Saratoga Hotlist - August 11

Today’s NY Hot List races to watch – Wednesday, August 11, 2021 at Saratoga – Day 20
                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 [NY, Md Sp Wt 85000, 1 1/8 mi] – (6) Lucky Brody is the only horse in the field that has ever run nine-furlongs. It was not a good performance but the time before at Monmouth Park he was second against open company going two-turns. (5) My Brother Neil did run at Monmouth in his last start going 1 1/16 mile. He hit the board a couple of times in the winter at Aqueduct going a mile. (2) Anejo gets blinkers on, first-time Lasix, and moved from turf to dirt for Jack Sisterson and Calumet Farm, a team that has been known to win at big odds. (1) Tivoli Twirl has the top speed figures in the field and he will have to stretch out from sprints, but trainer John Terranova has good numbers doing so.

6^th race [Md 30000, 6F] – (3) Ms Penelopepitstop gets blinkers on for her second career start after setting the pace and finishing fourth in a maiden special weight at Monmouth as the favorite. Now Rudy Rodriguez drops her in for a tag. (2) Shining Colors was claimed for $20,000 after a second at Saratoga when she ran in that position for the entire six-furlongs. She now has three consecutive place finishes. (5) Bonkers cuts back in distance for the meet’s leading trainer Mike Maker. Her two efforts sprinting were not too bad and were in maiden special weights. (4) Starship Dreams, like the top choice, gets blinkers on and Lasix for her second start, but she ran at Finger Lakes and was third. In that race for Jeremiah Englehart she broke two lengths behind the field.

7^th race [OC80k/N1X 1 1/8 TURF] – (3) Lisheen (C) broke her maiden at Saratoga going a long distance on the turf when she got bet down from 10-1 to 9-2 and rallied late with Jose Ortiz in the saddle for the first time for Graham Motion. (11) Town Avenger broke her maiden at first asking for Brian Lynch at Churchill Downs in May and then came right back to finish fourth in the Tepin Stakes which had a very strong field. (12) Alydiva broke her maiden after switching to the turf for Mark Casse at Churchill and then ran second in an allowance against winners at the Kentucky track. (2) Magisterium was a winner in England before coming to America. In her first start for Christophe Clemente last year she was third in the Matron (G3) at Belmont. This year, in June she got claimed for $62,500 and has hit the board twice.

8^th race [NY, OC45k/N2X, 7F] – (3) Diva Banker (C) was claimed for just $5,000 in January. In May, she won an $8,000 claimer and then in June at Belmont Park she faced NY-breds for the first time and won an allowance while getting bet down from 16-1 to 11-1. In that race she won $48,000 as the winner for trainer Ray Handal. (2) Betsy Blue has four wins and two seconds in six career starts. She was claimed twice in her career, most recently by Linda Rice in March. Since then, she won an open company allowance and a NY-bred stake. (6) Honey Money is the winner of 4 out of her last 5 starts including two against open company and a state-bred allowance for Wayne Potts who grabbed her for $16,000 in May at Belmont. (5) My Roxy Girl was just a length behind Betsy Blue in her last start and has won almost $600,000 in her career.

Best bets:  Ms Penelopepitstop (6^th); Diva Banker (8^th). Best value:  Lucky Brody (5^th); Lisheen (7^th).