5-Barrier Reef–an improving horse at this time of year is very dangerous in these type races, so this is one to watch. Showed some promise in 7f debut, moving from 9th early to finish 3rd, beaten just over a length; Beyer a sluggish 68. Chart line says “steadied, altered course.” Last out came from 10th/9th early to win going away by a length and a half after still being 5 lengths back at the last call. Chart line says “Wide run, very greenly.” Beyer of 79 better than it looked considering the route taken. If he can learn to run in a straight line, he just might win this.
6-Roman Emperor–improving as you would expect an Empire Maker to be at this conjecture, with Beyers of 65, 76, and 81. Last two were easy victories with him pulling away at the finish. Fired another bullet recently, even faster than the one he fired before his allowance win. Looks primed to run a big one. The one to beat.
7-Giant Moon–undefeated in three starts, this front-runner has earned 83, 82, 84 Beyers is three starts, consistent. Major player. Only possible criticism is that perhaps he isn’t improving that much from race to race. Another 82-84 could definitely win against this field, but you would think someone would step up and run better than that.
2-Spanky Fischbein–a gem of consistency, has run 1st or 2nd in all six lifetime starts, and has run against a surprising number of good horses, including Lantana Mob, Law Enforcement, Big Truck, and Giant Moon. Certainly a candidate for 2nd and 3rd at the very least.
I’ll go with the two that seem to be improving right now on top:
$5 ex 5,6 with 2,5,6,7 ($30)
$2 tri 5,6 with 5,6,7 with 2,5,6,7 (2×2x2=8x$2=$16)
$2 tri 7 with 5,6 with 5,6 ($4)
January 5th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
7-2-6 close but no cigar on my last tri there. Giant Moon wins it and the ultra consistent Spanky is once again 2nd, with Roman Emporer 3rd. A pretty form fitting race, no surprises. I’ll have to watch the replay to see if Barrier Reef ran straight this time or not, I expected a bit more from him.