Wednesday TimeformUS Highlight Horse: Winrooski should improve with switch to turf
Saratoga | Race 6 | Post Time 3:55 p.m. (ET)
This auction-restricted maiden event features a couple of runners with turf experience who both merit strong consideration. Devilish Grin (#2) and Great Actress (#10) finished second and third in the same June 29 race at this level. I somewhat prefer Devilish Grin from that affair, since she was finishing the stronger of the two into a relatively moderate pace. She was defeated by an Amelia Green stablemate, but should have some upside in her second start. Great Actress drew a wide post here, but the outside draws aren't so disadvantageous in turf sprints. I just wonder how much upside she has after sitting a pretty good trip first time out.
Joe Sharp sends out a pair of intriguing first-time starters. The one with the best pedigree is Imminent Risk (#7), a daughter of Tiz the Law, who wins with 16% of his first-time starters and 17% of his turf sprint starters. The dam has produced turf winner Life Advice, so there's plenty of pedigree. I just prefer the workouts of Sharp's other runner Oscar's Encore (#9). Oscar Performance is a solid turf influence, this synthetic-winning dam has produced a couple of turf winners. This filly was very quick away from the gate when training at Keeneland, and appeared to handle turf just fine in a local Oklahoma track drill. The only negative is that Joe Sharp is just 4 for 46 (9%, $1.28 ROI) with 2-year-old first-time starters in turf sprints over 5 years, according to DRF Formulator.
My top pick is Winrooski (#1), who switches to grass after a couple of dirt attempts. There is some pedigree here, since sire Win Win Win was a stakes winner on turf and is 4 for 27 (14%) with turf sprint starts among his progeny. The dam never tried turf, but she has produced multiple foals that specialized on synthetic surfaces, as well as one turf winner. This is not really a dirt pedigree, but this filly showed some speed in both prior dirt starts. She ran into a tough rival last time when no one could get close to impressive winner Iron Orchard. Winrooski didn't break well and had to rush up to chase the pace before fading. I really liked the visual of her recent turf workout, and I'm expecting a step forward switching to this surface.