Wilshire Stakes
- Red Lark- Van Dyke/ Gallagher
- I don’t think Red Lark fits here. Drayden staying put is a positive but the filly seems to just be outclassed and not quite quick enough herre. 2nd off the layoff and back into Graded company is a plus but I think she needs weaker.
- Cordiality- Rispoli/ Yakteen
- Cordiality is going to be close to the lead early on. Rispoli is a proven turf jockey and this horse is back relatively quick off her recent start which was off of a year layoff. She should improve today but i don’t know if this is a great spot for that improvement to show. If she does improve she fits but I think she might need one more.
- Gypsy Spirit- Smith/ Powell
- This is Gypsy Spirit’s 2nd start of the layoff, 2nd start this year, and 2nd start in the United States. All of those angles can help produce improvement. Mike Smith gets aboard today and he usually would only get on horses that are ready to pounce. I think this one is live today and at 8/1 would be great value.
- Querelle- Gryder/ Miller
- Querelle is another filly that Prat did not choose today. Peter Miller has been firing as of late and usually its with Prat and not Gryder. Gryder has been holding his own out west even late in his career so it wouldn’t be surprising if he gives this filly a good trip today. She should be closing late and making one run. Will look elsewhere however.
- Keeper Ofthe Stars- Cedillo/ Wong
- Keeper Ofthe Stars is a horse I am a huge fan of and the connections are friends of mine. I think talent wise, this horse is a monster. She just won the Gamely in impressive style. She seems to love the Santa Anita turf course and the 1 mile distance. I think she can repeat that previous performance today.
- Toinette- Prat/ Drysdale
- Toinette is the classiest in this field. She has won Graded stakes at the Grade 2 and Grade 3 level. She just ran a very good race in the Matriarch back in December but has yet to run this year. Prat chooses to stay aboard here which usually means this is the best of the three he could have ridden. I think she can sit the trip today and make this an easy win.
- Simply Breathless- Fuentes/ Drysdale
- Simply Breathless has lost to Keeper Ofthe Stars and Toinette before. Fuentes gets the mount today for the first time and I think he gets the mount to late in her career. I don’t think she has anything left in the tank at this class. She will be closing late but needs a complete pace meltdown in order to win.
TOP PICKS
#5 Keeper Ofthe Stars
#6 Toinette
#3 Gypsy Spirit