Yonkers: Analysis for Thursday 9/22

MEET STATS: 197 - 735 / $1,137.30 (-$332.70)
BEST BETS: 46 - 76 / $158.80 (+$6.80)
SPOT PLAYS: 9 - 75 / $77.30 (-$72.70)
BEST BET - FAIRIESDELIGHT A (5th)
SPOT PLAY - MAGICAL MISTRESS (9th)

Race 1 - NW2/25000LT Trot

(3) LONESTAR FASHION scored pretty easily in his debut for trainer Lance Hudson a couple of weeks ago and gets a second chance at NW2's here. (4) FASHION CANTAB ships in from Pennsylvania with four straight on-the-board finishes, including two straight wins on 8-4 and 8-16. (1) CANTERAWISHING makes her second start back in the Erv Miller barn tonight, and I think she could appreciate racing NW2's here instead of Pocono.

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Race 2 - F&M NW30000L5/NW12 PM Races LT/75000CLM Pace

(1) LUCKY ARTIST A was first or second in five straight races in July and August and came back with a solid local qualifier on 9-9. (3) WESTBEACH rallied to finish second on September 8 and might offer a bit of value given the scratch last Friday. (4) GINGER TREE LIZ seems to turn in all of her best efforts with Jason Bartlett driving, and he's in the bike tonight. She also has a much better post than she's had lately.

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

Race 3 - F&M NW7500L5/Winners in the Last Start of Base Class NW5000L5/15000CLM Pace

(7) ROCKN PHILLY closed in 25 and change at the Meadowlands in her last start and gets further class relief tonight. (4) DIAMOND OFFICIAL moves inside on the gate in her second local try and raced well twice at Harrah's Philadelphia. (3) NORMAN'S MADELINE doesn't have great form currently but does have a post relief/class drop combo and was second against NW7500L5's back in late July.

Race 4 - F&M NW10000L5/Winners in Last Start of the Base Class NW7500L5/20000CLM Pace

(1) WHO'S SMOKIN N posted her last win in the corresponding class to this one at Pocono, and it appears she's been facing tougher foes since then. (6) POPPY DRAYTON N didn't have much luck in the $50,000 claimers but did hit the board at this level on July 21. (2) DRAGONS LUCKY LADY steps up from the NW7500L5's but has three straight on the board finishes since her qualifier on 8-16.

Race 5 - F&M NW15000L5/Winner in Last Start of the Base Class NW10000L5/25000CLM/NW9 PM Races LT Pace

(1) FAIRIESDELIGHT A put it all together two weeks ago to score her first win in the U.S. in dominant fashion, and I will look for her to strike again. (3) GAME OF SHADOWS closed well to finish fourth back on the first of September, and you might get an inflated price tonight given the back-to-back scratches she's had. (6) MAN DONTFORGET ME went on the bench after her race on July 7. She returns in a sensible spot and both of her qualifiers were solid.

Race 6 - NW4/50000LT Trot

(1) THE BOSS MAN shifts back to an inside post here after being stuck with the seven-hole on September 8. He did gain spots and ground in the final quarter that night and defeated NW2's prior to that. (2) R DESIREABLE LADY comes in from Indiana in sharp form, and we've seen some other horses (like my top pick in race one) ship in from the Hoosier State lately and make an immediate impact. (6) FUNKY BISCUIT won in his first start out of the Izzy Estrada barn last time out at Freehold. This is probably a tougher spot than that, but I like the improvement, and Brent Holland isn't shy about sending one out of there.

Race 7 - NW6/75000LT Trot

(1) MUSCLE DYNASTY rallied well to finish second a week ago and has won at Yonkers before (back on 7-21). I'll hope the recent addition of trotting hobbles continues to help him. (5) WILY WALLY performed well here back in August and perhaps the switch back to Yonkers from the Meadowlands will get him headed back in the right direction. (6) CANTKEEPMIASECRET scored in dead-heat fashion back on September 8 and lured Bartlett off a Gareth Dowse trainee.

Race 8 - F&M Open Handicap Pace

(4) DRAGON ROLL gets away from Delitfulcatherin N tonight, and that could put her in the winner's circle after finishing second to that foe in her last two attempts in the Open. (3) MCMARKLE SPARKLE scored twice in the Open back in July and picked up a confidence-boosting win over NW30000L5's a week ago. (5) SIESTA BEACH had a pretty tough trip back on September 8 but hung around to finish fourth. I'll slot her underneath.

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Race 9 - F&M NW20301L5/30000CLM/NW10 PM Races LT Pace

(5) MAGICAL MISTRESS defeated NW30000L5's on September 1 and gets to drop out of that class here. I'll hope she gets overlooked a bit in the wagering and put on top. (4) JODY drew an improved post tonight and closed well to finish second last Friday. (1) BEST HEAD WEST has burned quite a bit of money the last two weeks. She did squeeze into this race by $1 (she has $20,300 earned in her last five starts), so I have to think the connections would like to advantage.

Race 10 - F&M NW5000L5/12500CLM Pace

(6) SUNRISE HANOVER shows finishing third against NW9000L5's over at Pocono on her page and catches a pretty beatable group here. She also picked up Braxten Boyd in the bike at scratch time. (7) SOME KINDA ANGEL keeps drawing poorly but this is a much softer class than she's been in lately. She picked up checks in two chances against NW6's at Yonkers back in July. (5) ANYTIME N crushed bottom level foes at Pocono in her most recent appearance and got the nod from Bartlett.