Belmont | Race 7 | Post Time 4:40 p.m. (ET) | Go to the TimeformUS PPs | Not already a TimeformUS member? Sign up

Race 3: Tangled Web (#2)
Ran very well last time, surviving a fast pace to finish second going this distance.
Gets a positive rider switch to Jose Ortiz off the Mike Maker claim.
Has handled a turf course with some give to it, and this course should be less than firm following rain earlier in the week.
7-2 on ML

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SECRET SQUARE

Trainer: John Sadler

Last race: Oct. 28, race 5

Finish: 2^nd by 4 1/4

Beyer: 52

Odds-on vs. $50,000 statebred maidens, this 2-year-old filly stumbled badly at the break to lose all chance. Deserves another shot in similar statebred maiden-claiming sprint.

NO WINE UNTASTED

Trainer: Eric Kruljac

Last race: Oct. 28, race 8

Finish: 7th by 7 3/4

Belmont | Race 6 | Post Time 4:05 p.m. (ET) | Go to the TimeformUS PPs | Not already a TimeformUS member? Sign up 

Race 3: Peter’s Project (#7)
Has regained strong form for the Jeffrey Englehart barn.
Lost all chance when shuffled to back of the pack at the half-mile pole last time.
Has won 11 of 27 starts going this 1 1/16-mile distance.
9-2 on ML

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Oct. 19

Keeneland
Raven Run (race 9)

Belmont | Race 9 | Post Time 5:13 p.m. (ET) | Go to the TimeformUS PPs | Not already a TimeformUS member? Sign up

I’m not trying to beat the likely favorite SIMPLY BREATHLESS (#1), who just appears to have found the right spot as she makes her New York debut for California trainer Neil Drysdale. West coast shippers are often overmatched when they ship east for major stakes, but this filly is catching an unusually weak field for a graded stakes event.

This sequence requires a diverse array of handicapping skills. It begins with a wide-open claiming race for older horses, proceeds into a 2-year-old maiden race dominated by firsters followed by the Grade 3 Athenia, and ends with a New York-bred maiden claimer. For those playing this sequence using the ABC method, I’ve listed my A, B, and C horses for each leg in the sequence following the analysis below.

Race 4: Bacchanalia (#6)

Ran well in her debut behind the subsequently Grade 1-placed Princesa Carolina.

Was green in her last start, refusing to settle early before ducking out under pressure in the lane.

Can turn the tables on Coilean Bawn if she runs a more professional race this time.

7-2 on ML

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Belmont | Race 7 | Post Time 3:40 p.m. (ET) | Go to the TimeformUS PPs | Not already a TimeformUS member? Sign up