Wednesday TimeformUS Highlight Horse: Cut the Cord in better form than it appears for new barn
Aqueduct | Race 7 | Post Time 3:09 p.m. (ET)
Aggregation (#6) has typically been a popular horse with the bettors, and it won't be any surprise if they make him the favorite here, especially with Flavien Prat taking over the mount. The problem is that he hasn't won since returning from an extended layoff this summer despite looking like a contender each time. While he's run well even in defeat, I haven't seen much progression since that encouraging return in August. There is other speed entered in here to keep him company up front, as the TimeformUS Pace Projector indicates.
There are a few interesting dropdowns to consider as alternatives. One of those is Shadow Dragon (#8), who has been steadily moving up the class ladder since last winter. He had been a horse that struggled to win last year, so it was nice to see him put together a couple of victories earlier this season. Since returning in the summer, he's just been overmatched against tougher foes and is now dropping back down to the right level to compete for a tag. The same is true for Sheriff Bianco (#4), another horse who hasn't exactly been a win machine in recent seasons. He did win a stakes earlier this year, but he has shown in subsequent starts that he's ready for some class relief. He actually ran a bit better than it looks last time when chasing home the improved Pentathlon going this distance, and a similar effort makes him competitive here.
My top pick is Cut the Cord (#5), the horse who ran down Aggregation when that one ran so well off the layoff back in August at Saratoga. This horse was claimed away from the winning connections that day and has since been with Ilkay Kantarmaci. He was mildly disappointing in his first start for the new barn, but he caught a tougher field than this stepping up into open company. He also didn't get the smoothest trip, sent early before getting reined in and then jammed to the rail through the rest of the race. He was more dominant in victory at Finger Lakes last time than the final margin would suggest, as he had to pause and lost momentum in traffic at the quarter pole. I like him cutting back to a mile in a race with pace, and Manny Franco should be a good fit for this relentless grinder.