Yesterday in the Rebel, I was happy to see the great performance by Optimizer. I remember when he broke his maiden at Saratoga and thought this horse was going to be something. He certainly has struggled, but yesterday he put on a great finish for place. He might not be a Derby contender, but he his going to be a solid 3YO.
Today, we head back to Gulfstream, and take a look at the G2 Honey Fox. It's a one mile turf event for fillies and mares 4YO and upwards. A big field of 12 has entered for a purse of $150,000. My favorite in this one is Romacaca. I admit I am biased to her for she scored some nice payouts for me at Monmouth during the "Survival at the Shore" tournament last summer. Hard to pass her up, but there are some interesting ladies in this one. Anyway enough of memory lane ...
Contenders:
#3 Romacaca ML 4/1
Won five in a row, before giving way in her last two. Four for eight on the GP turf, lifetime and this mare guns a nice consistent mid 90's Beyer's no matter where she runs. She is a graded winner, and has finished in the money at the G2 level. Canani puts Rocco on board, that has been an excellent connection with 44% wins at GP. I am biased towards her so she gets the top slot.
#8 Future Generation(IRE) ML 3/1
It's well known that Graded place horses from GB/IRE or France are dangerous on their first or second outing in America. She won her first start at GP in a $100OC event with a strong 93 Beyer. Clement has a solid record with horses who won their last start. Her running style fits this race and she'll be there at the end.
#9 La Reine Lionne ML 5/1
She is making her first G2 appearance after a solid effort in a G3 event here at GP. She has won two of four over GP turf, and her Beyer's are improving. The angle here is Chad Brown having a super meet, hits 26% on turf races and he keeps JohnnyV in the irons. She is another one that will be there at the end.
Dark Horse:
There are three of them in this race, #2 Bay to Bay and #7 Tapitsfly are worthy opponents. The one I like is #10 Entrustment ML 8/1.
This a pure angle play, she is shipping in from the SoCal with three straight loses in Graded events, new trainer with Marty Wolfson and a Jockey switch. She has shown the speed to run with these ladies and has been working well here at GP. Her mother won 5 of 14 over the turf and the change of venue might suit her well today. The last time she took five months off she won of the bench, granted allowance company is not G2, but she does respond to freshening. Last point, Wolfson hits 29% when he takes over a new horse. Interesting to watch her 4YO debut.
Bombs Away:
#5 Cumulonimble Ml 12/1
She is a lightly raced 6YO with a 7 for 15 record lifetime and 5 of 7 over turf. Overall she has been on the board 13 of 15. Her speed over the grass is comparable to the contenders, just not as consistent. Her first two races of the season were consistent and she tallied a win and a show. I like that Lezcano is back on board and Wayne Catalano is killing this meet with 29% win record. Her running style is versatile, and expect to sit in the middle. Would not surprise me to see her win.
Selections:
3 - 8 - 9
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