Belmont at Aqueduct Hotlist - September 15

Today’s New York Hot List races to watch – Thursday, September 15, 2022
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.

5^th race [Md Sp Wt, 6F] – (6) Jester’s Song (C) returns from a June layoff when he was bet down from 7-1 to 5-1 and finished second in a strong maiden field at Belmont Park. Now he is back to Aqueduct where he ran well three times. (4) Actualize was last seen in the race with the Hot List horse and is projected to be the pace setter in this field. (5) Lupo’s Legacy made his debut at Saratoga on the turf and moves to the main track which is a 32% winning move for Jeremiah Englehart. (1) Sul Pharoah tried the turf at Saratoga for Bill Mott and goes back to the dirt in his third start following a layoff.

6^th race [NY, Md Sp Wt, 1 1/16 mi TURF] – (10) Sweet Blush (A) had pre-race gate issues in her Saratoga debut, then broke slowly, made a strong middle move, and finished fourth at odds of 7-2. (3) Collaboration set the pace in her debut at the Spa and finished third at 4-1. Linda Rice runners usually need a race. Expect her to be on the lead. (7) Smokie Eyes was second in her first start for Christophe Clement in the same race as the second choice. (8) Orange Freeze was third in her first start at Saratoga for the Clement barn at 5-2.

8^th race [Clm 40000 N2L, 1 mi] – (8) Money Supply drops into the N2L condition for the first time for Chad Brown after winning his debut in Florida and then racing in allowances. (6) Hometown made his first start of the year after moving to the barn of Rob Atras last month at Saratoga and now drops into the claiming ranks for the first time also. (4) Emperor’s Cause skipped racing at Saratoga after getting claimed at Belmont. He shows a couple of seconds at Aqueduct in the spring. (3) Major Spin drops from the NY-bred allowances for Linda Rice and is expected to set the pace. Irad Ortiz gets on board.

9^th race [NY, Alw 85000 N$Y, 1 mi] – (1) Sweet Mystery (C) was bet down to be the favorite and pressed the pace to finish second in a state-bred allowance. She has a trio of top three finishes in her only starts. (5) Truancy was an impressive odds-on winner of her second start for Barclay Tagg at the Spa. (8) Forty Smooth steps up to this new allowance condition for NY-breds after winning three out of four starts in open company claimers. (6) Caramocha made a big improvement when she was second in a Spa allowance in her second start following a layoff.

Best bets:  Jester’s Song (5^th); Money Supply (8^th). Best value:  Sweet Blush (6^th); Sweet Mystery (9^th).