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.

2^nd race [Alw 50000s, 1 1/8 mi] – (1) Warrior Richard (B) got stuck in traffic along the inside and was able to rally for second once clear. (5) Gut Feeling steps up after winning a N2L claimer last time. Four horses in this field ran at that level last time. (3) Mama’s Gold made a big improvement in his second start after a layoff when he had the lead but got nipped at the wire by Gut Feeling. (8) What’s Up Doc has been racing at the starter allowance level and had a pair of second-place finishes.

3^rd race [Waya (G3), 1 3/8 mi TURF] – (2) Romagna Mia was third in the Beverly D. (G1) in her American debut for Graham Motion whose new runners from Europe usually run much better in their second try. (5) McKulick was second in the Flower Bowl (G2) after being held firmly in the early going. She is probably the class of this field. (3) Parnac was a front-end winner of the Flower Bowl after earning the highest speed figure of her career. (6) Sister Otoole is another runner for Motion that won a stake at Del Mar in August.

4^th race [Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (G1), 1 ½ mi TURF] – (2) War Like Goddess won this race last year and went on to finish third in the Breeders’ Cup Turf. She won her debut at Gulfstream Park in the Bewitch (G3) for her 10th career victory. She was rank last month in the Glens Falls (G2) at Saratoga and still just missed the win by a neck. (4) Rebel’s Romance won the BC Turf in 2022 which was the ninth win of his career. At Saratoga in the Bowling Green (G2), he clipped heels and lost his rider. (7) Stone Age is now in the barn of Chad Brown after running second in the Breeders’ Cup Turf. His last six starts were in Grade 1 or Group 1 races, so he has plenty of back class. (5) Pioneering Spirit is the winner of 5 out of his last 6 starts for Linda Rice and that includes the Bernard Baruch at Saratoga with the best speed figure of his career.

8^th race [Champagne (G1), 1 mi] – (6) Fierceness (A) broke his maiden by 11 lengths in his debut for Todd Pletcher at Saratoga on a muddy sealed track as an even money favorite. He earned a 95 Beyer Speed Figure which is one of the highest of the year for any 2-year-old. Fierceness is a home-bred for Repole Stable and is a son of City of Light who won the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile and a mare by Stay Thirsty who won the Travers for owner Mike Repole. (3) Timberlake had the lead briefly in the Hopeful (G1) as part of a stretch battle and finished second. Blinkers come off for the Brad Cox trainee that is also entered in the Breeders’ Futurity (G1) on Saturday. (4) General Partner broke his maiden by four lengths in his second start for Chad Brown with a front-end effort. (5) El Grande O is stakes winning NY-bred for Linda Rice that ran six times and hit the board each time. He was second in the Skidmore against open company at Saratoga.

Best bets: War Like Goddess (4^th); Fierceness (8^th). Best value: Warrior Richard (2^nd); Romagna Mia (3^rd).

Saturday Pick 3 Special --
The Saturday Special $1 Pick 3 covers races 2-4 including the Waya and the Turf Classic à 1, 3, 5 with 2, 3, 5, 6 with 2, 4 = $24.