Saturday's Best Bet: Artorius can close ground in Salvator Mile
Saturday’s 12th race at Monmouth Park is the Grade 3 Salvator Mile for 3-year-olds and up traveling one mile on the main track. The scheduled post time is 5:40 p.m. EDT.
Click here for Monmouth Park entries and results.
Multiple early-pressing types could help set the table for Chad Brown’s highly regarded returnee No. 9 Artorius (3-1). They could not have hoped for a better spot for this one and he runs well fresh. He rallied for the place in his sprint bow and stalked and scored in a one-turn mile second time out. He easily captured the restricted Curlin Stakes at 1 1/8 miles last summer and raced wide early and was unplaced in the Travers. He turned back and was up the track in the Perryville last fall and this is his first start in more than seven months. The lightly raced Arrogate colt could easily run past these.
No. 8 Nimitz Class (7-2) is 10-for-16 overall and he captured his last five starts. The sharp colt likes to mix it up from the get-go and drew outside his main pace rivals.
No. 4 Far Mo Power (10-1) is fairly consistent and I like his stalking speed and middle draw. I can definitely see him picking up a piece of the purse.
No. 10 Bourbonic (10-1) is back on dirt and can spice up the exotics. He won the Wood Memorial back in 2021 and never duplicated that effort. He was somewhat competitive in a few stakes races since and can be along for a share.
Get Jarrod’s Santa Anita analysis.
Wagers
No. 9 to win
Exacta Box 8-9
Trifecta 8-9/4-8-9-10/4-8-9-10
Recent Best Bet winners
June 3 - Kalik ($7.90), trifecta ($41.80)
June 6 - Uncle Ernie ($4.60), exacta ($12.60), trifecta ($46.60)
Monday - Cabra Chica ($6.80), exacta ($13.60)
Friday - Clearly Unhinged/Pleasant exacta ($19.20), trifecta ($65.60)