Top pick: #8 (CITY CHAPEL) (7-2) - Gelding ships down from Golden Gate Fields and will be racing third back from a 7-week freshening. Barn drops him down, switches him from 'poly' to dirt, and stretches him out a furlong. He's won on the dirt in the past and defeated tougher at this distance in late Sept. at Los Alamitos.
2nd pick: #7 (Senor Rain) (3-1) - Veteran has sharp early speed and is racing first off a Mark Glatt claim (a 22% winning angle). He has a fine record at this distance (4-2-1-0) and has a sharp half-mile work since the barn change.
3rd pick: #6 (The Mad Hungarian) (5-2) - Another with early speed, he's racing first off a Pete Miller claim (17%). New trainer drops him in class, adds blinkers, and shortens him up a furlong. Dangerous with his best.
4th pick: #2 (Smart Ellis) (10-1) - Longshot has a lot of back class, but is not the same horse since coming back from a pair of long layoffs. Drops back down and some sharp recent works are a plus.