Bet this race at Diamond SportsTop pick: #4 (X Y RUNNER) (5-2) - Lightly-raced and well bred, 4-year-old son of 'Candy Ride' finished s pace-setting second here at this tag and trip Dec. 31. Good effort came in his second back from a 70 day freshening and trainer George Navarro has Javier Castellano aboard. When teamed up the pair have won 6 of 12 (50%).
2nd pick: #5 (Frank the Butcher) (7-2) - Home bred colt is taking the big drop into claimers for the first time. Well backed in all four starts, he's regressed in his latest pair after being very sharp in his first two attempts.
3rd pick: #7 (Mr Sultana) (6-1) - NEW gelding ships from New York where he finished a very distant fourth when going a mile at Aqueduct for a $20K tag Dec. 7. He has a new trainer (Marc Vitali) and he's 7-for-29 (24%) at this meet. Working fine, he drops to a new low and it's noted that Irad Ortiz Jr is aboard this longshot.
4th pick: #8 (Run for the Cup) (9-2) - Colt was never involved after being bumped at the break when debuting here against tougher Jan. 28 of 2017. He's taking a big drop in his return and will need to be ready as this field is a bit 'deep' for this $12,500 price tag.