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 [NY, Md 30000, 7F] – (3) Knight Tail (A) debuted last month at 7-1, broke slowly, got taken up, and basically lost all chance. (2) Practical Miss finished second by a neck in her last two starts which happened on sloppy and sealed tracks at Aqueduct. (4) Montauk Mystique performed well in several tries at this level. (7) Babi Dreams returns from a winter layoff after an extensive maiden special weight campaign at Finger Lakes and has been training at Belmont Park.

5^th race [Alw 16000s, 6F] – (2) Printrack ran first or second in his last nine starts with five victories in a variety of starter allowances and high-level claimers. (4) Colonel Vargo won his last four starts and 8 out of his last 12 races in claimers and starter allowances. He was taken last time for $12,500. (3) Capone dropped from a pair of allowance races to win for a $16,000 tag by a nose and got claimed. He also won a top-level starter allowance. (1) Got Thunder has been racing in open allowances and is going to get a speedy set-up for his stalking style.

6^th race [Woodhaven, 1 mi TURF] – (4) Good Lord Lorrie (A) won his only start which was last year at Saratoga where he was full of run early and won easily against a strong field at 4-1. (5) The Big Torpedo (A) was second in his debut which was on the turf at Aqueduct in November. During the winter he raced on the dirt in allowance and stakes races against NY-breds. Last month, he got taken up, steadied, made his way to the lead, and finished second. (2) Carson’s Run also returns from a winter layoff. He began his career with a turf win at Saratoga and moved right into graded stakes with a second in the With Anticipation (G3), a win at the Summer (G1) at Woodbine, and then finished the year in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1). (6) Walley World broke his maiden on the grass in his second try which was at the Big A and then was second in the Central Park in November. After a few months he came back to run second in an allowance at Tampa Bay Downs behind a horse that won a stakes race next time out.

8^th race [NY, Alw 72000 N1X, 1 1/16 mi TURF] – (8) Roagna (A) won his debut at Aqueduct as the turf season was finishing in November beating a full field of 12 as part of a favored entry for trainer Jimmy Bond. The third-place finisher in that field came back to win her next start. (1) Overacting will also come back from a winter layoff after winning his debut at Saratoga for Chad Brown and Klaravich Stables. (4) Can’t Fool Me won a starter allowance at Saratoga last summer. (6) Being Betty broke his maiden against NY-breds and ended his 2023 in a stakes race at Aqueduct. As a 3-year-old he will return with first-time Lasix.

Best bets: Printrack (5^th); Roagna (8^th). Best value: Knight Tail (1^st); Good Lord Lorrie (6^th).

Saturday Pick 3 Special --
The Saturday Special $1 Pick 3 covers races 4-6 which includes the Woodhaven à 1, 2, 4 with 2, 3, 4 with 2, 4, 5, 6 = $36.