Aqueduct: Fall Highweight Analysis

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! We have a nice Grade 3 sprint on our hands come Thursday in the Fall Highweight at Aqueduct. An interesting, and diverse group of 8 will take center stage going 6 panels on the main. Let’s get to know the field and find out who the pretenders and contenders are on this turkey day affair. From the rail out are:

2 - Saturday’s Charm: If this horse wins I will smash my face into a bowl of mashed potatoes and tweet out a picture of it. No offense to this one or the connections, I just feel he has been a bit of a money burner and he did not draw well for this. He does own a win here, but he just seems to settle a bit too much for my liking. Pretender.

3 - Caixa Electronica: How can you not like this horse? He is a 23 time winner and is about as cool as a racehorse can be. He is coming into this off a little vacation and I expect him to run well. He took down last year’s edition and you have to respect him in here again. While I believe he is a contender, I am going to limit his use to underneath as a like a few others a little bit more in here. None the less, contender.

4 - Jake N Elwood: The only thing I like about this one is his name. I view his as nothing more than a pace factor. I just feel he is in over his head here and may need lesser to fulfill his true potential. Pretender.

5 - Palace: This one is coming in off a nice win while taking down a state-bred stakes. He overcame breaking from the rail to draw off to a visually impressive win.  He gets the class test here and I expect him to pass. He is 2/2 at The Big A and loves 6 panels. He has a very big shot in my eyes. Contender.

1 - B Shanny: The weaker part of the entry in my opinion. He has some talent, but I think he would be better served in the state-bred ranks. He is another one I consider a pace factor. Pretender.

6 - Strapping Groom: I am against this one in here. I thought he had everything his own way in his last and he just didn’t get it done. I think he is on the down swing of his form cycle and he will get no easy go of it on the front end today. Pretender. 

1A - The Lumber Guy: This one is kind of tricky. He is dropping out of two straight Grade 1 races, the last being the BC Sprint. Two back he pressed a strong pace in the Vosburgh set by eventual winner and super fast Private Zone. It is now or never for this one. He still is living off his reputation from last year and has burned some money this year. If he can’t get it done on the drop in class, we may just have to face the facts and realize he is not the same charge he once was a year ago. With all that said, he is a contender but I would tread lightly here. I would only use if the price is right. Contender.

7 - Sage Valley: This Rudy Rodriguez charge is coming off a short freshening and I believe he should be ready to roll. He owns a win over this oval and has 3 wins at the trip. He is coming in after getting sloppy tracks in his last 2 starts. If he runs back to the last time he had a dry track, when he took down the Grade 3 James Marvin at Saratoga, everyone is running for 2^nd. With Joel Rosario in the irons, and a nice draw on the outside, this one has a serious shot in my opinion. Contender.

The Play: I am going to play an exacta part-wheel in here with 5-7 with 1A-3-5-7. Two dollar play will cost you $12. If I was going to play multi-race wagers, I think I would use 5-7, or possibly throw in the 1A.

As always, I wish everyone a winning day. I hope I helped you lock up your own opinions or turned you onto something you may have missed. Happy Thanksgiving, folks. Best of luck to you all.