Saratoga Hotlist - September 5

Today’s NY Hot List races to watch – Monday, September 5, 2022 at Saratoga
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.

6^th race [NY, Alw 95000 N1X, 1 1/16 mi TURF] – (1A) Just Ok is Not Ok (B) set the pace following a layoff but was checked out of contention. / (1) Whatlovelookslike broke her maiden and then missed winning the allowance by a head. (2) New Ginya won her first start last year and now has three close finishes at this level. (6) Waterville competed with these other fillies and finished right with them at the wire and is another runner for Christophe Clement. (10) Russiarussiarussia broke her maiden at Belmont Park for Chad Brown and then was third in one of these allowances.

9^th race [Alw 50000s, 1 1/8 mi TURF] – (6) Sonic Speed (B) got badly blocked in the upper stretch and was able to rally to get fourth once he got clear. (2) Reckless Spirit had trouble last start after being rank and he had to take up. This was following two strong finishes at this level. (9) War Strategy won a maiden special weight at Woodbine for Mark Casse and then was third at Saratoga in a starter allowance. (7) Splendid Summer broke his maiden for $40,000 for Todd Pletcher and then moved right up to run second in a $35,000 claimer.

11^th race [Hopeful (G1), 7F] – (4) Gulfport overwhelmed his competition in first two starts by a combined margin of almost 20 lengths for Steve Asmussen at Churchill Downs. Then in the Saratoga Special (G2) he got jostled around and then checked hard to finish second. (5) Mo Strike also won his first two races including the Sanford (G2) where he beat a horse that came back to win a stakes at the Spa. (6) Blazing Sevens broke his maiden at Saratoga by more than six lengths beating a horse that came back to win by eight. (3) Bourbon Bash was that eight-length winner and as we know D. Wayne Lukas 2-year-olds rarely win their debuts.

12^th race [NY, Alw 95000 N1X, 6F] – (6) Ribot’s Valentine (A) was an impressive winner of her second start at Saratoga. (1) Cupid’s Heart was a debut winner last year as the favorite and has been off since trying a NY-bred stakes in November. (5) Juliana’s Rose was well liked since her first start back in October. She was an impressive maiden winner at Aqueduct but has been off since then. (11) Sue Ellen Mishkin broke her maiden at Saratoga last summer and then had no chance in her next three starts after trying a Grade 1, catching a sloppy track, and trying turf. She won her return in an allowance at Finger Lakes by nine in July.

Best bets:  1/1A entry (6^th); Gulfport (11^th). Best value: Sonic Speed (9^th); Robot’s Valentine (12^th).