THURSDAY AT HOLLYWOOD

Good Afternoon Racing Fans and Good Luck to All!   A footnote for my readers Today... I'm sorry about being so long winded in my blog!


UPDATE   Ran Last sums up my day ....... Hit 2 place
                  tickets and lost my 2 pick three tickets..
                  always tomorrow....... think positive!!


Race 1          One Mile Sixteenth Claimer (8K)
It is a low level of plodder's without much pace and is void of speed as we start Thursday's card! The one exception might and I say might be the exception because honestly I cannot trust the lot of them. Super Harmony might take them gate to wire. Premiere Flyer is the one to fear putting on blinkers and has finally found a group of plodder's that he might close down the lane with today in the opener. I like the youngest the 4 year old adding blinkers in a coin flip with Super Harmony.

                                1. Super Harmony  2.Premiere Flyer


Race 2          Six Half Furlong Maiden (40K)
Princess Beau K exits a key maiden race for 25k. Ten Salty Sally last week faced winners for the first time and won a semi low level claiming race. A positive move on the trainers part to jump her up 2 levels. She will be overlooked by the public. Please do not take her lightly. She's a Lion drops from a state restricted Maiden Special Weight to try the waters of the maiden claiming level. She appears to me that maybe she does not relish the cushion track. Her best races are at Santa Anita! Ready For Crowds a Harris ranch filly trained by Harrington drops shortens up to a sprint and has some tactical speed.  
The Off Spring of Salt Lake Girlwithegoldhoof might have found a field she can close down the stretch. She looks to me to be the one to beat today!


                     1. Girlwithegoldhoof   2 Princess Beau K


Race 3          One Mile Sixteenth Allowance Optional Claimer

One Track Mind might be sent to the lead by Hall of Fame Mike Smith today in this tough Optional Claimer for 80K.  He shortens up in distance today and all signals suggest "Catch me if you can." Never is one tough customer and never has ran a dull race. This 4 year old colt posted the highest speed number in this field. Moreover, the distance seems ideal for Never to catch the rabbit and close down the stretch. Spurrier has posted excellent morning work outs for Bob Baffert. I love the long June 5 furlongs drills. His 2 race coming off the bench and is a Major Contender in this short tough field. Blue Chagall is the class of the race and drops out of Graded Stakes Company. This move by Julio C to change surfaces from turf to cushion track and put blinkers on might just do the trick.

                      $20 Place On Never

                     Pick three
                     4th  All except Brother Louie
                     5th  1,5,7
                     6th  Timezone 
                     cost of ticket $18

 
Race 4          One Mile Turf Starter Allowance
Eze Does It takes the blinkers off and finished 3rd in a fast first time turf race. I expect he should be fit and ready today as one of the contenders  Galleta Monstruo took a big gamble when he entered into the waters of the maiden claimer field. He did not get claimed and his purchase price as a yearly was 240K. Go figure! I was impressed with his easy victory for 40k. He is a contender and has turf pedigree top to bottom looking at his route race 2 back. Blanc is up and might be the one to fear down the stretch. Lyons Barton switches to turf and stretches out and in my opinion looks like he can handle both unknown questions today. This is a tough starter allowance! Come in Almighty had to need his last race and ran a respectable 4th behind Ez Does It. I expect with a race under his belt he will be more fit today as he is no pretender but is a contender also!
                     $20 Place on  3 Lyons Barton


Race 5          Five Half Sprint Maiden Special Weight
As I think I have said earlier in my blog today " Today's Card " is difficult... and this race is no exception.  A baby race sprint for two year old fillies. There is a number of first time starters that I like. The first filly is on the rail. Dolci  Domencia trained by Adam Kitchingman is a excellent trainer who sends them out fit and live first time out. He usually does not put fast blazing work out in the morning so please do not dismiss this filly because of the slow work out tab. Baffert, on the other hand, drills his stable with fire like speed in the morning. It is two different styles of training that's all.  A.Z. Warrior a Off Spring of A. P. Indy Out of Carson City which has the breeding of speed and comes out running first time out. Baffert has a string of babies by this sire and mare in his stable. Beware! Dan Hendricks usually has his stable fit and cranked up to fire first time out. Rigoletta, Out of a dam Montbrook and she just has three winners from three starters. It always a value bet when Mike Smith takes the first call on a horse. Hendricks and Smith has in the past teamed up with horses that fire first time out. Indian Gracey with the deadly team of Hoffendorfer  and Bejarano hook up and send this first time starter to the post. The sire Indian Ocean is hitting 16% with first time starters. Righteous Renee costs $210K and is the daughter of Dixie Union. She looks like she might be ready to dance with excellent morning work outs. Beware of the 2 bullets going 5 furlongs  she displayed from a outfit that might bet there horses.
The horse with speed and experience and was well bet in her debut is Royal Ancestry. If there is no monsters which it looks like to me there might be, Royal Ancestry is the horse to beat!

