3 reasons to bet Practical Move in Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile

After his three wins on the Derby trail, Practical Move did not participate in the Kentucky Derby because of a fever. But the son of Practical Joke came back in strong form recently and now gets a shot at the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile on Saturday at Santa Anita. 

Practical Move has a big chance to pick up his second Grade 1 in this race. Here are three reasons below to bet Practical Joke in the Dirt Mile. 

1. Home court advantage

If counting his first win last year, Practical Move shows a 4-for-4 record on this course, including two graded-stakes wins in the spring.

Practical Move broke his maiden locally via disqualification one year ago when Fort Bragg impeded him and the stewards moved Practical Move up.

Then, Practical Move became a win machine in route races. Two months after his maiden win, he won the Los Alamitos Derby (G2) without any help from the stewards. After his first graded-stakes win, Practical Move also took both the San Felipe Stakes (G2) and Santa Anita Derby (G1) on this track before the fever knocked him out of the run for the roses.

In his local return race on Oct. 6, Practical Move easily won a one-mile optional-claiming allowance race open to older horses by four lengths to mark his fourth win over Santa Anita dirt. The familiar older horse Tripoli ran second. 

No other entry in the Dirt Mile owns four wins at Santa Anita.

2. His return figure matches Cody’s Wish 

The defending champion Cody’s Wish once again starts in the Dirt Mile as the expected favorite with 9-5 morning-line odds. However, his recent figures on TimeformUS do not seem dominant for a heavy favorite.

In June, Cody's Wish won the Metropolitan Handicap (G1) with an impressive 129 on TimeformUS. But Cody's Wish then took a smaller speed figure on the stretchout when he ran third in the Whitney Stakes (G1) at Saratoga with only a 121. The longer distance hurt him, but when Cody's Wish cut back to seven furlongs and won the Vosburgh Stakes (G2), he earned only a 119 and needed to work a bit to pass Accretive. 

Practical Move hit a peak of 121 on TimeformUS in the spring when he won the Santa Anita Derby in preparation for the Kentucky Derby. When Practical Move took a break, he went six months without racing before his return in October. Practical Move won his Oct. 6 return race in the local optional claimer with a 120 on TimeformUS.

When two horses show similar figures, it makes sense to bet on the one with higher odds. Practical Move is the 3-1 second choice on the morning line, and that sounds a lot better than taking 9-5 or less on the popular Cody's Wish. 

In addition, most horses take a step forward in their second and third starts off the bench. Practical Move did not race for six months before winning his return and certainly had rust even though he won.  

For the Breeders’ Cup, Practical Move will come into this race as fit as possible and ready to turn in a TimeformUS figure better than 119.

3. Practical Move drew an inside post

When Practical Move won the San Felipe and Santa Anita Derby in the spring, he made an inside bid on the far turn in each of those trail wins.

To give a recap of his Santa Anita Derby trip, Practical Move initially settled in an inside stalking position before moving up after the half-mile and pushing inside of the pacesetter One in Vermillion on the far turn.

Jockey Ramon Vazquez sat quietly on Practical Move as he made this rail move, and by the top of the stretch it became clear he had more left to fend off the closers, who included Skinner and Mandarin Hero.

After an exciting stretch run, Practical Move stood his ground and held off Mandarin Hero and Skinner for the nose win. Many horses shy away from the inside move because they do not enjoy tight spots, but he seems to excel at the rail trip.  

In the Dirt Mile, Practical Move drew the No. 2 post. Depending on what the rail horse Stage Raider ends up doing early, Practical Move could find himself in the familiar inside stalking position once again on the far side.

With that said, Practical Move also can win by rallying on the outside, as shown by the powerful move he made in his return win earlier this month. But it works as a useful bonus though to know he does not mind dirt in his face from traveling on the inside right behind the pacesetter. 

Either way, Practical Move should find himself in prime position on the far turn and ready to strike from the inside or outside, depending on traffic.