Aqueduct Hotlist - January 2

Today’s New York Hot List races to watch – Sunday, January 2, 2022 at Aqueduct
                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 worse
* - 4 or more betting notches if 11-1 or more.

2^nd race [Clm 25000 N2L, 6F] – (3) Halpert (D) was bet down from 13-1 to 8-1 and was claimed for $30,000. Now he goes from turf to dirt with a past win on the main track at Aqueduct. (5) Hangar One (C) was also bet late going from 6-1 to 4-1, had to steady on the heels of another horse in the middle of the race, and rallied to get third. He was claimed for $16,000. (7) Forest Spirit was third last time for a $40,000 tag and drops back down to the level at which he was claimed two races ago. (1) Masked Marauder was claimed back by Wayne Potts from a second-place finish at Turfway Park and switches back to the dirt.

4^th race [Clm 16000, 1 mi] – (3) Magnetron (C) was claimed for $8,000 after shipping to Aqueduct from Finger Lakes. He had the lead but got nailed at the wire after getting heavily bet down from 12-1 to 5-1. (2) Fast Break was third for a $25,000 tag in an Aqueduct open claimer. He drops down in price and Jose Ortiz stays on board. (7) Crypto Cash drops down to the lowest level of his career for this gelding that ran in the Arkansas Derby (G1) in 2020. (5) Kumar was a front-end winner at this level for Gustavo Rodriguez and there is not much speed in this field.

5^th race [Md Sp Wt, 1 1/8 mi] – (4) Long Term (A) was second in his debut for Todd Pletcher after racing wide the entire seven furlongs. (8) Perfect Flight gets Lasix for the first time after a second-place finish last time going the nine furlongs for Steve Asmussen. In his two starts he finished behind horses that are running in the Jerome on Saturday. (1) Constitutionlawyer also gets Lasix as he is now a 3-year-old and finished third behind Perfect Flight. In his debut he was fourth in a strong field that included Mo Donegal. (6) Rookieoftheyear ships up to New York for Graham Motion after running second in his second start in a race that was meant for the turf.

8^th race [NY, LaVerdad, 7F] – (4) Bank Sting (C) ran a big race to win a New York Stallion Series stake last time by more than eight lengths. On that day he was bet down from 9-2 to 5-2. (3) Courageous Girl (B) exited a win in a NY-bred allowance to run second against open company where she clipped heels at the start. (5) Letmetakethiscall ran third last time in a stake against open company and won against open company back in March at Aqueduct. (2) Awillaway takes the blinkers off for red-hot trainer Mitch Friedman. Two races back she rallied to win a state-bred allowance at the Big A.

Best bets:  Long Term (5^th); Bank Sting (8^th). Best value:  Halpert (2^nd); Magnetron (4^th).