Meadowlands: Analysis for Saturday 5/15

CHAMPIONSHIP MEET STATS: 52-14-11-10 / $56.80 (-$47.20)

BEST BETS: 4-0-3-0 / $0.00 (-8.00)

SPOT PLAYS: 4-1-0-1 / $6.80 (-$1.20)

BEST BET: ANGERS BAYAMA (13th)

SPOT PLAY: WARRAWEE VITAL (8th)

Race 1: Winners 5-7 (NW L3 or 3YO 8) or $75,500 life - Pick 5

(7) MY PAL JOE stays in the same class on paper but finds what could be a much softer spot. Chartrand will almost certainly put him in play. (2) CAPTAIN VICTORIOUS used to be a fast horse and his last qualifier was pretty good. I wouldn't be shocked if he stepped up. (5) DRAGON ROARS AGAIN has posted back-to-back sub 1:50 miles. (3) GARDYS LEGACY A went a solid mile in his U.S. debut and could certainly be ready to show more now.

[DRF HARNESS: Get Harness Eye PPs for this card]

Race 2: Non-winners 2 (NW L3 3) life or $1 in 2021

(6) P L OZZY raced better than I expected in his first start after coming down from Canada. That was a fast mile and it should've served the purpose of getting this guy in shape. I'm not crazy about the three week gap since, but at least the price will be right. (1) CAVIART LOTUS came up short in his first start of the year. At 0-for-12 in his career, it is hard to love him with an underlay price tag likely. (4) SURREALIN had some late pace in his most recent qualifier.

[DRF BETS: Wager on tonight's Meadowlands card at DRF Bets.com!]

Race 3: Non-winners $6,000 (NW L3 $6,600) in last 5 - Survivor 7

(6) SUNDOWN KID was second as the favorite in a similar class last time and faces an overall softer group. (1) JOESSTAR OF MIA A comes off a solid mile at Pocono and has been stepping down in class for some time. Perhaps new trainer Juan Cano can get a top effort. (4) CLEVER CHARACTER took a step in the right direction last weekend. Can he build on that mile?

Race 4: Non-winners $17,500 (NW L/S $19,250) in last 5 or 10 races life

From what I've seen so far (10) EMMA TOWN BUD is the best horse in this race. Whether she'll get into the race from post 10 is in some question but as long as she isn't favored I'll be on board. (9) HOCKEY HANOVER showed me a little something chasing Deltasun willingly last time. He clearly has the speed to play here from the outside post. (4) BUCK DANCER hasn't done much in a while but also hasn’t faced a field this soft either. Don't be shocked if he wakes up this week. (8) CHAPTIAMA gets an interesting driver change here to Dunn and should be considered, though the price will likely be lower than warranted.

Race 5: Non-winners $17,500 (NW L/S $19,250) in last 5 or 10 races life

(3) AMERICAN HISTORY popped up with a monster mile last weekend and anything close to that effort puts him right back in the winner's circle. (8) NANDOLO N was able to catch the stakes-caliber Filibuster Hanover in his last qualifier. The only question is whether he has enough early speed to get into the race. (1) CHASER HANOVER has simply been overmatched in recent weeks. Outside of the top pick he seems like a fit here.

Race 6: Preferred F&M - $50K GTD Pick 4

(2) ROCKNIFICENT qualified as well as any horse I've seen this year. I doubt she’ll be sent to the front here, but she really did look good enough to take on these foes. (6) RACINE BELL gets her first big test after taking it to Open mares at Yonkers week after week. I'm anxious to see how good she is. (5) SOHO BURNING LOVE A has found her form in recent weeks and won't go down without a fight. (4) LYONS SENTINEL raced well in her first start as a 4-year-old and can certainly build on that effort.

Race 7: Preferred Handicap

Every horse in this race is a win candidate given the right trip. With that in mind, I'm going to take a swing with the unproven win-machine (3) YALL BENEATH ME. If he can trot in 1:53 at Rosecroft, he should be able to go in 1:51 here. It will simply come down to whether he can handle this type of power. (8) CHIN CHIN HALL is a better horse from off the pace in my opinion and he should get that opportunity here. This 5-year-old could still be improving after missing a lot of time with injury. (2) GET LEGS showed me something winning at Yonkers where he didn't look as comfortable on the half-mile surface. (1) AMIGO VOLO is the best horse in the race and he really did charge home into a very quick final quarter last Saturday. Is he ready for a big mile in his first start as a 4-year-old?

