Aqueduct FULLCARD Hotlist - April 3

Today’s NY Hot List races to watch – Saturday, April 3, 2021 at Aqueduct

Full card – Wood Memorial Day
By Matt Shifman and Bob Ehalt

Hot List Key:
 A: A preferred horse to watch                                 B: Secondary horse to watch
*C: Went down 2 or more betting notches and finished 1st through 3rd
*D: Went down 2 or more betting notches and finished 4^th or worst
* - 4 or more betting notches if 11-1 or more.

1^st race [Md 40000, 6F] – (4) Bastet has run second in his last two starts at this level after pushing the pace. He gets a significant jockey upgrade with the return of Jose Ortiz. (3) My Delicious was second last time as the favorite on a sloppy track after pressing the pace for trainer Chad Summers who had a very good winter meeting. The drop down to this level made a big difference. (6) Artyistheparty makes his debut for trainer Rob Atras. He sold for $95,000 as a yearling to a partnership group that included Michael Dubb and Sol Kumin’s Madaket Stable.  (5) Despeight All Odds also made the drop down from maiden special weights and improved to run third.

2^nd race [Clm 16000 N2L] – (4) Magnificent Mags broke her maiden for a $25,000 tag and then moved up to face winners in an open $20,000 claimer. Now, she drops to the right level, for a price below her maiden win and against N2L horses. (2) Empress Luciana has three good efforts at this level when she hit the board. (5) Mama Kin gets blinkers back on after a try without them. She broke her maiden for $40,000 in December, so this is the right level for her. (1) She’s an Alpha got her maiden victory for $25,000 against NY-breds.

3^rd race [NY, Md Sp Wt, 6F] – (2) One Whirlwind Ride (B) had the lead last time going seven furlongs but raced erratically in response to strong urging and lost by a nose at the wire. (5) Great Workout is a home-bred son of Outwork from Repole Stable making his debut for Todd Pletcher. (1) Viking Zim showed some early speed in his debut on a sloppy track at the Big A at odds of 6-1 and finished fifth. He should run better for Jeremiah Englehart who wins at 26% with his second-time starters. (6) Bar Fourteen was second in his debut in a $25,000 maiden claimer and will give the step-up in class a try in this small field.

4^th race [Bay Shore (G3), 7F] – (3) Drain the Clock had won all four of the races that he finished prior to the Fountain of Youth (G2). He tried the Derby trail and ran an excellent second behind Greatest Honour. Now, he cuts back to an ideal distance of seven-furlongs at which he won the Swale (G3) at Gulfstream Park for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. (2) Garoppolo returns from an August layoff for Kelly Breen who is very good with horses coming back from long breaks. He broke his maiden in his second try at Belmont in July and then jumped up to face Jackie’s Warrior in the Saratoga Special (G2). (4) Whiskey Double was a recent allowance winner on a sloppy track at Fair Grounds for Steve Asmussen after racing six-wide in the turn. (5) Beren had convincing victories in his last two starts at Parx in a maiden special weight and then an allowance. Trainer Butch Reid knows when to take a chance and ship up to New York.

5^th race [NY, Alw 72000 N1X, 6F] – (2) Shesasuperfreak (D) made her second start off a layoff in a similar spot, got bet down from 7-1 to 4-1, and faded down the stretch a bit to finish fourth by a head. (3) Mind of Gold exits a claiming win and a second in a starter allowance to face NY-breds in this spot. That is a favorable class move. (7) Ok Honey was a convincing winner of N3L claimer on a muddy track going seven furlongs last time out. (4) Chasing Cara has solid past performances with top three finishes in NY-bred stakes last year as a maiden. Last out, he showed speed and finished third in a similar spot.

6^th race [Carter (G1), 7F] – (4) Mischevious Alex was a two-time Grade 3 winner last year as a 3-year-old. Since then, he changed to the barn of Saffie Joseph and won both of his starts this winter including the Gulfstream Park Sprint (G3) by more than three-lengths. Sprinting seems to be his game and he has won twice at this distance and his only previous start at Aqueduct. (5) Chateau is in the finest form of his career with a win in a second-level allowance followed by a dominant victory in the Tom Fool (G3). He has a stellar record at the Big A of 9: 5-2-2 and Kendrick Carmouche stays on board. (2) Souper Stonehenge ships up from Florida after running second in the Pelican at Tampa by just a head behind Zenden who went on to win the Golden Shaheen in Dubai. (1) Mind Control will make his 2021 debut as a now 5-year-old. He is a past Grade 1 winner and has victories in 4 out of 5 starts at Aqueduct with four at today’s distance. He trained sharply in Florida in preparation for this start.

