Belmont Park Hotlist - June 4

Today’s New York Hot List races to watch – Thursday, June 4, 2020 at Belmont Park
                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 – (5) Super Twenty Seven broke his maiden for a $25,000 tag and now makes the right move to a $16,000 N2L claimer and gets Irad Ortiz in the saddle. (6) Smiles From Sadie has had a lot a chances at the N2L level but usually is competitive and now drops down from the $25,000 price. (1) Be Magic won a NY-bred maiden claimer last time out by more than 12 lengths. Trainer Linda Rice knows how to place her horses to always be competitive. (2) First Dawn was second or third in her last eight starts and now also drops down to this $16,000 level.

6^th race – (2) High School Crush (C) was bet down from 5-1 to be the 9-5* favorite based on her second-place finish in her last start at this $25,000 NY-bred maiden claimer. She was sixth in the early going and got in a head to head tussle, beat that rival, and went on to finish third. She was claimed out of the race by Gary Sciacca and comes back in a similar spot. (6) Deja Reconte has early speed and she should be on the lead once again in this field. (8) Empress Luciana ran the best race of her career against open company last time when she was second and now she returns to face state-breds. (14) A d’Oro was second last time for Brad Cox while breaking from post 11 in a 14-horse field. She is way outside again but will be running late.

7^th race – (4) Aced ships up from Parx and drops down from a strong third in a starter allowance race. He is back to the level at which he got his last win. (1) Riken was a front-end winner of his N2L condition for a $40,000 tag and now moves to the N3L claimer for $20,000. (8) Bears Mafia was claimed out of his last two starts; one was his N2L victory and then he was third in the N3L. Both races were on the lead. Trainer Jeffrey Englehart wins with 27% of his new runners. (12) Northern Haze was claimed out of his last four races and now returns from a December layoff for Mike Miceli as a new gelding with blinkers on.

8^th race – (1) Will Sing for Wine (A) was an impressive maiden special weight winner for Bill Mott going a mile at Aqueduct. (5) Basquiat was a debut winner for Chad Brown going seven furlongs. The son of American Pharoah was an easy winner at odds of 1.90-1. (6) Mystic Guide was last seen breaking his maiden at Fair Grounds by five lengths. He ships up to Belmont from trainer Michael Stidham’s base at Fair Hills Training Center in Maryland. Out of town rider Brian Hernandez Jr. is named to stay on board. (8) Country Grammer broke his maiden at Aqueduct by more than three lengths and then ran fifth on the Kentucky Derby trail in the Fountain of Youth (G3) after he lost footing at the start and now drops down to this first-level allowance.

Best bets:  Super Twenty Seven (1^st); High School Crush (6^th).  Best value:  Aced (7^th); Will Sing for Wine (8^th).