SANTA ANITA
Race 1
No. 1 Ish ships in from the Gate and drops to the bottom in this 7 furlong $20k maiden race for fillies and mares. No. 5 Silver Starlight also drops to the bottom and gets Bejarano and she will be a short price. No. 7 Mariota also gets the drop and will try the dirt for the first time. 1-5-7
Race 2
Maiden fillies and mares go 1-1/8 on the grass. No. 1 Hotsy Dotsy was closing in on them in her last start and her first going long and first on the grass. No. 3 La Premiere Etoile looks to wire them. No. 7 Lynne’s Legacy has been getting close gong long on the grass. 1-3-7
Race 3
Only five runners signed on for this 1-1/16 dirt race. No. 1 Dalmore and No. 2 Rare Candy hook up again but this time Dalmore gets Kent D riding for his brother. 1-2
Race 4
No. 3 Run for Retts comes back to town, gets a drops in class, off the grass and a turn back in distance. No. 5 Tuscany Beauty looked good winning at first asking and looks to repeat. 3-5
Race 5
No. 2 Mr. Opportunist finds a lot of other speed in here but has proven he can handle the heat. No. 5 Eric the Trojan exits the same race and once again he will try and run him down. 2-5
Race 6
$25k claimers go a mile on the grass. No. 3 Boone Docks look to be in good form and will love this trip. No. 6 Lamaan looks perfectly spotted off the maiden score on the grass. 3-6
Race 7
No. 7 Saddle Soar looks to be a good price play with the drop in class and the break in weights going this 1-1/16 distance. The hot riding Maldonado gets on No. 2 Unusually Big who gets his second try at this level. 2-7
Race 8
THE $200K CHARLES WHITTINGHAM AT 1-1/4 ON THE GRASS
No. 3 A Red Tie Day has won 3 of 4 turf starts here including one at this distance when going wire-to-wire. No. 5 Bal a Bali is the class and the one to beat. No. 6 Royal Albert Hall won in his only try going this distance here one race back. No. 7 Si Sage won a Grade III here at this distance and gets big race Mike Smith today. No. 9 Finnegans Wake has big class but may not be the horse he once was. No. 10 Quick Casablanca can run all day and just won the San Juan Capistrano at 1-7/8 on a yielding turf course. When all is said and done we will opt for Bal a Bali and Casablanca. 5-10
Race 9
$20k maidens go a flat mile on the dirt. No. 2 Incentive Plan has some good early speed and the move to this level could get him home today. No. 3 Blyde River exits the same race and he was second by a dwindling head. No. 5 Chief Dan also exits the race as does No. 6 Alston. 2-3-5-6
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Richard Saber, a former director of race and sports at the famed Stardust book, is GT’s horse racing and sports handicapper. Twitter: @SabesBet. Email: [email protected]