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 Sp Wt, 1 mi] – (6) Call Her Bluff (B) closed while racing wide for third on an inside and speed favoring track and moves back up to a maiden special weight. (7) Calling an Audible set the pace last time, finished second, and now gets Lasix for the first time. (2) Detonate will make her debut for Christophe Clement after working steadily since November. (3) Purpose is another first-time starter and this one goes for the Bond barn which has very good stats going a mile.

4^th race [Clm 32000, 6F] – (5) Tetsu (B) climbed from kickback, made a middle move, and got claimed by Rick Dutrow for today’s $32,000 tag. (1A) President Z was a winner of a starter allowance last time going seven furlongs. (3) Dot’s Dollar broke slowly after he tossed her head and finished third behind a horse that came back to win impressively on Sunday. (2) Cees Get Degrees has been off since the summer when he was twice claimed for $50,000 and set the pace to just miss the win by a half-length.

5^th race [NY, OC 80k/N1X, 6F] – (8) Thirteen Red Flags broke her maiden in her second try which was last month and then ran against the boys in a state-bred stakes race. (2) Sweet Brown Sugar won her first two starts at Finger Lakes by more than 12 lengths combined and then stepped up to a NY-bred stakes race. She was entered over the weekend but scratched to run in this spot. (3) Sohana broke her maiden in her first start at 5-2 against a horse that came back to win next time out. (6) Bustin Time was a debut winner at Delaware Park in October as the even-money favorite, was claimed for $20,000, and now starts for the new barn.

6^th race  [Md Sp Wt, 7F] – (3) Hero’s Medal was claimed in Kentucky for $75,000 by Linda Rice in November and returned in January to run second after getting the lead following a rough break from the gate. (1) Xcellent Men has three top three finishes including his best race last time when he was second after having the lead. (8) Bolt d’Plata moved up to a maiden special weight in his most recent start which came after a short layoff and was third. The blinkers go back on. (4) Clare Quality is a first-time starter for Chad Brown and owner Peter Brant.

Best bets: Tetsu (4^th); Hero’s Medal (6^th). Best value: Call Her Bluff (1^st); Thirteen Red Flags (5^th).