Yonkers: Analysis for Tuesday 10/12
MEET STATS: 222 - 753 / $1,253.30 (-$252.70)
BEST BETS: 38 - 70 / $126.50 (-$13.50)
SPOT PLAYS: 7 - 70 / $48.10 (-$91.90)
BEST BET - UCANTTOUCHTHIS (10th)
SPOT PLAY - BALLERAT BOOMERANG (6th)
Race 1 - NW2/25000LT Pace
(4) DANCE IT OUT owns a win over NW2's here back in June and should appreciate dropping out of stakes company at Harrah's Philadelphia from a much better post than he had that day. (5) PINEBUSH LIFESAVER picked up a victory in the NW2 class at Pocono on 9-21 and backed that up by getting a check in a subsequent effort versus NW4's. (3) FESTIVE JOE invades from Tioga with six straight on-the-board efforts, including back-to-back victories.
[DRF HARNESS: Get Harness Eye PPs for this card]
Race 2 - F&M 50000CLM Pace
(5) LYNBAR ROSE N gained spots in the back-half of her mile on 9-30 to finish second to the razor-sharp Tempus Seelster, and I'll use off that performance. (3) TAKE ABIT OF LIFE has been on the ticket in her last four appearances and gets a driver swap to Jordan Stratton tonight. (1) MILLWOOD BONNIE N owns the best-looking win of this group with that tally over NW20000L5's on 8-19, and she was reclaimed by trainer Lance Hudson and owner William Hartt, so they must think highly of her.
[DRF BETS: Wager on tonight's Yonkers card at DRF Bets.com!]
Race 3 - NW7500L5/Winners in Last Start of the Base Class NW5000L5 Pace
(4) LATISSIMUS HANOVER looks like he's been aiming a bit high since the claim on 8-9. I think this is a much more reasonable spot tonight for a high-percentage barn, and I'll give him a shot. (5) SPEED MAN N qualified nicely here on October 1, and given he was in the Open not all that long ago, this is a pretty cozy spot for his return. (3) SOUTHWIND MOROCCAN gained positions and ground in the last quarter on September 28 and drew an inside post tonight to build on that performance.
Race 4 - NW6/75000LT Pace
(4) IMAGINARY LINE won the NJSS final and the Homegrown down at Freehold after joining the Bongiorno barn, and I don't anticipate he'll have much issue transitioning that form to Yonkers. (3) MARLBANK ROAD has been sharp for trainer Paul Stafford since joining his barn, and he was a solid second in his debut at the NW6 level a week ago. (1) STELLAR YANKEE has six straight top-three results, and though he moves up from the NW4 class, he offsets that by sliding in from post six to the pole position.
Race 5 - NW10000L5/Winners in Last Start of the Base Class NW7500L5 Pace
(4) MONEYMAN HILL cruised to a front-end win over NW7500L5's on 10-4 and appears to be the controlling speed again in this race. Let's see if he can double up. (5) GLOBALDOMINATION N went off at odds-on as he dropped to this class on October 2 but could only muster a third-place result. I'll swing against for win, but I respect this horse, and he's had plenty of success at Yonkers. (2) DECISION DAY picked up George Brennan's services at scratch time, and he's another horse who was a beaten favorite last time out. He deserves to be included.
Race 6 - NW7500L5/Winners in Last Start of the Base Class NW5000L5 Pace
(6) BALLERAT BOOMERANG shows a zero in the win column in 2021, but he was a good second after a first-over trip the last time he raced in this class on 9-20, and I don't mind that he gets reunited with Marcus Miller. (1) SUMTHINBOUTIM has the combo of post relief and a drop working in his favor tonight. He scored his last victory at this level on 7-27. (5) RETOUR AU JEU was a winner over NW5000L5 foes last Tuesday. He gives trainer Nick Devita another contender on the card and remains partnered with Matt Kakaley.
Race 7 - Pop-Up Series Final
(2) BILL HALEY N was victorious in the first week of this series and then closed well to finish third last Tuesday. He shows nothing but 27 and change final quarters in his lines, which I like, and he gets reunited with Scott Zeron. (1) BETTOR MEMORIES posted a win and a second in his preliminaries and has significant post relief tonight, sliding in from the six-hole to the pole position. (6) ROCK THE DEVIL will likely be positioned more off-the-pace this time after prevailing from the pocket a week ago, but this horse has a whole bunch of wins over the oval and does have a strong closing kick if they mix it up on the lead.
Race 8 - NW4/50000LT Pace
(6) DA GHETTO WIZARD makes his third start out of the Bongiorno barn tonight and gets Joe to drive him for the first time. Both of those are positive factors, and I'll place him on top. (4) DANCING JOE got the nod from Stratton over another one in this race and has a second and a third in two chances against NW4's. (2) FOOLISH PROPHET wasn't Stratton's pick but gets a quality replacement in Kakaley and gained spots and ground in the last quarter here on September 14. He then cruised in the NW4 class over at Batavia.
Race 9 - NW4/50000LT Pace
(1) SAMSON BLUE CHIP came up just a neck short last Tuesday from post eight and now moves all the way inside to the pole position tonight. He also kept Jason Bartlett over another one in this contest. (2) BET ON BLAKE defeated NW2 company in his last start on September 28 and races out of a high-percentage barn. He wasn't Bartlett's pick, but Kakaley is a good substitute. (5) AIR GUITAR rallied from eighth to fourth in the last quarter a week ago and also has a second-place finish in this class on the 21st of September.
Race 10 - NW6/75000LT Pace
(2) UCANTTOUCHTHIS steps up from the NW4's to the NW6's, but he's absolutely romped in his two tries since joining the Bongiorno stable from Canada, and I'm betting the same thing will happen here. (4) EXPLOIT couldn't get involved last Tuesday when he had post eight, but he drew a much better post tonight, and I'll look for an effort more like that one two back where he was a gaining third. (7) CAPTIVATE HANOVER has finished on the board in four straight races and in five of his last seven. He was Stratton's choice of two horses in this event.
Race 11 - NW8/100000LT Pace
(1) TOWN GOSSIP exits the Little Brown Jug where he made the final, and he was second in his last start at Yonkers in the New York Sire Stakes final. Another obvious contender for the Bongiornos tonight. (5) KING JAMES EXPRESS was third in the New York Sire Stakes final and was Bartlett's pick of a couple in this race. (2) LARRY LINCOLN N makes his debut at the NW8 level tonight, but he's won three of his last four appearances.
Race 12 - NW20000L5/Pop-Up Series Starters Preferred Pace
(4) ESCAPETOTHEBEACH seems a little overdue for a try on or near the lead, and Bartlett got along well with him on 8-30 when they finished third in the Open. (3) SANTAFE'S COACH shows several 27 and change last quarters in his lines and is drawn perfectly for another following trip tonight. (5) PYRO disappointed a bit in this series, including in the first leg when he couldn't deliver at 1-9. He's having an excellent season, though, and I wouldn't be surprised if he was able to win.