                   1.Righteous Renee 2.Dolci Domenica 3.Indian Gracey



Race 6          One Mile Turf Allowance Optional Claimer
Tough turf race to start the late pick three and this might be a race that we hit the "All" button. I usually do not like to do this but this race is hard to weed out the pretenders.  No that was a early 50's Do Wop tune in Mo Town. Enough Said! 
Timezone bred by Claiborne Farms by A.P.Indy Out of Unbridled a Blue Blood trained by Richard Mandella switches back to the turf and ran a respectable 3rd only losing by a head. I like the Six long drills she has posted since her last race. She looks ready and fit for a big performance and has the perfect racing style to close down the stretch. A Major Player! The rabbit in this field might just be the filly coming down from Golden Gate Fields. She ran some quality races as a two year old like the Oak Leaf at Oak Tree last year. She just might be a cut below some of these runners. Kaloula looks like the speed of this race. Sweet Hanni is going for her Hat Trick today and is one of the contenders to fear down the stretch. Holy Flapper is facing winners but exits a key maiden race in which two winners have come out of that race to win. A off spring of Holy Bull should love the distance of a mile. This leads me to two odd balls coming from races in Europe and have race at this circuit but the caveat here is that Importer usually need a race or two to fire a big performance. Kalanette fits that bill to a tee. She broke slowly and looks very green and she had to need her last race. Today she breaks from the outside post which is a slight concern in that she might lose ground on the first turn. Lastly, Hermera trained by J Hollendorfer and ridden by JR has not raced in three months and switches to the new surface today trying turf for the first time. She's bred top to bottom for the turf. 


                     1. Timezone

                      Let try this for a Pick three
                      6th  All
                      7th  2,3,6
                      8th  GivemeoneReason
                      Cost of Ticket $21


Race 7          Five half Furlong Claimer (16K)
Nine to Dine I have always like this horse because last year I got lucky and singled him in a semi big Poor man's pick four at Santa Anita and hit it!  As gambler's go......... we follow the horses that made us proud and Nine to Dine is one of those horses for me.
A Sassy Fusaichi looks to good to be true. This trainer has in the past has claimed for a higher price and drop them for a win. Why the for sale sign around his neck is a somewhat suspect angle. Pass! Dreams Afleet if fit coming off a seven month vacation has tactical stalking style that can close on the rabbits. Tyler Baze takes the call and he has been hot the first part of the meet and has mellowed out the last half. Except Friday Night! Kaylie's Joy loses Tyler but pick up Martin "I can do no wrong" Garcia. Kaylie's Joy is better on the cushion track then on turf. She has speed and might just go wire to wire.

                               1. Dream's Afleet  2. Nine to Dine 3.K's Joy

Race 8          Six Furlongs Turf Maiden Special Weight
Maybe the most difficult to handicap is 3 year old fillies. But at this late part of the season they do run much better to form then early in the year and not head cases like fillies can sometimes act like! I'm talking about fillies and not about the opposite gender women. Enough Said!
There is a number of first time starters that look like runners. The off spring of In Excess which is firing at a rate of almost 20% with first time starter is Onenightin Beijing. She has a bullet on July 5th, is trained by Bob Baffert and his main man takes the call Martin Garcia. She looks like a runner to me! Malibu Pier trained by Carla Gaines and looks who's riding Bejarino is in the irons. A caveat with Malibu Pier she has not trained over the cushion track at Hollywood but instead posted all her workouts at Santa Anita gives me some concern. She does have a bullet at SA on July 5th. Lemony Fresh by Kingmambo out of Strawberry Road is bred top to bottom for the turf. She might need more distance then six furlongs. Elusive Cookies is well bred puts on blinkers for the first time and Gus Headley is hitting at a unreal rate of 43% when he puts blinkers on his horses for the first time. She has somewhat slow works but Headley works them that way. So please do not dismiss her so quickly. Plantium Mine has the speed which is always deadly and experience over this field. She was well bet her last time out and I expect today that she might go off the favorite. GivemeoneReason has excellent 2 year old speed numbers. She has tactical speed and she has been freshened up for seven months. She has ran with Excellent News,Switch, almost beat C mile C in her second race. If she is sound and fit and I say If, she is a major contender! Walther Solis and Brice Blanc team up together. Solis is excellent with babies. Blanc in my humble opinion might just be the best turf jockey at this colony.

               1.GivemeoneReason