Race 8: Graduate Series Pace - Pick 6

(5) WARRAWEE VITAL was a willing second in his 2021 debut. Captaintreacherous-sired 4-year-old displayed big speed in his sophomore season and should be sitting on a top effort at a good price in his second start back. (6) CAPTAIN BARBOSSA has come back ultra-sharp for trainer Tony Alagna. He only needs a good flow to have a big shot. (1) NO LOU ZING found a softer spot to start his year and delivered as expected; another major player. (2) OCEAN ROCK was able to post some big miles as a 3-year-old and was certainly solid in his qualifiers.

Race 9: $141,250 Arthur J. Cutler Memorial Trot

(9) MANCHEGO is coming off a bad qualifier and drew poorly. Perhaps those negatives present us with an opportunity to get value on the best horse in the race. She came out of the qualifier sick and reportedly has a clean bill of health now. (8) FELICITYSHAGWELL S has pacer speed off the gate and can certainly secure no worse than a pocket trip. She raced very well last week versus some foes that would be competitive in this field. With some of the top horses coming off the bench and others perhaps not fully cranked for a big mile, I wouldn't be shocked if she pulled off the upset. (6) CRYSTAL FASHION has been able to step up at times with big miles and his early speed should have him in position. (7) LINDY THE GREAT looks the best on paper, but this field ranks much higher in terms of quality compared to what he has beaten in 2021.

Race 10: Graduate Series Pace - $50K GTD Pick 4

(8) RUTHLESS HANOVER rolled down the road in the first leg of the Graduate and looked like the best 4-year-old pacer in North America. We'll stick with him until another horse proves otherwise. (6) CHIEF MATE finished a couple of lengths behind the top pick last time. Luther trainee has had plenty of bad luck this year and is due for a nice second-over trip. (2) SANDBETWEENMYTOES has toured the track a couple of times to prepare for this appearance. I have to believe he'll finally be put in play. (3) FORTIFY can't be faulted for a strong second-place finish in his 2021 debut.

Race 11: Non-winners $9,000/$12,500 in last 5 or 6 races life or TM 81.6 or less

(10) HOT MESS EXPRESS powered away from her foes in that last qualifier. Yes, she has post 10 and she is facing older, but there talent here and none of these are particularly imposing. (6) BEYOND WORDS N had no excuse last week unless you want to go with the fact that she couldn't see the other horse sneaking up the cones. That said she is a clear player with these. (5) HELLO LOVE went a big mile before the scratched-lame line. If right she is clearly a contender.

[DRF BETS: Wager on tonight's Meadowlands card at DRF Bets.com!]

Race 12: Non-winners $9,000 (NW L3 $9,900) in last 5/TM 87.75 or less

Guessing right on (8) DE LOS CIELOS DEO is almost harder than winning the lottery, but we saw a positive effort last week and he should be helped by the outside post. Yannick can either take his time and leave with this guy at his own pace or come with a big late rally. (6) HP NAPOLEAN was used up in crazy fractions last time and faded as expected. This race will go one to two second slower. (9) IM SIR BLAKE A raced well in his U.S. debut and could show more now. (2) RESPECT OUR FLAG was game as can be last week but faces a much, much tougher group here.

Race 13: Preferred Handicap

(5) ANGERS BAYAMA was super in defeat to kick off his 2021 campaign. This guy is ready to pop a huge mile. (4) WESTERN JOE didn't care for the final turn at Yonkers. The big track is right up his alley. (6) WHEELS ON FIRE rode a perfect trip to victory last time while beating the top pick.

Race 14: $15,000 Claiming

(2) INDEPENDENT ONE raced evenly from an outside post after missing a few weeks of action. In a race with no standouts, he should have every opportunity. (1) TJ BLAST raced pretty well in this class last week; inside speed. (9) ROCKIN RAMBARAN also has early zip and really good form, though he does bump up in claiming price. (8) JUSTIN CREDIBLE upset a bunch of these last week and deserves some respect if he can get another clean trip.