7^th race [Alw 82000 N1X, 1 1/16 TURF] – (5) Flighty Lady will make her American and 2021 debut for Chad Brown and Peter Brandt after placing and winning in graded stakes in France. She will get to run on Lasix for the first time. (6) Windfall Profit will make her first start of the year for Shug McGaughey. She has been training in Florida and was last seen running third and second in similar races in New York before the winter. (7) Apurate missed by a nose in a turf allowance at Gulfstream for Todd Pletcher. (4) Lady Sansa will make her American debut and first start of the year for Christophe Clement after racing in England to start her career. She, too, will get first-time Lasix.

8^th race [Excelsior (G3), 1 1/8 mi] – (7) Mr. Buff has continued his remarkable dominance of stakes racing at Aqueduct where he has a career record of 17: 10-4-0 which includes wins in the recent Stymie and Jazil. The only knock against the John Kimmel runner is that he has been unable to get a victory in a graded stake. Nine-furlongs is his best distance where he has 11 of his 17 victories and this is not a particularly tough field. (4) Limonite ran second behind the top choice in the Stymie and before that was a five-length winner of a nine-furlong allowance at the Big A. (5) Modernist made his first start since Saratoga last month at Tampa when rallied to finish second in the Challenger (G3) for Bill Mott. Last year, he was a winner on the Kentucky Derby trail. (2) Grumps Little Tots returned from a layoff in her first start for trainer Rob Atras and won a $50,000 claimer at the Big A going today’s distance. He has hit the board in graded stakes races in the past.

9^th race [Gazelle (G3), 1 1/8 mi] – (8) Search Results returns to Aqueduct with a perfect 2 for 2 record which includes a victory in the Busher at the Big A in March. The Chad Brown runner broke his maiden at Gulfstream sprinting and then stretched out to a one-turn mile. Her recent win earned the highest speed figure in the field. (4) Army Wife returned from a November layoff to win an allowance at Gulfstream by a nose in March. Trainer Mike Maker is adept at prepping horses to succeed at longer distances. This will be his first try in a stakes race. (5) The Grass is Blue is another Chad Brown runner and the winner of the nine-furlong Busanda at Aqueduct in January. In her next start, she finished third behind her stablemate, Search Results. (6) Alwayz Late will make her first start on the main track after five races on the turf including wins in her two most recent starts in a maiden special weight and an allowance at Gulfstream. Trainer Bill Mott has had success switching horses from turf to dirt in the past. She has already won at the distance of today’s race.

10^th race [Wood Memorial (G2), 1 1/8 mi] – (2) Crowded Trade (C) was a Hot List ‘A’ horse based on his maiden victory heading into the Gotham. He got off to a poor start in that race but was able to get the lead in the one-turn mile. Down the stretch, he battled with the eventual winner Weyburn losing by just a nose. Crowded Trade was heavily bet in the Gotham from 13-1 to 5-1. He is likely to improve and that makes him the top choice. (6) Prevalence is another talented, but lightly-raced 3-year-old, with only two starts. The sky could be the limit for this son of Medaglia d’Oro. Jockey Tyler Gaffalione makes the trip to New York to stay on board when there are big races in Keeneland. (4) Risk Taking was an impressive winner of his last two starts since getting the blinkers on. The other Chad Brown runner won the Withers going nine-furlongs. (8) Weyburn won the Gotham at odds of 46-1 clinching a spot in the Derby field. I feel like he may get a bit overlooked in the betting.

11^th race [NY, Md 40000, 1 1/16 mi TURF] – (7) Voliero will return from an August layoff and drop down from maiden special weights for the Bond barn. He collected a check in 4 of his 6 starts. Turf experience should be a big advantage. (8) Michael’s Bad Boy has not run since the turf course closed at Aqueduct in November. Back then he was second at today’s level after a troubled trip. His form improved when he moved to the barn of Saffie Joseph. (2) Eight Weeks Long ran the best race of his career on the grass in a maiden special weight in November. He will be back on the grass after two poor starts on the dirt at the Big A. (10) Hold the Irish made his first start of the year going two turns and finished third in a maiden special weight.

Saturday Pick 3 Special --
The Saturday Special $1 Pick 3 is on races 3-5 à 1, 2, 5, 6 with 3 with 2, 3 = $8.