Aqueduct Hotlist - March 26

Today’s New York Hot List races to watch – Friday, March 26, 2021 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.

1^st race [NY, Md Sp Wt, 1 mi] – (2) Pay Grade shipped up from Florida to face NY-bred company for the first time in January and missed the win by a head while adding blinkers. She went back to Florida to train and now came back north again and gets Lasix for the first time. (1) Stormi Cat Lady has a pair of seconds since adding Lasix. She stepped up to this level last time and now adds blinkers. (5) Dorothy’s the Boss raced six wide, rallied from far back in her debut on a sloppy track at Aqueduct, and now goes a mile. (4) Seahorse d’Oro was claimed for $40,000 from a fourth-place finish in his debut where she pressed the early pace after taking some money as a firster.

4^th race [OC 62k/N2X, 1 mi] – (3) Tenderfoot had a three-race winning streak earlier in the winter and then ran second behind the mighty Mr. Buff. Last time he was also second in an allowance like this one. His speed figures are strong. (2) Musical America came back from almost a year off last time and now goes in for tag. I expect a big improvement this time for the Rob Atras runner. (1) Arch Cat ships up from Parx for trainer Danny Gonzalez who has done well at Aqueduct in the past. He is in fine form in his last three starts at the Philly track. (5) Per Capita missed by a nose when last seen back in December at the Big A. He should appreciate the cutback in distance.

6^th race [Clm 12500, 6 ½ F] – (5) Ninth Hour (C) was bet down from 9-2 to 5-2 when he ran second beaten by a neck in a $10,000 claimer. (7) Professor Snape was a winner last time out for $10,000 beating the Hot List horse. These type of low-level claimers move in and out of form so quickly. (4) Win With Pride ran two strong races in his last two starts for $8,000 and was claimed last time by Orlando Noda when he ran third. (3) Morgantown set the pace and finished third in the same race as the top choices.

7^th race [OC80k/N1X, 6F] – (3) Return the Ring won his debut back in November and followed that up with a head loss in the Jimmy Winkfield going seven furlongs. Now, he will cutback in distance and get Lasix for the first time in this allowance for 3-year-olds only. (2) Doctor K won each of his last two starts by 10 lengths in a $25,000 maiden claimer and then in a starter allowance. He raced out in front in both of those races at the Big A for leading trainer Rudy Rodriguez. (5) By George was an impressive debut winner for Christophe Clement at Aqueduct that then moved to the Swale (G3) at Gulfstream Park. He was essentially eased in that race and now gets Lasix for the first time. (6) Three Two Zone has made big improvements in his three starts with a gate to wire victory in a maiden special weight last time.

Best bets:  Pay Grade (1^st); Tenderfoot (4^th). Best value:  Ninth Hour (6^th); Return the Ring (7^th).