King's review: Few bettors got rich

Thursday, May 8 review

Short fields and a general lack of competitiveness in many of the races Thursday at Churchill resulted in a slew of short-priced favorites as racing resumed after a short break following the Kentucky Derby.

Only one winner among the nine races, Tully’s Dreamer ($21) in race 5, paid more than $8.40. And the first four winners on the card went off at odds of 9-10, 1-2, 1-5, and 7-5, resulting in a opening pick four that returned just $19.20 for the $2 bet.

Two starter allowance winners were dominant on the grass, first Wild Swava in race 3 for fillies, and then Bailoutbobby in the male counterpart starter in race 7.

Bailoutbobby, whose previous best work had come on synthetic, easily blew past rivals when rallying behind a fast pace on the grass and won under confident handling from jockey Corey Lanerie.

Lanerie also won two other races Thursday, taking the fourth race on Dyker Beach and the eighth on Cary Beach. Those two were trained by Brendan Walsh.

Another eye-catching victory was turned in by Lent in race 6. A 4-year-old half-brother to 20012 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Fort Larned, he won going away in a first-level allowance by 4 1/2 lengths, running 1 1/8 miles on a fast dirt track in 1:51.49. A son of Pulpit, he ran an 87 Beyer, easily the highest of his five-race career.

The same connections associated with Fort Larned teamed up with Lent – owner-breeder Janis Whitham, trainer Ian Wilkes and jockey Brian Hernandez Jr., who notched his second win of the day.

Horse to Watch

Gonna Tell Papa
Trainer: Gerald Aschinger
Last race: May 8, 9th
Finish: 5th by 10 1/4
Beyer: 34

Bet down to 5-2 in her debut, she was off poorly and shuffled back at the start, but then did a little bit of running down the lane to pass tired horses and finish fifth. Has move-up potential following that debut experience and being claimed by owner-trainer Ron Moquett.