

Although other races on the Saturday card at Belmont have more star appeal than the Belmont Derby, it is that race that holds the most draw to this horseplayer in what seems the most contentious stakes race of the day.

Of the nine entrants, eight are between morning-line odds of 7-2 and 10-1, and five are between 7-2 and 6-1.

After much thought, I ultimately settled on Granny’s Kitten, who has a shot to win and should offer fair value if he sticks to his 6-1 morning line.

A winner of 2 of 3, with his only loss a third in the Grade 3 Penn Mile, he looks poised to get a better trip than he got in that race, in which he was buried in traffic and fought to secure room in the stretch. This time, he is drawn in the clear on the outside and appears to have enough tactical speed to land in a favorable position close to the probable pacesetter, Bolo.

More than anything, he may just have a bit more upside than others in the field, being lightly raced and making only his third start of the year.

The competition is solid. Bolo will be tough, particularly since he seems to hold a pace advantage, while Divisidero looks like the horse most likely to appreciate the 1 1/4-mile distance. Then there are the two Europeans in the race, both with winning owners and solid form, though a cut below graded quality overseas.

What Granny’s Kitten seems to be is an overlay, whereas if he had found room and won the Penn Mile, he would be far shorter than 6-1 in the Belmont Derby.

Belmont Park: Dwyer Stakes

One race before the Belmont Derby, a nice group of 3-year-old dirt horses races in the Dwyer at a mile, though contention in the seven-horse field looks only about four horses deep.

Texas Red, last year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner, is the “name” horse, but since he has not raced since Feb. 1, when beaten by the ordinary Lord Nelson in the San Vicente, this seems like the time to play against him.

Tommy Macho and Speightster, a pair of striking allowance winners at this Belmont meet, command attention, but my money is on the regrouping Blofeld, who laid an egg when third in the William Walker Stakes on a sealed track April 25 at Churchill. Stuck on the inside for much of the race, he never got in gear.

Back in New York – where he is 3 for 3 and where trainer Todd Pletcher wins at a much higher percentage than at Churchill – Blofeld looks poised to bounce back with a top effort, though another rail post is a drawback.

The one-mile distance of the race suits him, he is a multiple graded stakes winner, and he ranks as the second-most accomplished horse in the race behind Texas Red. His morning-line odds also are respectable at 7-2.

Belmont: Victory Ride Stakes

The Grade 3 Victory Ride for 3-year-old fillies kicks off the stakes action Saturday at Belmont and is a race in which Enchanting Lady is sure to get hammered off some flashy figures, with Promise Me Silver, cutting back in distance after a disappointing Acorn, also likely to draw mutuel attention.

My preference is for a horse who might not receive the proper notice despite coming off a pair of stakes wins, including a Grade 3 – the 6-1 shot Irish Jasper.

A winner of 5 of 6 dirt sprints, she is the strongest late finisher, an advantage in a race in which most of the field wants to race on or near the lead.

If they set a fast pace, that could result in a meltdown that benefits Irish Jasper. Not that she is entirely pace-dependent – she won a slow-paced stakes at Aqueduct in April from three lengths behind and dropped 5 3/4 lengths off the leaders when faster splits unfolded before she surged to victory last out in the Miss Preakness at Pimlico.